I’ve just received an e-mail from one of my students at Thomas More College, requesting suggestions for places to visit in Oxford and London. I thought my response might be of interest to visitors to the Ink Desk who might be contemplating visiting these two English cities.

Here’s the e-mail I’ve received. My response follows:

I am emailing because I was accepted to the Oxford Program, so I will be in Oxford for two weeks this August. Afterwards, I will have roughly three days to travel before leaving from London to return to New Hampshire. What places do you recommend I go to while I am in Oxford? During the three days afterwards, I hope to see cathedrals and churches. Which are the loveliest, and preferably Catholic, churches in England? What are your favorite parts of England and of London in particular?

Thank you, and with prayers,

 

My response:

Oxford highlights:

The Oxford Oratory (the most beautiful Catholic church in Oxford with the most beautiful liturgy). Blackfriars is more austere but also worth a visit.

Tolkien’s grave. Lewis’s grave.

The best short hike is from Oxford to the Trout Inn on the river at Wolvercote. You need to check out the footpath route along the river, via the village of Binsey, made famous by Hopkins’ poem “Binsey Poplars”. The poplars have been re-planted so the “especial scene” that Hopkins eulogized in the poem is once again there to be enjoyed. You walk right under the poplars en route to the Trout.

The Eagle and Child pub, the regular haunt of Tolkien, Lewis and the Inklings.

Try to take some tours of the older colleges. Merton College was where Oxford taught; Magdalen was where Lewis taught; Balliol was the college from which Belloc graduated.

Try to visit Littlemore, a shrine to Blessed John Henry Newman.

London highlights:

The Brompton Oratory. The most beautiful Catholic church in London with the most beautiful liturgy. The 11am Sunday sung latin Mass is not to be missed.

Westminster Cathedral. Say a prayer at the tomb of the martyr, St. John Southworth, whose remains are on display.

Corpus Christi church on Maiden Lane, known as the actors’ church, is worth visiting. Small but quaint. I believe that this was the church at which Chesterton’s brother was received into the Church, at which Chesterton and Belloc were both present.

Corpus Christi is also next to Covent Garden, a good place to hang out for a coffee or snack.

The Church of the Immaculate Conception, the Jesuit church in Mayfair, is really beautiful and also has a beautiful liturgy. This was home to the famous Jesuits, Martin D’Arcy and Philip Caruman,and was the church at which I beliee both Evelyn Waugh and Edith Sitwell were received.

St. Etheldreda’s church in Ely Place is another old and beautiful Catholic church.

You can walk from Corpus Christi to St. Etheldrea’s in abut fifteen minutes. You can walk from Brompton Oratory to the Jesuit church in Mayfair by walking across Hyde Park. A very pleasant walk that would probably take about half an hour or so.

You can also walk from Brompton Oratory to Westminster Cathedral by walking past Buckingham Palace, home of the Queen.

Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese pub, in a back alley just off Fleet Street (down the road from Corpus Christi) is an ancient pub, hundreds of years old, at which many famous members of the literati have dined and drank, including Dr. Johnson, Shelley, Chesterton and Belloc. Make sure to explore the two levels of cellar bars.

The Tower of London, especially if you can arrange to visit St. Thomas More’s cell.

The Globe Theatre, a replica of Shakespeare’s original.

My favourite parts of England are the Lake District, the Yorkshire Moors and Dales, and the rural counties of Norfolk and Suffolk, but you won’t have time to visit these places in the limited time you have.

Beautiful Anglican cathedrals (originally Catholic of course) which are not too far from Oxford include those at Salisbury and Winchester. The former has the highest spire in England, the latter is where Alfred the Great is buried (I believe).

Enjoy my native land!