by A kebab shop in Kentishtown is not the first place you would come into contact with the most famous woman in the world. This tiny joint on the main street is plastered with laminated pictures of the menu, has a traffic jam outside the front door and serves food in cardboard boxes with a wooden fork. It is not Claridge’s.
But Taylor Swift liked him so much when she visited in 2017 she returned to film scenes for him Game End video here – Kentish Delight’s front window has photos taped to prove it. The popchebab megastar loves shish with chilli sauce, apparently, and has already pre-ordered for 45 people in June when she returns to London to play the O2.
It’s one of the more surprising spots to feature on ToursByLocals’ recent London Boy Tour, hoping to cash in on the influx of Swifties flocking to the capital this summer for tour dates the singer. It particularly appeals to tourists – mostly American – who have never ventured beyond the bright lights and big-ticket attractions of the capital to see where the real Londoners live.
Even though I signed up hoping to stroll down Bond Street or peek into the Savoy, I’ve stayed at the Swift hotel before when visiting the city. Certified tour guide and self-confessed Swiftie Susannah, 52, had other ideas.
“I wanted to focus on North London because she lived in this area and spent time here,” she explained at our meeting point outside Highgate Tube station. “Also, I wanted to rescue her song London boy a little. People were a bit snarky when it came out because she mentions Camden Market and pubs in Highgate, but you can actually have a very nice evening visiting those places.”
These days, Swift might be better known for Superbowl razzle-dazzle and private jets on tap, but in 2016 it was a different story. She was then dating British actor Joe Alwyn and lived in the UK off and on during their six-year relationship, even locking up Alwyn’s Crouch End flat. The often-derided London boy she tells the story of their romance, and how she loved “high tea, stories from university and the West End”.
Joe Alwyn’s neighborhood
The walking tour follows the story of the song, starting in leafy Highgate, where Alwyn’s parents live. The village is lovely to stroll around, and George Eliot and Karl Marx are among the names you might recognize at its graveyard. The tour continues past pastel shopfronts to the Flask, a 17th century pub opposite George Michael’s former home (lots of famous people live around here) where the couple came for London Pride fish and chips and beer.
The wild park where Swift loves to walk
From there, we walked on to Hampstead Heath, where Swift was often spotted while living in London and where her ex Harry Styles now regularly swims in the ponds.
Sadly, there was no sign of him as we passed the men’s pond and climbed muddy Parliament Hill for a panoramic view of the London skyline. From here, it’s certainly easy to see what attracted Swift (like many of the capital’s rich and famous) to this part of town.
North London Education
Of course, there’s nothing stopping avid Swifties from visiting all these places on their own. At a starting price of £340 for two, a ticket to a Swift concert would be half-expected to be thrown in, so budget-conscious fans may prefer to go solo. However, Susannah’s encyclopedic knowledge of the city and stream of curious details means that the three-and-a-half-hour tour is not just about ticking off Swift-centric locations, but getting to know a corner of the capital away from the mainland. – names of sights in central London.
It’s worth noting that it’s much better value if you book as a group of 10 for £500, and the tour can also be – sorry – “Taylor-ed” to accommodate on specific needs.
For me, we stopped outside Highgate School, where Gwyneth Paltrow once took Beyoncé on the school trip, we discovered the pub where one of the world’s first autopsies took place and we passed Witanhurst, the largest house in London after Buckingham Palace. Susannah mentioned the spot where Queen Victoria’s carriage once broke down, the house where Coleridge recovered from his opium addiction (later bought by Kate Moss), the fish and chip shop the Beatles used to frequent and the flat above a shop where Bill Moggridge is the first. laptop.
Where old flames flicker
Swifties love to see the Bull & Last pub, where Swift’s other ex, Tom Hiddleston, opened up about his breakup in a magazine interview. The food here is amazing, so it’s worth booking a table to come back and taste the likes of barbecued cod with shimeji mushroom, cavolo nero, crispy potatoes and trout caviar butter sauce; or well-done classics such as burgers, steaks and fish and chips.
Then there’s chichi Primrose Hill, where Swift and Alwyn finally moved into a £7 million house. You will recognize this area from classic London movies including bridget jones diary free, and Paddington. There’s even a stop at a stall in Camden Market selling Swift goods if you want to splash some more cash.
Filming locations of The End Game
However, the real interest for fans is the megabucks mansions in Hampstead and gritter Kentish Town. After a drink (included) at the Bull & Gate pub where the singers partied in the End Game video, we grabbed a kebab – with extra chilli sauce, Swift style – and headed to nearby Falkland Place, a path not there is a description of him that was also seen. the video. It’s no Big Ben, but for dedicated Swifties, it’s another chance to walk in the singer’s hallowed footsteps in the part of London she once called home. Even though three ex-boyfriends live within a mile of each other, it’s no wonder she eventually turned up and left.
ToursByLocals offers the 3.5-hour Taylor Swift’s London Boy tour from £340 for two, including drink and kebab.
Five more Taylor Swift hotspots in London
The Spaniards Inn, Hampstead
There is another pub in north London that is well worth booking a table at. Swift and Alwyn had their first public date at this cozy 16th century inn, with its walled patio, open fire and excellent Sunday roast. Keep an eye out if you visit: Harry Styles lives nearby and is a regular visitor.
Liberty, West End
Shop like a Swift by browsing luxury beauty products, accessories, clothing, homeware and more at this high-end department store on Regent Street. The superstar said in a magazine interview in 2015 that the inspiration for her song Clean came to her while walking out of the store.
Hotel St. Pancras Renaissance, King’s Cross
This hotel is famous for being the filming location of the Spice Girls’ Wannabe videos – but I Don’t Wanna Live Forever, Swift’s collaboration with Zayn for the Fifty Shades Darker soundtrack, was also not on camera here. The historic railway hotel is home to the Reservations Office 1869 bar, in the former ticket hall – book a table for a cocktail and you’ll see the entrance to the hotel, featured in both videos, as well as That Staircase .
Millennium Bridge, Thames
Another location featured in the End Game video. Swift is filmed in the middle of the empty bridge that connects Bankside to the City at night with St Paul’s Cathedral lit up behind her. However, you’ll need to move quickly if you want to recreate the same shot without tourist deposits in the background.
Alice’s, Portobello Road
This is another favorite shopping spot for Swift, who is said to have once spent £30,000 in a five-minute visit to the antiques dealer in West London. The shop is even specially closed so that the singer can browse in peace the vintage housewares, porcelain collections and quirky furnishings.
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