Iron Maiden: 'Run For Your Lives' World Tour, 2025, London Stadium

Saturday June 28, 2025.

I have been following 'Iron Maiden' since I was 10 years old, with their single, 'Run to the Hills', being the first 7" that I purchased.

After seeing them live on countless occasions, meeting some of the band members and visiting the 'Cart & Horses', where they first played live, I was excited to see them at the London Stadium, during their 50th year.

My friend of almost 35 years, David, had secured the tickets.

Keilyn and I travelled to Canning Town, where we checked into our hotel, with Emma and Erin, who, while we were at the concert, would visit the shopping centre in Stratford. We then travelled to Stratford together, before Keilyn and I headed off towards the Olympic Park, where we waited in the shade of the Sadler's Wells Theatre for David and his son Antonio.

Soon enough we spotted them and, after the usual greetings, joined the massed groups of fans headed towards the London Stadium. We crossed Bridge 5 and passed through security, bought a souvenir Matchday Programme and waited in the shade for the gates to open.

At exactly 17:00 the gates opened and we moved inside the stadium, making our way to the Merchandise stall. A T-shirt for Antonio, a Baseball cap for David, a studded leather wristband for Keilyn and a scarf for myself. We then purchased some drinks and went looking for our seats, which were on tier 2 in the 'Billy Bonds Stand' (East Stand).

The weather was clear skies, with the the occasional cloud, and not a breath of wind, with the temperature at 29°C. As we were in the East Stand, the sun was beating down on us, so we headed back downstairs and waited in the shade.

We took our seats, just before 17:45, so that we could watch 'The Raven Age' open the concert. They began with 'Forgive & Forget', before rattling through seven tracks, finishing with 'Fleur De Lis'.

As soon as their set, which was an incredible 45 minutes of pure rock, finished, we headed back down into the cool shade of the stadium. Snacks, food and more drinks were purchased.

We made our way back up to our seats in time to watch Halestorm take to the stage, at 19:00. 'Fallen Star' began a 10-track set, where Lzzy Hale's impressive vocal range was on full display, while Arejay Hale's drum solo was out of this world! Throughout the 50-minute set the sun had continued to beat down, but, thankfully, was gradually getting lower in the sky.

Back outside into the shade for more fluids, while the stage was prepared for the main event: The Homecoming of Steve Harris... and 'Iron Maiden'.

'Floodtide' (Tidal Sonification) by John Eacott and Andrew Baldwin

The 'Floodtide' (Tidal Sonification) listening post, at Trinity Buoy Wharf, makes music that is determined by the tide of the River Thames, which is then played through the mechanical organ.

A sensor, submerged from the pier, reads tidal flow data, such as height and speed, which is then converted into musical parameters like pitch, duration, and volume using a computer algorithm. 

The algorithm translates the tidal data into musical scores, which can be displayed on screens or mobile devices, so that musicians can incorporate the music into their own works.

'Floodtide' performances have taken place in various locations, including the Royal Observatory, Greenwich and the Southbank Centre, with each performance reflecting the unique characteristics of the location's tides. 

The machine was built by Andrew Baldwin, while the music by John Eacott.

KGB Lamppost, Mayfair

In Mayfair, at the corner of South Audley Street and Audley Square, outside the University Women’s Club, stands this Victorian lamppost.

It is exactly the same as the rest of the lampposts, along this street, but this one has a tale to tell.

From the 1950s the USSR had KGB agents placed in England, with orders to gather information and pass it back to their superiors. Some agents worked at the Soviet Embassy, which was under close watch by MI5, but 'illegal' agents had to find another way to pass their information on. 

So, this lamppost was used as a 'dead letter drop'. Agents would conceal their documents, or messages, behind the door of the lamppost, before leaving a chalk mark at its base, notifying their superiors that a message was contained within. Their superiors could also leave instructions or messages for the agents to collect.

In 1985, British intelligence managed to extract their secret agent, Colonel Oleg Gordievsky, from Moscow, without the ever watchful KGB even noticing. It was Colonel Gordievsky who alerted British Intelligence to the lamppost, which was soon put under surveillance. Word must have spread fairly quickly, through the KGB, because by 1986 it was no longer in use.

Interestingly, or ironically, EON Productions had their offices at No. 3, next door to the University Women's Club, from 1961. EON Productions was created by Albert 'Cubby' Broccoli and Harry Saltzman who auditioned Sean Connery for the first James Bond film, 'Dr No', in their office overlooking the KGB lamppost.

I was quite surprised, on my visit, to see that the door of the lamppost wasn't locked, but ajar.

Cuneiform Tablet: The oldest object in the City of London

London is home to many ancient and wondrous items, many of which are kept in museums and galleries. But, there are also ancient and historic objects simply dotted around London's many streets and thoroughfares.

