Formerly the site of the Royal Observatory (from 1958-1990), the site is now run by a charity as a…read morevenue for exhibitions, lectures and educational programmes. The renovated telescopes can be visited by the public, for school visits, and are used by colleges and astronomical societies. It makes a great fun-but-educational family day out. Most people associate the Royal Observatory with Greenwich, where it was founded by Charles II in 1675. It was increasingly recognised that London was not a good location due to light and atmospheric pollution, and the effects of vibrations from rising road and rail traffic. Plans were made to relocate the observatory in the 1930s; transfer began to the new site at Herstmonceux in 1947 and was completed in 1958. The complex of buildings was constructed to house three reflecting and three refracting telescopes in six domes, of brick and concrete with green copper domes and balustraded balconies, with adjoining support buildings, all set around a central ornamental pond. These are themselves classic examples of 1950s architecture. The telescopes were joined in 1967 by the giant 98-inch Isaac Newton Telescope (INT) once housed in the silver dome to the south of the main complex. The UK was never an ideal site for astronomical observations because of the preponderance of cloud, and over time, increasing light pollution from Eastbourne. The growth of cheap air travel in the 1960s enabled astronomers to travel to parts of the world with clearer skies and in 1984 the INT telescope was moved to the Canary Islands. Eventually, the decision was taken to close the site and move the remaining staff to the Institute of Astronomy at the University of Cambridge. The site reopened in its current guise in 1995 and the site, including the telescopes, was refurbished in 2004. Visitors now enter through the eastern grounds of Herstmonceux Castle (itself now a college of Queen's College, Ontario). Car parking is available in a small car park but in summer most park on the lawn in front. The ticket office at the entrance houses a small shop with merchandise aimed at children and young people, covering a range of scientific subjects. Numbers are limited, so advanced booking is strongly recommended. There are guided tours of the telescopes (which take about half an hour) and separate science demonstrations. The site has both indoor and outdoor hands-on activities for children (of all ages!) covering aspects of science and engineering - a bit like a small hands-on science museum. We found the volunteer staff to be friendly and knowledgeable, and the sessions were very interactive for the children. We happily spent a couple of hours there. There is a small cafe on site, serving drinks and a limited range of snacks. The site is on several levels and has a lot of steps and gravel pathways, but there are ramps for level access and a disabled toilet: more details are on the main website. Children must be accompanied and supervised by an adult at all times, and dogs are not admitted (except assistance dogs). As well as being open for general visits, there are periodic stargazing evenings: numbers are also limited for these and need to be booked in advance.

This is such an interesting place to take the kids for some star-gazing. They are so good at…read morekeeping everyone's attention on the go (things like this can get a bit boring). There's so many different night and daytime events on offer here and a lot of them depend on weather and, of course the stars but we had a great night there and got to see so many beautiful sights. There's a fantastic shop to pop into at the end of the day with some really interesting and informative books to buy.

Be warned you have to walk up a hill to get here but the views are great once you do and you will…read morefind yourself near the Prime Meridian a line that changes traveling forever. I've been to a lot of planetariums as my kid has an interest. I was expecting a lot of stars and space but gladly found this spot was all about longitude and latitude and how one instrument made traveling the ocean so much easier. I learned a lot here. Small but mighty in info. Make sure to take part in some of the free tours they offer to get the real historical point of view. Oh and make sure to be there at 1pm each day to see the ball drop. I won't explain as I will let you discover that on your own.

We hiked up the hill to the Royal Observatory but we decided not to pay the admission fee of about…read more£20. There is joint admission that includes the Royal Observatory and the Cutty Sark for £38. We did enjoy observatory park and the fantastic views of London. We also got to see the "ball drop" at 1pm which used to be how ships in the harbor could calibrate their clocks. Well worth the hike up the hill just for the view.

Embankment Pier is THE place to be for a big party…read more Most of the party boats in London either begin or end at Embankment Pier on the weekends, which is great because you can just catch the tube home afterwards from Embankment Station. Coming to Embankment you can also enjoy a short walk to Trafalgar Square and Covent Gardens. The pier also services restaurant boats and the regular public transport boats to the South Bank, Greenwich (for the Royal Observatory) and Tower Bridge (for the Tower of London).

LAST WEEK!! Get down here!…read more It's the pop up that popped up in May, then why and how have I only just visited? I wish I had gone earlier so it couldn't been my summer haunt. This is an elaborate venue. All the fun of the fair with a circus/freakshow feel about it with olde posters donning every wall. Candy floss, sweets. fair ground rides, actual freak show, theatre and lots and lots of bars. There's ample outside and covered seating. Subtly lit in the darkness you could see couples making out in some of the outside booths and friends perching together in stationary bumper cars. The atmosphere was chilled and upbeat. On a date night with the mrs, we booked ourselves in for Fasinating Aida. I would highly recommend you all do the same. Book yourself in for this topical musical comedy and enjoy the quirky atmosphere before it disappears at the end of the month.

Well, we booked in to see The Tiger Lilies and we didn't really get it. All around us were people…read morewho had come to worship at the feet of their heroes...and us. We didn't really get it ....however the spiegeltent is fab and the south bank is the place to be on a Saturday night! It's good to try something new...even if you don't get it!

I've been using their products for 10 years (see my Yelp profile pics) = all SG products. I do mix…read moreand match the colors to make my own. It's one of the few brands, aside from Mac, that actually agrees with my skin. The problem is that there is only two stores in Vancouver that carries this product. One of them doesn't have an extensive line and the other, due to location of the company, only gets shipments in semi-seasonally. This was once a problem a few years ago when I decided to dress as Mcphisto (Bono's alter ego on the Zoo TV Tour) for the 360 tour. I needed white hypo allergenic face make-up, therefore, had to order it in.