Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
17
Diana Fountain
Daily: March & Oct 10am-5.45pm; April & Sept 10am-6.45pm; May-Aug 10am-7.45pm; Nov-Feb 10am-3.45pm • Free •
!
Knightsbridge or Lancaster Gate
Close to the Lido is the
Diana Fountain
, a memorial to the Princess of Wales, which
opened in 2004
.
Less of a fountain, and more of a giant oval-shaped mini-moat, the
intention was to allow children to play in the running water, but, after three people
suffered minor injuries, the fountain has been fenced off and supplied with security guards,
making it rather less fun for kids, who are now o
cially only allowed to dabble their feet.
More fun is the
Diana Memorial Playground
, in the northwest corner of Kensington
Gardens, featuring a ship stuck in sand, paving gongs and other groovy playthings.
Kensington Gardens
Daily 6am to dusk •
T
020 7298 2141,
W
royalparks.gov.uk •
!
Lancaster Gate, Queensway or High Street Kensington
The park's more tranquil half, west of the West Carriage Drive, is known as
Kensington
Gardens
, and is, strictly speaking, separate from Hyde Park, though the only difference is
that Kensington Gardens locks its gates at dusk. More exclusive because of the nearby
royalty at Kensington Palace, the gardens were first opened to the public in George II's
reign, but only on Sundays and only to those in formal dress, not including sailors, soldiers
or liveried servants. Unrestricted access was only granted in Victoria's reign, by which time,
according to the Russian ambassador's wife, the park had already been “annexed as a
middle-class rendezvous. Good society no longer [went] there except to drown itself ”.
Long Water
The upper section of the Serpentine - beyond the bridge - is, of
cially, actually known
as the
Long Water
, and is by far the prettiest section of the lake. It narrows until it
reaches the lovely
Italian Gardens
, which boasts a group of five fountains, laid out
symmetrically in the 1860s, in front of a pumphouse disguised as an Italianate loggia.
Pet Cemetery
To the east of the Italian Gardens, by Victoria Gate, lies the odd little
Pet Cemetery
,
begun in the 1880s when Mr and Mrs J. Lewis Barnes buried their Maltese terrier,
Cherry, here. When the Duke of Cambridge buried his wife's pet hound at the same
spot after it had been run over on Bayswater Road, it became
the
place to bury your
pooch; three hundred other cats and dogs followed, until the last burial in 1967. The
cemetery - “perhaps the most horrible spectacle in Britain”, according to George
Orwell - is no longer open to the public, though you can peep over the wall.
Serpentine Gallery
Daily 10am-6pm; Teahouse mid-June to mid-Oct • Free •
T
020 7402 6075,
W
serpentinegallery.org •
!
Knightsbridge or South Kensington
In the southeast corner of the park stands the
Serpentine Gallery
, built as a tearoom in
1908 because the park authorities thought “poorer visitors” might otherwise cause
trouble if left without refreshments. An art gallery since the 1960s, it has a reputation
for lively, and often controversial, contemporary art exhibitions, and contains an
ROYAL GUN SALUTES
At noon in Hyde Park on February 6 (Accession Day), April 21 (Queen's Birthday) and
November 14 (Prince of Wales's Birthday), the Royal Horse Artillery wheel out cannons and
the park resounds to a 41-round
Royal Gun Salute
. If a date falls on a Sunday, then the
salute takes place the next day. Further gun salutes take place in Green Park, on 2 June
(Coronation Day), 10 June (Duke of Edinburgh's Birthday), at 11.08am for the State Opening
of Parliament (in early May) and at 11am on the Queen's of
cial birthday (a variable date in
June), as well as for o
cial State visits.
