London Bridge, London

London Bridge is perhaps the most famous bridge in London, and also perhaps the most overlooked, as many people actually mistake it for the Tower Bridge.

Famous as it is, the London Bridge is yawningly plain. It is the bridge that crosses the Thames between the Cannon Street Railway Bridge and Tower Bridge. It forms the western end of the Pool of London.

Although there has been a bridge across this part of the Thames for the past two thousand years, the present incarnation of London Bridge dates to its opening on 17 March, 1973. Yes, pretty recent, as all the past London Bridges have - as the nursery rhyme goes - fallen down.

The present London Bridge is 928 ft (283 m) in length. It was built at a cost of £4 million (or about £42.1 million in 2011). If you find it plain compared with other bridges in London, the explanation is that this London Bridge was built to be durable (to keep the "falling down" away, for as long as possible), not pretty.

Among the sights in the vicinity of the London Bridge are the Monument to the Great Fire of London on the north bank and Southwark Cathedral on the south bank.

How to reach London Bridge

You can reach the London Bridge by taking the London Underground Jubilee Line or Northern Line to the London Bridge Tube Station, or the Circle Line and District Line to the Monument Tube Station, and walk a short distance from there.

List of Bridges in London and Bridges in the United Kingdom