On a glorious autumnal afternoon (we were so lucky with the weather!) a group of us were given a guided tour of the West Cemetery and then allowed to explore the East Cemetery on our own. Opened in 1839, as the inner city of London graveyards became hazardously full, completely neglected and overgrown by the 1970s and rescued by the Friends of Highgate Cemetary Trust, we had an atmospheric wander amongst the 53,000 graves with over 170,000 people buried there in.  Many famous names: Robert Liston (the 1st Surgeon to use Ether), George Michael, Beryl Bainbridge and some not so famous:  Elizabeth Lilley (Midwife to Queen Victoria), Anna Mahler (sculptor, daughter of Gustav Mahler), some buried in the Egyptian Avenue and Circle of Lebanon tombs or the Terrace catacombs.  It was a fascinating walk through history.

Written By Rebecca