The East End of London is one of the most vibrant modern and up-and-coming parts of the city. Rich in history and culture, it used to be known as the poor half of London, but today its industrial architecture attracts urban professionals and large media companies, which live alongside its traditional residents.

Some of the most common imagery associated with the East End comes from its violent and dangerous past, when poverty and depression lead to crime and alcoholism.

The real life Jack the Ripper and the fictitious Sweeny Todd, both cold hearted murderers, are two of the East End’s most famous ex-residents. More recently the East End found fame for its gangland associations to figures such as the Kray Twins, and this image is continues to be encouraged by the British Film Industry through directors such as Guy Richie, whose modern gangster movies have continued this theme.

The truth, however, is that the modern East End is a busy and bustling home to millions of ordinary people who have about as much in common with gangsters as they do with Lapland Reindeer farmers, and your chances of seeing either in East London are about as common. 

To get around this part of town you are going to have to make sure that you have a good map. Transport links are straightforward on the London Underground, you can use either the Central and Northern lines, or the Docklands Light Railway; local buses connect central London well.

Pie & Mash

One piece of authentic London culture that still does survive in this part of town is Pie and Mash, a traditional cockney meal that has been deserted over the years, but is starting to make a comeback thanks to celebrities such as David Beckham who is known to be a fan.

Pie & Mash ‘Shops’ (as they are known) traditionally serve only meat pies, mashed potato, stewed or jellied eels and liquor (a thick parsley sauce ) if you want to be really authentic wash it down with a can of Tizer and a cup of sweet milky tea.

Those of you who wish to try Pie & Mash might find it hard to locate a good ‘shop’ to have some; a well recommended one is Clarke’s, 46 Exmouth Market, Finsbury, London EC1.

Brick Lane

This is a long street that runs from Bethnal Green to Whitechapel High Street; Aldgate East is another close underground station.

Brick Lane is also known as ‘Bangla Town’ because it is has been the heart of the Bangladeshi Community in London for many years. It is famous as one of the best places in London to eat curry and there are hundreds of Asian restaurants lined along the street.

Curry is officially the most popular food in the UK, although don’t be fooled into thinking that this is authentic Asian cuisine; a lot of it is a sort of Anglo-Indian hybrid developed over the years for British tastes. It is best washed down with lots of cold beer.

Weekends are particularly busy along Brick lane as hundreds flock to sample the tastes of Britain’s ‘curry capital’. It really is a very authentic British experience however strange this might seem to visitors.

Long before the Bangladeshi influence took over Brick Lane the street played host to other immigrant communities from Huguenots in the 17th century to Jewish settlers in the 19th. Each group arrived in London and found work in the weaving houses along Brick Lane, known locally as “the rag trade”.

This tradition still survives albeit on a small scale, but you can visit Brick Lane market at weekends where you will find a huge range of stalls selling new and second hand clothes.

But the newest wave of arrivals to Brick Lane are young British artists whose work is exhibited in the new galleries along the street. Together with the good bars and restaurants they combine to make Brick Lane one of the best places in London to go for a night out.

Spitalfields Market

About half way along Brick Lane you will come to signs for Spitalfields Market, this is one of London’s best in-door places for shopping eating and watching live street performers.

Regenerated in 2005, the area now has new public spaces, Bishop’s Square and Crispin Place, and is full of unique shops selling interesting clothes, furniture and art.

This is also a great place to head for evening entertainment as there are a number of good bars, restaurants and music venues surrounding the market. Alternatively you can just catch some of the free street performers that earn their pennies by entertaining passersby.

Columbia Road Flower Market

This wonderful market is open throughout the year from 8 am to 1 pm every Sunday. The whole street is transformed into an explosion of colours and aromas as gardeners and florists meet up to buy and sell; this is a great experience enjoyed my many Londoners every week.

Whether you are looking for plants, shrubs, bulbs or exotic flowers from around the world, even if you are just looking for a nice place to spend Sunday morning, having a coffee and a walk around, then this is the place for you.

In total around 50 pitches and 30 shops are open at this time and it gets very busy, particularly on sunny mornings.  You will also find a pottery here where you can have items made for you to order.

Shoreditch

This is a very popular part of town with young media types; full of trendy cocktail bars and nightclubs and surrounded by expensive apartments.

The area was a pretty run down part of town before it was colonised by poor artists in the 1980s, attracted by the warehouse style studios and cheap rents.

The usual thing happened and, as the artists became more successful, the area grew in popularity and the property developers quickly moved in, remodelling the rough and ready warehouses to create fashionable New York style loft apartments.

Although the area is still proud of its links to the new wave of British artists, such as Damien Hirst and Tracy Emin, very little evidence of this highly creative period in British art history remains, except for the presence of large numbers of expensive contemporary art galleries.

Today this area is a destination for clubbers and party-goers, with an endless amount of pubs, bars, clubs and restaurants to choose from. Just head to Old Street underground station and follow the crowds along Old Street.

The Docklands & Canary Wharf

Nestled out on its own peninsula, the Isle of Dogs, Canary Wharf dominates the London skyline with its vast steel and glass skyscrapers.This is London’s rival business district to the City of London and home to some of the richest companies on the planet.

Although the Docklands is primarily a business and residential area, it is an interesting place to visit just because of the sheer scale of the building work that has taken place in recent years. The skyscrapers perch perilously close to the river - with canals and waterways running throughout the whole complex - and thousands of people come and go immersed in the hustle and bustle of modern living.

Just next door to the skyscrapers is Billingsgate, London’s biggest fish market, the supplier of fine seafood to the city’s many fish and sushi restaurants; some of which you will be sure to taste in the many eateries catering for the workers of Canary Wharf.

This is one of London’s major engine rooms; a place where more money gets made in a day than some cities make in a decade.  The locals that live in the surrounding high rises might look on bemused at so much wealth on display in an area famed for its austerity, which is understandable, but it still remains a powerful symbol of the wealth and power that London generates, not just for itself but for the country as a whole.

East London

As you head out of these central areas and head east along Mile End Road; this takes you past Bethnal Green towards Stratford, home of the 2012 Olympics.

This whole area incorporating Hackney in the north and Bow to the south is currently in a state of regeneration, with billions being spent on upgraded transport, new facilities for local residents, and improved housing.

The area remains a densely populated part of the city with lots of modern social housing, consisting of prefabricated tower blocks.

This is due to the fact that the most of the East End of London was destroyed during World War II and rapid construction was needed after the war to house the millions of families left homeless by the bombs.

There are still interesting places, not least the strange sight of a street of old Victorian terraced houses standing alone amongst the towering concrete buildings surrounding them, and the community spirit still remains inside the local pubs of many areas.

Victoria Park is found nearby; where regular concerts from some of the world’s most famous acts are held throughout the summer. Hackney is also enjoying a slow and gradual regeneration as more and more wealth comes into the area, as evidenced by the increase in independent shops and restaurants. The presence of the Olympics is of huge significance to the local area as the government has pledged to make regeneration an important part of London’s Olympic heritage.

There is no doubt that social deprivation remains in many parts of East London, but gradually and continuously the area slowly improves and there is still much to see for those of you looking for something more than just a glimpse at London’s most common tourist attractions.

John HIllman