In the words of Shakespeare: "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players”. Well you could be mistaken for thinking all of modern day London is a movie set when you consider how many films have used its locations: from James Bond boat chases to Hugh Grant romcoms, London and its landmarks are icons of the silver screen. This 8km/5-mile walk from Vauxhall to London Bridge hugs the River Thames, passing the listed brutalist architecture of the Southbank – home to the National Film Theatre - and offering the kind of picture postcard views of the capital that get Hollywood filmmakers flocking with their clapperboards.
[1] Begin your walk at the corner of Wandsworth Road and Vauxhall Bridge Road (the top of the steps for Exit 1 on the subway system at Vauxhall Cross). Head towards the bridge and the river but turn left just before the river down a ramp to the Thames Path. At the bottom turn right and walk under Vauxhall Bridge, along the Thames Path with the river on your left, to the first building on your right next to the bridge.
(A)This is the MI6 building, which appears in many James Bond films, but most memorably in The World is Not Enough where the opening sequence sees Bond chasing a suspect from the building and down the Thames in a state-of-the-art, Q-engineered speedboat.
[2] Keep walking along the Thames Path with the river on your left for a mile or so, until you’re standing opposite the Houses of Parliament across the river.
(B)This well furnished and attractive stretch of the Thames Path has been used in many recent films, such as the Simon Pegg’s not-quite-believable marathon attempt in Run Fat Boy Run and Woody Allen’s mixed London-set thriller Match Point.
The tower next to the bridge on the far bank which houses the bell, Big Ben, is obviously one of the most iconic film locations in London, used in countless films like the pro-Scottish Stone of Destiny and the zombie-flick 28 Days Later. Mary Poppins and Peter Pan’s flying episodes would look a lot less interesting without it too.
Continue walking under Westminster Bridge and along the path to the London Eye.
(C) The once temporary but now permanent Millennium-celebratory ferris wheel is now regularly seen in a lots of recent films, perhaps most memorably in a terrific action scene in Fantastic Four: The Rise of the Silver Surfer, that saw the Thames drained away by a huge hole and the wheel tipping perilously close to the edge.
[3] Head along the riverside path to the South Bank buildings and pass the Festival Hall. The National Film Theatre on your right under Waterloo Bridge is the home of the British Film Institute or BFI.
(D) This stretch of the South Bank features prominently in Four Weddings and a Funeral as one of the many spots Hugh Grant bumbles his declarations of love for Andie MacDowell.
Turn immediately right and go up the steps leading onto Waterloo Bridge. Turn right at the top and cross the bridge taking a moment to look downstream and enjoy another of London’s iconic views towards Parliament. Descend the steps on the other side of the bridge to get back to river level and turn left along the Victoria Embankment. Go left into Temple Place, then turn left into Milford Place at the far end of Temple Place.
[4] Turn right through an open doorway into the Inns of Temple. Go up the steps you can see before you and continue straight ahead. Turn right into Fountain Court and continue straight across Middle Temple Lane into Pump Court.
You emerge into another courtyard with the late 12th-century Middle Temple Church built for the Knights Templar on your left.
(E) This recently featured prominently in the Da Vinci Code when Tom Hanks was searching for Sir Isaac Newton’s grave. The grounds in general can be seen in Robert De Niro’s CIA drama The Good Shepherd and less seriously in Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason.
Exit the courtyard straight ahead and turn right down Kings Bench Walk and exit the Inns of Temple via the gatehouse that leads to Tudor Street. Turn right into Temple Avenue and head towards the river. Cross Victoria Embankment and turn left to continue along the Thames Path with the river on your right until you reach the Millennium Bridge. Cross over to the other bank.
[5] The bridge provides a stunning view of Tate Modern in front of you and St Paul's Cathedral behind you.
(F) This site is becoming increasingly popular amongst filmmakers with films, appearing as a dystopian ‘Ark of the Arts’ in Clive Owen-led Children of Men and in Closer, in which Owen also starred.
At the bottom of the bridge, turn right and continue along the Thames Path with the river once again on your left. You shortly pass a replica of the Elizabethan Rose Theatre.
(G) This working theatre was used throughout Shakespeare in Love.
Turn right up Bank Street. You’re now entering Borough Market area. A market has been on or near this site since Roman times and as well as today selling food from all over the world the site also doubles as one of London’s most popular film sets. Follow Park Street as it bears left and ahead of you and you find yourself in front of the Paul Smith shop.
(H) This old warehouse site was the hideout used in the dizzying and bloody climax of Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.
Turn right into Stoney Street and look for a flower shop under one of the railway arches.
(I) You are confronted by what was once used as the entrance to ‘The Leaky Cauldron’ pub from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
Continue back along Stoney Street turning right into Winchester Walk and then right again into Cathedral Street.
[6] Halfway along you come to Green Dragon Court and are confronted by the Globe pub.
(J) Above the pub is where Bridget Jones had her unlikely flat in Bridget Jones’ Diary.
Exit Borough Market by turning left onto Borough High Street and London Bridge station is about 250 yards away on your right.