1. Eden Street bus stop

There is a lot to see in Kingston and much of it has been covered in previous blogs. The 131 goes near Kingston Memorial Gardens which are pretty central to the town. The green area is small but quite pretty with a war memorial to commemorate those soldiers who fell in both world wars. The memorial is of a bronze figure of a man, with a sword in one hand and a torch in the other, trampling a serpent underfoot and sheltering two children behind him.

There are also many old tombs at the back of the gardens, a sign that this site was once a burial ground, going back as far as 1826. Adjacent to the gardens is a timber framed mock Tudor building, now a shop selling candles and bath oils, amongst other things.

Walking back to the bus stop, you’ll come across one of many of Gillie and Marc’s sculptures that are dotted around not just Kingston but other parts of south London. This one is called “The Giant Tortoise and Rabbitwoman loved the sound of the wild”. Giant tortoises in the wild are in danger of extinction while rabbitwoman wants to help us find joy in nature and to rekindle our connection with the wild. Highly symbolic and imaginative. You’ll also walk past the Bentall Centre – The original department store’s 1935 façade designed by Maurice Webb has been retained and is very eye-catching.

2. Kingsmeadow bus stop

Opposite the stop is the Kingsmeadow Ladies football stadium and is used for home matches by Chelsea Women and Chelsea Development Squad. The stadium has four stands and a capacity of 4,850. AFC Wimbledon played at the stadium from their foundation in 2002 until their move to a new stadium in 2020. In November 2015, AFC Wimbledon supporters backed a proposal to sell the ground to Chelsea, who were interested in using the ground for its youth and women’s teams.

3. Wellington Crescent bus stop

This bus stop is in the suburb of New Malden and is known as “Little Korea” or “New Mal-Dong” , being home to the largest Korean community in Europe, with an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 Korean residents. So it’s no surprise that there is a church known as Calvary Korean Church, set along the main Kingston Road. The church is in a large detached house and has a welcome board outside. Not being a Korean-speaker, it’s difficult to know what it says but it looks like service times for local Koreans to this part of London.

4. Shannon Corner/Rookwood Avenue bus stop

Walk a few minutes and you’ll find yourself at Blagdon Bridge, over Beverley Brook. On occasion, it’s possible to see trout swimming in the water beneath the bridge and see kingfishers in the nearby trees. It’s a surprisingly popular spot for passers-by to stay and look at the water, perhaps hoping to see some of the wildlife. The name Beverley Brook comes from Beaver’s Ley, which means place where Beavers rest, an indication that this river was once home to this now rare species.

5. West Barnes Level Crossing bus stop

There really are only a handful of level crossings left in the London area and this is one of them. It’s for this reason that I chose to add this stop on the 131 route, as it’s only a matter of time before all level crossing become obsolete. This crossing has Public Highway manually controlled barriers (locally monitored by CCTV) in operation to ensure safety of traffic and trains. The West Barnes Level Crossing is served by trains on the South Western Railway’s main line to Waterloo and if you’re lucky (as I was), you get to see trains going in both directions at the same time, when the barriers are down.

6. Merton Abbey bus stop

There’s a lovely green open space near this stop called Wandle Park. It lies along the river Wandle and was once the site of Wandlebank House which had been built in 1791 by James Perry and owned by him until 1821. The house was demolished in 1962. The land has been a public park since 1907 and is managed by the National Trust. In 1910 the Mill Pond Garden was added, purchased by public subscription.

A 3-sided stone drinking fountain at the southern end of the park commemorates the opening and has a plaque with inscriptions on three sides, one of which is as follows: ‘This garden is given for the enjoyment of the people of Wimbledon and Merton in memory of John Feeney of Birmingham and Berkswell, one who loved nature and his fellow men’. There is another drinking fountain erected in memory of Robert Bloomfield Fenwick, who had lived at Wandle Park from 1867-1895 and was instrumental in the building of All Saints Parish Church. It also commemorates Harry Polland Fenwick, his father in-law.

7. Tooting Broadway station bus stop

This is the last stop on the route and although other routes go through the area (see bus routes 127, 77, 57 and 44) there are still new places to see. Walk round to see the old Mitre Hotel, now the Long Bar and Hotel. It started out as an 18th century inn that was rebuilt in 1906. As an old coaching inn, it would have needed stables for the horses and it’s thought that many charabanc rides started from the Mitre. There is still a stables yard at the back of the hotel though these days, it’s used to accommodate offices.

Just up the road from the hotel is Café Olé, a welcome change from the chain coffee shops. Lots of organically sourced ingredients for their pastries and meals and the atmosphere is warm and welcoming.

Now walk towards the two internal Tooting markets and you’ll walk past St Boniface Primary school, where the safety barriers are large metal pencils in primary colours. It’s very effective and I’m sure prevents any accidents outside the school. Opposite Tooting Market in Totterdown Street is a wall full of cheery murals, by street artist Irony.

Then step inside the market and be struck by the senses of smells and sights to delight you as you walk along the different streets inside. Next door to this is Broadway Market – both markets were created in the 1930s when the local area was converted into a housing estate. Tooting is the smaller of the two while Broadway has at least 90 stalls, many of which are food stalls. In the latter, a lot of the shops have beautiful painted artwork on the shutters.

Outside Tooting Broadway station is a statue of Edward VII, having been erected in 1911 to commemorate his reign 1901-1910. It was originally in the central island opposite the station, probably next to the gas lamps that are still there. It’s rather majestic – as it should be – and is a definite meeting place, being in such a prominent position. The gas lamps have been in place since the 19th century and are formed by a cluster of five ornate lamps with the cast iron supporting structure serving as a four-way signpost.

I found this route one of the more mundane. This is possibly quite unfair as much of the route has been followed and written up about in previous blogs, in particular all the places in Kingston which are really magnificent. It’s inevitable that there are overlaps in the different routes so my lesson from this is just to keep doing what I’m doing and where I can, find new places to see. And don’t get too hung up or disappointed if I can’t find anything new and fascinating.

Toilets that are open to the public and free:

• Kingston station
• Bentall centre
• Café Olé
• The Long Room and Hotel
• Tooting and Broadway Markets