A kebab shop in Kentish Town isn’t the first place you associate with the most famous woman in the world. This small, simple restaurant on the main street is covered with laminated photos of the menu, the traffic jams its horn at the front door and serves food in cardboard boxes with a wooden fork. It’s not Claridge’s.
Still, Taylor Swift loved it so much when she visited in 2017 that she returned to film scenes for her Endgame video here – there are pictures taped to the windshield of Kentish Delight to prove it. The pop megastar apparently likes a shish kebab with chilli sauce and has already placed a pre-order for 45 people in June when she returns to London to play the O2.
It’s one of the more surprising spots on the recently launched London Boy Tour brought to you by ToursByLocals, hoping to cash in on the influx of Swifties arriving in the capital this summer for the singer’s tour dates. It particularly appeals to tourists – mainly Americans – who have never ventured beyond the bright lights and expensive attractions of the capital to see where real Londoners live.
Even I had signed up expecting a stroll down Bond Street or a look at the Savoy, a hotel Swift has previously stayed in while 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. ‘I also wanted to save her song London boy a little. People were a bit snarky when it came out for mentioning Camden Market and pubs in Highgate, but actually you can have a really nice afternoon visiting those places.
These days, Swift may be better known for his Superbowl dazzling and private jets on tap, but in 2016 it was a different story. She was then dating British actor Joe Alwyn and lived in Britain on and off during their six-year relationship, even spending lockdown at Alwyn’s Crouch End flat. The oft-mocked London boy tells the story of their romance, and how she loved ‘high tea, stories of university and the West End’.
Near Joe Alwyn
The walking tour follows the story of the song and starts in leafy Highgate, where Alwyn’s parents live. The village is beautiful to stroll around, while George Eliot and Karl Marx are some of the names you might recognize in the cemetery. The tour continues past pastel shopfronts to the Flask, a 17th-century pub opposite George Michael’s former home (many celebrities live here) where the couple stopped by for fish and chips and London Pride beer.
The wildlife park where Swift liked to walk
From there we walked on to Hampstead Heath, where Swift was often spotted when she lived 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 a muddy Parliament Hill for panoramic views of the London skyline. From here, it’s certainly easy to see what drew Swift (like many of the capital’s rich and famous) to this part of the city.
An education in North London
Of course, there’s nothing stopping dedicated Swifties from visiting all these places on their own. At a starting price of £340 for two people, I half expected to get a ticket to Swift’s concert included, so budget-conscious fans might prefer to go solo. However, Susannah’s encyclopaedic knowledge of the city and stream of quirky details ensure that the three and a half hour tour is not just about ticking off Swift-centric locations, but also about getting to know a corner of the capital, away from the big crowds. -Name landmarks in central London.
It’s worth noting that it’s much cheaper if you book as a group of 10 people for £500, and the tour can also be – sorry – “Taylor-ed” to suit specific requirements.
On mine we stopped outside Highgate School, where Gwyneth Paltrow once took Beyoncé on a school trip, discovered the pub where one of the world’s first autopsies took place, and passed Witanhurst, London’s largest house after Buckingham Palace. Susannah pointed out 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 visited and the flat above a shop where Bill Moggridge invented the first. Laptop.
Where old flames flicker
Swifties will love seeing the Bull & Last pub, where another of Swift’s exes, Tom Hiddleston, reflected on their split in a magazine interview. The food here is fantastic, so it’s worth booking a table to come back and taste grilled cod with shimeji mushroom, cavolo nero, crispy potato 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 eventually moved into a £7million house. You’ll recognize this area from classic London films, including The Diary of Bridget Jones And Paddington. There’s even a stop at a stall at Camden Market selling Swift merchandise if you want to spend more money.
The filming locations of End Game
However, the real thrill for fans lies far away from the megabucks mansions of Hampstead and in the grittier Kentish Town. After a (included) drink at the Bull & Gate pub where the singer partied in the End Game video, we grabbed a kebab – with extra chilli sauce, Swift style – and headed to nearby Falkland Place, a nondescript alleyway that also appeared in the video. It’s no Big Ben, but for dedicated Swifties it’s another chance to follow in the singer’s hallowed footsteps in the part of London she once called home. Even though there are three ex-boyfriends living within a mile of each other, it’s no wonder she eventually packed up and left.
ToursByLocals is offering the 3.5-hour Taylor Swift’s London Boy tour from £340 for two people, including a drink and a kebab.
Five more Taylor Swift hotspots in London
The Spaniards Inn, Hampstead
Another North London pub where it’s worth booking a table. Swift and Alwyn had their first public date at this cozy 16th-century inn, with its walled patio, open fire and excellent Sunday roasts. Keep your eyes peeled if you visit: Harry Styles lives nearby and is a regular visitor.
Freedom, West End
Shop like Swift by browsing luxury beauty products, accessories, clothing, homewares and more at this luxury department store on Regent Street. The superstar said in a 2015 magazine interview that the inspiration for her song Clean came to her as she was walking out of the store.
St Pancras Renaissance Hotel, King’s Cross
This hotel is famous as the legendary filming location of the Spice Girls’ Wannabe video, but I Don’t Wanna Live Forever, Swift’s collaboration with Zayn for the Fifty Shades Darker soundtrack, was also caught on camera here. The historic railway hotel houses the Booking Office 1869 bar, in the former ticket hall. Book a table for a cocktail and you’ll see the hotel entrance, which appears 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 illuminated behind her. However, you’ll have to act quickly if you want to recreate the same shot without large numbers of tourists in the background.
Alice’s, Portobello Road
This is another favorite shopping spot for Swift, who is rumored to have once spent £30,000 in a single five-minute visit to the West London antique dealer. The store is even closed especially so that the singer can browse through the vintage homeware, porcelain collections and quirky furniture in peace.
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