I arrived in London May 1997 with a suitcase full of memories from world travels, a contact list of friends scattered all around the globe and a best friend. Fresh from the final assignment of my ship years where I had completed a world cruise, London was my city of dreams. With no job and little knowledge of this city I knew it was going to be an adventure, but quite what it had in store I had no idea.
During the 22 years I’ve had the pleasure to call London home, the city has completely transformed, I guess as with many cities around the world with the onset of globalisation and the digital revolution.
In the early years I lived in the real East End of London - Bethnal Green. I worked next to the railway arches, avoided the Salmon & Ball, but loved the Cock & Comfort. I remember getting Bagels on Brick Lane after clubbing and stumbling upon the cool raw market called Spitalfields, at a time when it was in threat of being knocked down, and a very unique restaurant called Le Trois Garçon was just opening.
After a few years I was given the opportunity to rent a flat from a friend in the Square Mile on Middlesex Street, AKA Petticoat Lane, just a stone throw from Liverpool Street and Spitalfields. Back then, after the bankers left the bars on Friday evenings the only place that was open was the Tesco Metro, until the markets all set up at the crack of dawn on Sundays.
My home was on the 16th floor and I remember watching a strange, curved building appear on the skyline and block out my view or The Tower Of London. This building became known to everyone as The Gherkin.
I saw in the new millennium living here and I often look back, maybe with rose tint glasses, and think of these years as some of the favourite years I had in London - in my late 20’s at the end of the millennium living the dream in London.
Once I hit my 30’s I realised I needed to take some responsibility and look at buying a home rather than renting. I moved out to the Docklands to a new build, and although my new home was more that I could have dreamed of, I spent many years pining my old life back on Petticoat Lane.
But before I knew it I’d lived in the Docklands for over 15 years, and had a home that really felt like a home. Months turned into years and a soulless new build slowly became my home with heart and soul, and somewhere to retreat to when the craziness of London crept up.
June 2019 was the end of an era as I moved my life to New York City to start new adventures, in a new city, with fresh hopes and dreams. Even with the total excitement of a new chapter, leaving London is still hard - but for sure the time is right.
While reflecting back on some of my favourite photos I’ve taken of London over the years I look forward to photographing my new home city…
