St Thomas' Church - Hidden Operating Theatre and Herb Garret

Where?
Near London Bridge tube station, Southwark

What?
 This really appealed to me as a history lover and seemed perfect for Londoner Obscura. This old operating theatre was discovered tucked away in the roof space of St Thomas' Church by a man researching the history of St Thomas' Hospital. One day he decided to climb up into the loft and he came across the shell of the old theatre.


The restored operating theatre



The operating theatre had been lost when the hospital moved from its original site to Lambeth in 1862. The entrances to the operating theatre, which had been built in 1822, were blocked up and the operating theatre and accompanying garret were forgotten.



The herb garret as it would have been used by apothecaries


You can read more about the history of the operating theatre and herb garret here.

Both the operating theatre and herb garret have now been restored and visitors can get a real sense of what it might have been like to be a doctor (or indeed patient) at St Thomas'.

There are some fascinating (and often pretty gruesome) displays and the tiny garret is stuffed with all sorts of medical paraphernalia.

I've left out the bone saws, pickled organs and giant forceps - wouldn't want to ruin it for you before your visit!

How much?
£6 (concessions available)

Dennis Severs' House

Where?
18 Folgate Street, Spitalfields

What?
This is definitely one of the strangest places I've been in London so far.

From the outside, 18 Folgate Street is pretty unassuming. My friend remarked that she had always thought it was a restaurant or something, but had never stopped to look in.

18 Folgate Street (there isn't normally a queue!)

A detail from the front door

Once you do get inside, however, there is far more to this terraced house than meets the eye.

The late Dennis Severs was the previous owner of this house, and he painstakingly transformed the entire place into a 'still-life drama'. I admit this sounds a little 'neither-here-nor-there', but it would be too easy to try to squash this into the box of 'art' or 'history'. It's more like a time capsule.

Unfortunately photography isn't allowed, but check out the house's website here for some more images.

(credit)

As you explore the house in silence, you are invited to imagine that the occupants (the Jervis family, who made their fortune as silk-weavers and, according to the story, occupied the house between 1725 and 1919) have only just left the rooms - hence the partially-drunk cups of tea and unmade beds. Think 'Marie Celeste'.

It would genuinely be possible to spend hours exploring all the nooks and crannies of the house and it's brought to life even more by the different smells that waft around the rooms. I really did find myself imagining I was in someone's home, though it felt like they were always lurking just upstairs or in the next room.

I thoroughly enjoyed my trip round Dennis Severs' house. This rather bizarre and slightly eerie experience is a fantastic way to imagine how people lived in the past - I'd especially recommend a trip here for history lovers.

How much?
£10