The oldest of these objects would have to be the Needle of Thutmose III, which stands on Victoria Embankment. This obelisk dates from around 1450 BC.

Then there are the Roman remains, such as the amphitheatre, the old city walls and bastions, mosaic and the like. These were all created from 45 AD onwards.

However, this curious brown block, on display in St Vedast-alias-Foster Garden, is, I am sure, one of the oldest objects, as it dates from between 858 and 834 BC. 

So, how did it end up in a church courtyard in London?

East India Docks, Blackwall

The East India Docks were constructed between 1803-1806 and were the third set of wet docks built on the River Thames, in the early 19th century. By the end of the 18th century East Indiamen ships had been sailing from Blackwall for almost 200 years.

The East India Company, founded in 1600, shipped valuable goods from the East to the River Thames. It was a rich, powerful and well organised body using the largest two ships that frequented the Port of London. The valuable cargoes were moved by barge to the city, then carried to the company's spacious warehouses on Billiter Street and Cutler Street.

In January 1804 the lock was widened to 48 ft across to allow the largest East Indiamen, of up to 1,500 tonnes, to enter the docks.

The Export Dock

In September 1804 Hugh McIntosh used a horse operated bucket dredger to excavate 8,000 tonnes of mud from the former ship repair yard, Brunswick Dock, to give a uniform depth of 22 ft. The south wall was built in brick, but the original timber walls of the Brunswick Dock were retained on the other three sides.

The Export Dock was also home to the emigrant's ships. In the 19th century companies including Green's, Wigram's and Dunbar's all used the docks as their embarkation point. By 1905 the Export Dock was principally used by sailing ships and steamers.

After suffering from bomb damage, during World War II, the Export Dock was sold in 1946 and filled in to make way for Brunswick Wharf Power Station. The power station was closed down in the 1980s and demolished. Now the site is home to Virginia Quay.

The Import Dock

The most important element of the East India Docks was the Import Dock. Covering almost 60 acres it provided room to unload the precious goods from the East Indiamen returning from their voyages.

Excavations began in 1803 using pumps, buckets, rods, pipes, and valves impounding 18 acres of water.

The work included a labour force of up to 400 men and 100 horses. Dredging 625,000 cubic yards of earth. Making nine million bricks from the excavated topsoil to form the dock walls and using 50 tonnes of old iron hoops to strengthen the walls.

The walls of the Import Dock were constructed with a curved profile which was ideally suited to the shape of the hulls of the East Indiamen.

During World War II the Import Dock played an important role in the construction of the Mulberry floating harbours for the D-Day landings in Normandy, in 1944. After World War II the Import Dock was filled in and a number of new developments, including the Financial Times Print Works (1987-88) and Telehouse Europe (1988-90), were built.

The Lock

The Entrance Lock, with a width of 48 ft, was the largest lock in the Port of London. It had a curved or rounded bottom, unlike the shallow inverts of the locks constructed at West India Docks.

Crystal Palace Dinosaurs

Commissioned in 1852 and unveiled in 1854, the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs are the world's first dinosaur sculptures.

They were designed and sculpted by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins, under the scientific direction of Sir Richard Owen. Sir Richard Owen is best known for coining the term 'Dinosauria'.

The sculptures also include other extinct animals and the collection is known as the 'Geological Court' or 'Dinosaur Court'.

By today's standards many of these sculptures are anatomically inaccurate. Many were sculpted on incorrectly assembled skeletons, showing the limit of 19th century scientific understanding. But, being the world's first, they paved the way for many of the advances in fossil understanding and palaeontology.

In 1952 a full restoration of the sculptures began, with some of the dinosaurs being moved. The sculptures were Grade II listed, in 1973. Between 2001-02 the sculptures were extensively restored, with fibreglass models replacing the more severely damaged ones. Some previous restorations had used lead, for the legs, linking these appendages to the bodies with iron rods. The iron had then corroded, causing more damage, resulting in new pieces to be cast. 

In 2007, the sculptures were Grade I listed.

Of the fifteen genera of extinct animals only three are true dinosaurs. The periods that are covered by the sculptures include the Palaeozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic.

In May of this year, Crystal Palace Park, the dinosaurs, playground, cafe and more began undergoing a multi-million pound refurbishment, which is due to be completed by summer 2026. The park is remaining open, but restrictions to certain areas may be in place.

Walking with Keilyn: Euston Square to the City of London... and beyond

Sunday June 8, 2025.

Keilyn and I decided that we should head to London to see the 'Nao Santa Maria', which was berthed at St Katharine Docks, as today was its last day, in London. So, we headed off.

A taxi to the station and we were soon London-bound. We changed to an Aldgate train, at Finchley Road, and alighted at Euston Square, which is a fair distance from St Katharine Docks, but there is nothing like a good wander.

