Westminster Cathedral

No, you can’t see it in this photo as the picture was taken from the bell-tower of the Cathedral. Not to be confused with the Abbey, Westminster Cathedral is a beautiful building close to Victoria Station.

As well as visiting the church, which is the focus for the Roman Catholic community in London, you can ascend the bell-tower in a lift that dates back to 1929. While not as high as the view one gets from the London Eye or the Shard it is unusual in being situated in the west of London and gives great views over royal London and the Houses of Parliament , as can be seen above. And it’s a bargain at £5 too (£2.50 for children).

If you do go up you’ll be following in the footsteps of the hero and villain of Alfred Hitchcock’s film, ‘Foreign Correspondent’ which features a struggle to the death in the bell-tower. Fortunately there are barriers in place nowadays to prevent sightseers from suffering a similar fate.