Sit and watch the people of London Fields

Always popular on a Saturday due to its proximity to Broadway Market, London Fields has a long history, dating back to 1540, when it was used to graze livestock on the journey from rural Essex towards the meat markets and slaughterhouses of Smithfields and central London.


Nowadays, its a much more leisure-focussed affair, with a lido, a cricket pitch, a table-tennis table, tennis courts, children's playgrounds and a number of decent pubs around its edges. It is also the centre of cool Hackney, and continues to attract trendy art kids like moths to a flame.

In summer, it is packed with these people, sitting out for whole days in the sun pretending they are very important, but in the winter months it is a more sedate affair, and on a bright Saturday it can be a nice place to sit on a bench and read a book, before returning to the busy market beyond.

For more on London Fields, visit http://www.hackney.gov.uk/cp-londonfields.htm

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