During August and part of September there are guided tours of Buckingham Palace and the Houses of Parliament in London. Visitors will also be able to visit BBC Television before it closes in a couple of years time.
Guided Tours of Buckingham Palace
Buckingham Palace has been the official royal residence since George III bought it in 1761. Tourists have always flocked there to look at the exterior, see the Changing of the Guard and Trooping the Colour, but were not allowed inside.
However, in 1993 Windsor Castle was seriously damaged by fire and the Queen decided to open Buckingham Palace to the public to help pay for the restoration of Windsor. It was meant to be a temporary arrangement but it proved so popular that she decided to open it every summer.
Guided tours take place every day until 29 September and last about 2 hours. They include the State Rooms, the grand staircase and many famous paintings by artists such as Rembrandt and Canaletto, plus sculpture and porcelain. Visitors will also be able to visit the garden and the café.
The palace is within walking distance of Victoria Station and the nearest tubes are Victoria, Green Park and Hyde Park Corner.
Guided Tours of the Houses of Parliament
The site of the Houses of Parliament is the Palace of Westminster which was a royal palace. The original building was built for Edward the Confessor but much of it was destroyed by fire in 1834. It was rebuilt in 1840 by Sir Charles Barry in the Gothic style and the clock tower with Big Ben was added in 1857.
It has 2 miles of corridors, 100 staircases and nearly 1,200 rooms. The tour includes the chambers of both the Houses of Parliament and the House of Lords, the Queen’s Robing Room, the Royal Gallery, St Stephen’s Hall, frescoes, mosaics and over 300 statues.
Tours take place Monday to Saturday when Parliament does not sit in the summer and they have recently started doing them on Saturdays all year. They are led by Blue Badge guides and last about 1 hour and 15 minutes.
The address is Palace of Westminster, Westminster, London, SW1A 0AA and the nearest tube station is Westminster.
There are separate guided tours up the Clock Tower which houses Big Ben. They are free but available to UK residents only who need to book them through their local MP.
Guided tours of BBC Television Centre
The BBC moved in here in 1960 but time is running out to take a tour of this well known circular Grade 2 listed building because there are plans to sell it.
Programmes such as the news, Blue Peter, Dr Who and EastEnders are currently made here. In the future however, the news will be broadcast from BBC Broadcasting House in Portland Place, London, while sport and children’s programmes will move to Salford Quays in Manchester.
Guided tours take place from Monday to Saturday and include studios, dressing rooms and green rooms. Tickets range from £7.50 to £9.95. Group rates are also available. To book ring 0870 901 1227 or visit
The web site also gives details for guided tours of BBC television and radio studios throughout the country, including BBC Broadcasting House, where they take place on Sundays.
Catherine Hodson - Catherine Hodson writes articles about arts and historical subjects and has had several published in an anthology. She has also edited a ...
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