MISS ELAINEOUS VISITS 18 STAFFORD TERRACE...

18 Stafford Terrace is the sister museum to Leighton House, and is spitting distance away.  Again, I discovered its existence only very recently, although after a little investigation, I realised that I probably have seen the inside of this house as it has featured on a couple of the history programmes I like to watch.

Formerly known as Linley Sambourne House, this building was the residence of Punch illustrator Edward Linley Sambourne (1844-1910).  He decorated the house in the Aesthetic style; meaning beauty for beauty's sake and making something look visually pleasing, rather than using art as a means of social-political comment.  He was an ancestor of Antony Armstrong-Jones (1930-2017) who went on to marry Princess Margaret.

I was allowed to take photographs but couldn't use a flash (grr!) which meant that the rooms were seen in silhouette and I couldn't get a decent picture of what is, in my opinion, the house's finest asset- its lovely decorated windows.

This lamp reminds me of a dress!

Dining table.

Mantelpiece.

Mirror- weird selfie time!

The hallway was quite unusual in that it had a fireplace in it.  This was considered very posh.

Hall mirror.  I wasn't best please with the selfie aspect, as I was feeling a bit shabby (and not in a chic way!) and in need of a serious hair wash.

Beautiful window with a shell display.

Another mirror... Another scabby moi...

Table and mantelpiece.  The Victorians liked to show off their memorabilia.

Closer view...

The large living room, which was originally two rooms.

Onwards and upwards...

The main bedroom; a shrine to clutter...

Study of a bedroom sink with a reflection of a scarecrow(!)

This family were clearly vain, as mirrors abounded in the house.  Mind you, I'm not one to talk- despite feeling less than best, my phizog appears all over these pictures!

The other bedroom...

I love this bust.  It looked clean and neat in a house which was, quite frankly, a bit of a junk shop.

Mirror time, again...

This bathroom also doubled as a photographic studio.

Bathroom sink.

This uppermost room was, I believe, designated for use as a library.

The maid's room.  Much simpler.

Back downstairs, taking in some of the sketches on the wall.

Back in the main, large room and here are some vases which I liked...

Another mirror!  This time in the khazi...

The khazi...

Lovely toilet vase...

There are some attractive objects d'art here, but you really have to hunt for them, as the Victorians REALLY liked their clutter- too much so, for my taste.  I know they had servants to clean said junk but, even so, I couldn't live with so much of it as it makes me feel hemmed in.  I find these kind of places a bit oppressive.

With this house, it's what you don't see that's as interesting as what you do see.  Before the tour, you are treated to a lovely film about the history of the collection, which is shown in what was the kitchen.  The toilets are in what was the pantry and coal shed.   I know it isn't possible, but I would have loved to have seen these recreated, to give an inkling of what life was like below stairs.  It must be the peasant in me!

MISS ELAINEOUS VISITS LEIGHTON HOUSE MUSEUM...

It happens to Londoners too- I didn't get off at the wrong stop, oh no, I got on totally the wrong Tube line!  There's me looking out for High Street Kensington and it didn't appear.  Luckily, I used to live in West London, very much nearby, and had my trusty map with me, so I jumped off at West Kensington and walked through to Holland Park.

Once again, I had one of those, 'Why couldn't I have done this when I lived in Hammersmith?' moments.  It's only up the road but, then again, I hadn't even heard of this place until I stumbled across details on the internet recently (by accident).

Leighton House Museum was the London home and studio of Frederic, Lord Leighton (1830-1896).  A lifelong bachelor, he lived alone and was heavily associated with the Pre-Raphaelites.  The museum contains both his own work and pieces by other artists.

Photography is not allowed in the house (something I find very annoying, especially in this day and age of mobile phones, when people can take sneaky pictures anyway).

The Arab Hall displays Leighton's collection of tiles, brought back from the Middle East.

