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Discover the vast literary history of the London Bridge and Bankside area, on this 7km journey through centuries of books, poems and plays.
Through your headphones, your book-loving guide Josh will guide you on a route that takes in sights and locations linked to the world famous authors and book characters who have called the area home. And you might even discover some new favourites too!
Sign up today and run the route on a date and time of your choice - you'll simply need to make your way to the start location and the audio commentary will guide you through the route.
AUDIO TOUR
How does it work?
GET READY
Sign up now and you'll get a code to download the Literary London tour on VoiceMap, an award winning audio tour app.
ON THE DAY
Head to the start location (the Southwark Gateway Needle, near London Bridge station) at a time of your choice on any day between now and 31st December 2026. Simply open the app, put your headphones on and hit "go" - you'll hear your first set of instructions.
ALONG THE WAY
Triggered by your GPS location, you'll receive more directions and commentary about the local area, its literary history and sights you're seeing along the way.
WHEN YOU FINISH
The tour ends at Borough Market - near to where it starts. Send us your finisher pics for our online Finisher's Gallery.
Reviews
reviews of our other GPS tours on VoiceMap
“Such fun! Directions brilliant and awesome facts - thank you so much.”
Helen Tickner
“The sun was shining and London was simply gorgeous! Absolutely loved it, thank you Secret London Runs for putting together this run. The step by step instructions were spot on and I learnt a few new things too! “
Rina Vyas
“We had a great time. Great training for the London marathon in 6 weeks time!”
Sarah Gibson
“Great fun with good commentary.” Richard Tickner
“Loved the Thames Bridges Half” Steve Harlowe
What you'll see
The exact route of the tour will be revealed when you strap in and begin your audio tour. But over its duration you will see:
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Several locations linked to London's most famous authors.
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Spectacular views of the River Thames.
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Great views of some of the areas biggest tourist attractions along the route.
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Hidden sights off the beaten track.
We've been leading running tours of London for 9 years and can't wait to show you some of the city's fascinating literary history.
Starts at the Southwark Gateway Needle (near London Bridge Station)
Finishes at Borough Market
As a massive bookworm and history lover, I've really enjoyed leading literary tours of London for the last couple of years.
I'm so excited to now bring one of my favourite tours to to more people than ever before using new technology to experience the route at a date of their choice.
"
Joshua Cain-Tait
Managing Director, Secret London Runs
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1. How fast do I need to be?All fitness levels are welcome. Each tour has a guide pace to keep you in your comfort zone. We operate on a "no one gets left behind basis" which means that we'll always run at the pace of the gentlest person in our lovely group. So please don't be nervous about joining us. But also, don't be afraid of signing up for a merrily medium or festively fast pace and the gentle jingle is often very gentle. There are also walking tours available of the 5k Christmas lights tour.
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2. Do you have a bag drop?Unfortunately we do not have a bag drop, especially with the tour starting and ending in different parts of London. Our tours are not races - so we advice packing light and bringing a running backpack for your essentials. If you need to store any items, we recommend using Luggage Hero before you come to your tour.
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3. What do I need to bring with me?Your ticket on your phone (we don't need a paper copy), water if you usually run with it. Wear warmer clothes than you usually would for a run of the length of your tour - we will be stopping around the run to for twinkly lights and festive history. Of course, we highly recommend all the Christmas fancy dress.
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4. Is the Christmas lights tour suitable for children?Yes - children are welcome, as long as they're accompanied by an adult who takes full responsibility for their safety whilst on the tour. Accompanied children are welcome at all our tours, as long as they're comfortable with the guide pace, but we do have 2 Family Special dates for the 5k Christmas lights tour, so you can bring little ones and know there are plenty of others there too.