We headed along Gower Street, passing the Grant Museum of Zoology and the impressive University of London buildings, before reaching Bedford Square and the throngs of people heading into the British Museum. A little further and Bloomsbury Street brought us out onto New Oxford Street, which we headed along until we reached our first stop of the day... the Post Building.

We entered the building, signed in and passed through the security arch. Keilyn then placed her rucksack in one of the lettered lockers, choosing 'K' to match her name. We then entered the lift and made our way up to the ninth floor and the roof garden.

On my previous visits the flowers and shrubs had not fully bloomed, but today everything was flowering and the trees had full canopies. Although cloudy it was a pleasant day and the views were clear all the way to the horizon. The Centre Point building, the BT Tower, the British Museum and around to the Renaissance Hotel at King's Cross. Then the unique skyscrapers of the City of London, with Canary Wharf in the distance. Tower Bridge, the Shard and 22 Bishopsgate and around to the Palace of Westminster, Westminster Abbey and Cathedral to Battersea Power Station and beyond. The BBC Transmitter, at Crystal Palace, was clearly visible, too, as was the Wembley Stadium Arch.

Once we had seen everything, and Keilyn had used her 'Seek' app to discover the names of the various plants, we headed back down to ground level, retrieved her rucksack, and headed east along New Oxford Street.

New Oxford Street brought us onto High Holborn, then Holborn and Holborn Viaduct. Nearing St Paul's Cathedral, with its crowds of visitors, we headed along Cheapside, passing possibly the oldest tree in the City of London, before we joined Poultry and then Cornhill.

Always up for an adventure Keilyn kept peering down the countless passages and alleyways that were dotted along our route, deciding that Ball Court looked like a great alleyway to explore. So down it we went and arrived in a small courtyard with a tavern. Simpson's Tavern dates back to 1757 and is a wonderful looking building, that is, unfortunately, temporarily closed. 

We continued out of the courtyard and found ourselves on Castle Court, with more old style buildings and the famous Jamaica Wine House, which stands on the site of London's first coffee house.

From here we headed along St Michael's Alley, which brought us to Bell Inn Yard and out onto Gracechurch Street. Since Keilyn had never seen Leadenhall Market we headed inside, dodging the photographers, who were snapping the parts used in the Harry Potter films, and the diners and other visitors. 

We then crossed Lime Street and walked along Cullum Street, where Keilyn sat down and I took some photos of the amazing Bolton House, before we continued our walk to Fenchurch Street, which we followed towards Aldgate. 

Various sculptures were dotted around, that we both took photos of, before we found ourselves on Mitre Square, former site of the Priory of the Holy Trinity and also the place where Catherine Eddowes was murdered by Jack the Ripper, in 1888.

We left Mitre Square via St James's Passage which brought us to Duke's Place and St Botolph Street. It was here that I lifted Keilyn up, so that she could see over the wall and look down at the platforms of Aldgate station.

We then headed south, along Mansell Street, turned west along Shorter Street and arrived at Tower Hill Garden. Snacks, drinks and sandwiches were all pretty much devoured, before we used the underpass to reach the south side of Tower Hill. Here we got to see the meadow that has been created in the old moat. We then followed the path onto St Katharine's Way, which brought us nicely to St Katharine Docks and Marina.

'Ancient Lights'

It is always important to look up, as well as down, when walking along London's streets, in case you miss something. This is how I discovered these signs, beneath various windows across older parts of the city.

Because I had never seen them before I now keep a look out for them, and other old signs.

But what does the term 'Ancient Lights' mean?

To discover the answer we must travel back to the 12th century, and the beginnings of English Common Law.

'Alunatime' by Laura Williams

'Alunatime', by Laura Williams, was launched on the Full Moon of October 22, 2010, and is the first, live 'real time' graphical notation of light and time.

It shows the lunar phases (wax and wane), the lunar day (rise and set) and tide cycles (ebb and flow). Governed by the relative position of the Earth, Moon and Sun, these fundamental rhythms have shaped our past and will continue to determine our future.

The Moon creates our tides and, with 70% of the Earth's surface covered in water, understanding the rising tides brought on by climate change, is becoming more important than ever.

Mosaics and Ceramics, Black Prince Road

Walking along Black Prince Road towards the River Thames you will pass beneath the main railway line out of Waterloo. Much like the tunnel, on Centaur Street, where the William Blake mosaics can be found, this tunnel has mosaics of the Black Prince, from throughout the ages. 

The south wall is home to six mosaics, five of which represent The Black Prince, while the sixth has an image of Muhammad Ali and represents the 'Black Lives Matter' movement.

The tunnel also has ceramic tiles showcasing the area's history with Lambeth wares of Doulton.