Here are some PDFs, but do try and visit, as words cannot explain how peaceful it is inside the beautiful hall, listening to the gentle water of the fountain flowing, staring at the thick stained glass windows and taking in the lovely cerulean/ kingfisher/ cobalt blue of the tile designs.

The gracious view up the stairs.

Dining room.

Leighton's study.

Leighton's studio.

At the top of the stairs was my favourite painting, inspired by a poem by Pre-Raphaelite artist, Dante Gabriel Rossetti.  It is by John Byam Shaw and is called Silent Noon.

I was allowed to take photographs outside, big whoop (sarcasm)!

Here is the back garden.

The Middle Eastern theme follows through with this amphora urn.

Bowery.

Fountain.

Statue and flower beds.

Another amphora urn.  This really was an elegant garden, but I did have to crop out the bin!

The entrance hall is worth a look and, if you're into art you'll enjoy this artist's house museum.

MISS ELAINEOUS VISITS THE POSTAL MUSEUM...

The Postal Museum is in the Clerkenwell area of London, next to the Mount Pleasant Mail Centre and post office.  Occupying two sites, over the road from the museum section is Mail Rail, the world's first driverless mail system, which ran from 1927-2003.

From 2017, it has been possible to travel around a loop of the old track (formerly disused but well-maintained) in specially adapted- albeit cramped- carriages.

Here is the train on the platform...

People getting off the Lilliputian train...

A VERY cramped SuperDean.  The track was designed to hold trains full of mail, not people!  There wasn't much space for me (my big hair touched the roof!) and I'm only 5'4".

Inside the train...

I didn't get many decent photographs as I wanted to pay attention rather than see life through a lens.  The ride was mostly on the dark side, and I don't have good enough equipment to photograph at high speed anyway.

The ride was narrated and informative, though, with a recreation of a power cut, details of what happened when the River Fleet once flooded the tunnel and video shows at certain sections, such as this timeline, below.  We also got to stop at a platform, with a digital recreation regarding what the job of unloading and loading the trains was about.  We saw a lower section which was a train graveyard. 

We stopped at this point, and could see a tunnel sneaking off to one side.  The Mail Rail covered more than one area of London.

I found the ride quite claustrophobic and there is a digital simulation, with headphones, of the whole journey for those who don't wish to (or cannot) do the ride.  Once off the train, this section also had other exhibits, such as these old trains...

Time was utilised well and, once the mail was on the 'regular' train, postal workers sorted it so that the mail bags were ready to move on to their next destination.  There is a recreation where you can sort the mail yourself.  I had a go, and here's a photo of the labelled mail pockets...

In the other section of the museum, the history of the postal system is explained.  Did you know that the first mail boxes were green?  Nope, neither did I!

These were abolished, as they blended into the countryside too well...

Originally, mail was delivered by carriage...

The Penny Farthing... The beginning of two-wheeled deliveries.

You don't see many old phone boxes nowadays...

Who remembers how to use a phone with a round dial?  I do!

I never knew that these air mail boxes had ever existed...

Post boxes have the initials of the reigning monarch on the front.  If they go in for repair and are found to be outdated, then they get updated with the relevant insignia.  This is a rare Edward VIII post box.

Edward VIII stamps...

A George V post box...

This post box was painted gold to commemorate the Olympics, in 2012...

I'd never seen a mail bus before...

There are lots of other interesting things to see and do.  Dean (successfully) operated a simulation of the mail train control system and I sent a message by pneumatic telegraph.  You also get to see sections regarding things like: mail which got sunk on the Titanic, mail during both the wars and how to create a stamp, so it's definitely not a few hours wasted.

We popped into Pizza Pilgrims, on nearby Exmouth Market for a Hawaiian.  As it's controversial (not Italian) we had to vote for whether we wanted it to stay on the menu or not.  We voted YEEEESSSS!!!!

Charles Dickens lived in this area from 1837-1839 and that house is now the nearby museum; hence a pub dedicated to one of his David Copperfield characters.

Here is a London street photo, with The Shard and St. Paul's Cathedral in the background.

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