One of the wonderful things about having visitors, apart from spending time with good friends, is the incentive to find out more about what’s going on in your home town so that you have some exciting things to entertain them.

My friend Lynn and I have known each other for over twenty years, but now she lives in Devon we have to rely mostly of FaceTime to ‘see’ each other rather than in person. And while I’m grateful for FaceTime, which is so much better than just a phone call, there’s really nothing like spending ‘in person’ time with a friend. Thus I was very much looking forward to Lynn’s visit this weekend and I thought of some things we could do locally that she’d enjoy.

Twickenham is most famously known for rugby. It’s the home of England rugby and the stadium – now known as the Allianz Stadium – is the largest rugby stadium in the world, seating 82,000. If I ever tell people I live in Twickenham, the chances are high they’ll mention the rugby. However, Twickenham is also famous for its music. During the 1950s and 1960s it was the hub of the new wave of music that brought bands that would become famous to Eel Pie Island, which sits in the Thames at Twickenham (click here for more). Bands and stars like the Rolling Stones, Rod Stewart, Pink Floyd and Eric Clapton played at the Eel Pie Hotel on the island between 1956-1970. 

Knowing Lynn loved this music, I suggested we went to the Eel Pie Museum (click here for more info). Now the museum lies on the main road from Twickenham to Richmond. It opened in 2018 and I have passed it many, many times; indeed most days! I have thought, I must go there, but like other interesting attractions that sit on your doorstep, I took no serious action to visit. But with Lynn coming, it was the ideal time to go; someone who would appreciate it as much as me. They’re open Thursday to Sunday from 12.00 to 5.30 with last entry at 5pm. I said to Lynn it must be very small if you’d only need half an hour to go round. So, when she arrived on Friday afternoon we set off down to the high street and went to the museum and rang the doorbell.

We were let in by Lin. And wow! Lin was an absolute gem of a guide. She was so welcoming and full of fantastic information. I thought I knew quite a bit about the island’s history and its music, but there was so much more to learn. And it wasn’t just the music history that was fascinating, but also the stories of the people who owned the island and how, as well as promoting the music, they helped the whole local community.

There are wonderful photos to look at, interesting memorabilia. I was also excited to see that the BBC TV’s The Repair Shop (one of my favourite programmes) had visited the museum in an episode that aired on 23 March 2026, to repair a leather chair that had belonged to Trevor Bayliss, a long-time resident of the island and inventor or the wind-up radio.

   

Entrance to the museum is £5; under 16s free. But for £10 I could buy an annual membership, which I did. I’m now telling all my family they just have to go there. It truly was wonderful and I’ll be going back.

On a bit of a high from stories of the famous 1960s bands, we crossed the road and walked into Church Street where I suggested we stop at the brilliant Corto Italian Deli for an aperitivo. Church Street is now pedestrianised, only open to traffic from midnight to 10am. The weather has been so glorious here in London over the last few days, it was easy to imagine yourself on holiday with all the restaurants spilling out onto the pavements and the road full of people enjoying great food and drink. Another special thing is that Church Street is full of independent shops, cafes and restaurants rather than the chains that fill most high streets now. Corto, which opened in 2011, is a favourite. Lynn and I settled down to enjoy an Aperol Spritz (for her) and a glass of Prosecco (for me), with a bowl of olives. We relaxed and took our time, enjoying the atmosphere, then walked back to my house for a supper of Cod with Potatoes, Tomatoes & Capers that I’d decided to cook and Tiramisu.

On Saturday we woke to another glorious day and the plan was to go to Kew Gardens where a Henry Moore exhibition has just opened. As a long-time Friend of Kew, I said that during the summer months, from 1 May until the end of September, Friends could go into the garden at 8am while the opening for the general public is 10am. We thought 8am was definitely too early, but that it was worth getting to the gardens about 9am so we had plenty of time to go round before it gets busy. It was a good plan as it was quiet but by the time we left, large crowds were entering.

I’d gone to the 2007 exhibition of Moore’s work at Kew but this new one is said to be the largest-ever outdoor exhibition of his work. These monumental sculptures need to be seen outdoors and placing them – all 100 of them! – around the gardens is really a perfect way to appreciate them. We didn’t manage to see them all – that would be a longer walk than we wanted – but the great thing for me with my Friends’ membership is that I can go back and walk in different parts of the gardens to see others. The exhibition is open until 31 January 2027.

The evening plan was to go to my favourite local restaurant – Masaniello. There was an option to eat outside but it was so warm, we opted to sit inside but had a great table by the open window so we felt like we had the best of both worlds.

We’d already had aperitivo at my house so we went straight into mains. I chose Misto Mare: Mixed Fish Casserole with mussels, calamari, mackerel, clams and sea bass in tomato sauce (£24.95).

It looked and smelled amazing when it arrived and it tasted just as wonderful. It was one of the best seafood dishes I’ve ever had, all the fish cooked perfectly and a delicious sauce.

Lynn meanwhile opted for Involtino: Pan-fried pork rolls filled with caciocavallo cheese served with roast potatoes, courgette & aubergine (£22.95). That looked wonderful too and Lynn really enjoyed it.

And yes, we wanted dessert too! Lynn chose ice cream, which she said was delicious, while I chose panna cotta with passion fruit. This was gorgeous. We both had a glass of Soave with our meal and the bill came to £84, including service, for the two of us.

On Sunday morning, before Lynn went home at lunchtime, we decided to head back to Corto for coffee and pastries and then have a walk by the river. The weather was duller, but it was still lovely to sit outside and take things gently for a Sunday morning.

I had a flat white and plain croissant; Lynn had a cappuccino and almond croissant.

Then we walked through to the river and looked across the Thames to the boat houses on Eel Pie Island and were delighted to see families of geese with their goslings by the edge of the river.

Looking back from there, we could see Twickenham Museum and St Mary’s Church.

We walked further along to Marble Hill Park and stopped on a bench for a while where we could look down the Thames to Richmond and see the huge, red-bricked Star & Garter building at the top of Richmond Hill, which was once, until quite recently, a home for old and disabled soldiers; now it’s been converted into luxury apartments.

Then we started walking back to my house, and soon it was time for Lynn to head off home. But what a lovely weekend it had been, not just seeing my friend but enjoying some of the delights of my local area too.

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This article is also featured on GPSmyCity. To download this article for offline reading or create a self-guided walking tour to visit the attractions highlighted in this article, go to Walking Tours and Articles in Twickenham.