Fragments of River Tyburn
- Tomomi Tomlin
- Apr 21
- 5 min read
The origin of the River Tyburn is not obvious unless you know what to look for. For this research, I regularly referred back to the book, London's Lost Rivers by Paul Talling, and his website https://www.londonslostrivers.com. According to his book, one of the sources of the river is Shepherd's Well near Spring Path in Hampstead, which I am familiar with, so I chose this location as the origin for the River Tyburn.
Apparently, the watercourse of the River Tyburn is a bit of a mystery between Regent's Park and Buckingham Palace, as the water runs through Oxford Street and Mayfair, where lots of developments have happened (and are happening). You can find details about the watercourse at https://www.londonslostrivers.com/river-tyburn.html.
The following sections present the fragments of objects, conversations, and sounds gathered above the River Tyburn.
The Origin
First, I visited Shepherd's Well and Spring Path in Hampstead to collect 'Fragments'.
Date: 1 April 2025
Time: 15:01 - 14:45
Weather: 14°C Sunny
Conversations: There is a prep school nearby, and I visited around the time children finished school, so there were many groups of parents and small children. The conversations I collected are:
You can meet me at the end.
I really enjoyed it!
I wanted to rest.
La, la, la, la...
Why?
We're gonna go to Belsize Park.
All the best!
Four days? Three days?
I hate painting...
Bien.
Sounds:
Objects found:
Regent's Park Boating Lake
Next, I collected fragments around Regent's Park's Boating Lake. The park attracted many tourists, groups of friends and families came for a picnic and a walk as the weather warmed up.
Date: 4 April 2025
Time: 12:51 - 13:39
Weather: 19°C Partly cloudy
Conversations: Many conversations in various languages I don't know, and the water birds' calling, which I wish I could understand! The fragments of conversations I could catch are:
あっ、じゃぁ (Japanese - Oh, then)
いろんな方がいらっしゃるのね。(Japanese - I see there are various people.)
Come on!
Yippee, wait for me!
...mechanics are bad.
Do you want your shorts on?
Come here.
Yours is really dark.
I don't know which days.
Really, really big injection.
It's a ducky duck!
No, I don't think I can...
...around and cross the late
It looks like...
Sounds:
Objects found:
Grosvenor Square & Berkeley Square in Mayfair
On the same day, I continued the collection of 'Fragments' in Mayfair. Initially, I planned to collect around Gray's Antique, where the stream of Tyburn runs through its basement. Sadly, one of the shop owners told me that part of the Gray's Antique building was recently demolished, and it is under construction for a new hotel. So, I moved to Grosvenor Square and Berkeley Square to collect 'Fragments'.
Date: 4 April 2025
Time: 14:43 - 15:15
Weather: 20°C Mostly cloudy
Conversations: All benches at both squares were fully occupied by people taking a break from work, shopping, or sightseeing. Not many conversations were heard as most people looked down at their smartphones. The fragments of conversations I managed to catch are:
...doesn't show the position.
We don't want it, we don't want it, we want something good.
A Dutch man asks you a question.
We should cycle anywhere in Amsterdam.
Especially, you are...
Sounds:
Objects found:
Buckingham Palace
I kept walking above the River Tyburn to Buckingham Palace, the next collection spot. I was unsure if I could find anything, as the area is covered with pavements and looked very tidy initially.
Date: 4 April 2025
Time: 15:21 - 15:43
Weather: 20°C Mostly sunny
Conversations: As you expected, the area was full of tourists who wanted to see the palace and the changing of the guard. I could hear mostly foreign languages, but overheard some American English.
Actually, I was able to...
...and I went to DHL...
Oh, so this is Buckingham Palace?
Yeah
Quickly, quickly, everyone!
Oui, Oui
Unless you want to...
Let's go behind the sun.
Oh my god!
The thing is...
First of all, I want to go to Paris.
Sounds:
Objects found:
Near Vauxhall Bridge (one of the ends of the River Tyburn)
After a bit of a break from collecting 'Fragments', I went near Vauxhall Bridge, where one of the River Tyburn streams meets the Thames. A plaque on the riverbank wall indicates the river's outflow beneath it.
Date: 11 April 2025
Time: 13:15 - 13:34
Weather: 19°C Sunny
Conversations: The plaque is located on the quiet, narrow path between the Thames and the apartment buildings. Only a few conversations among joggers and walkers were heard in the loud background noise of the traffic.
This is what it is?
Hehehe
So nice!
Let's go this way.
Oh, we can have beer there.
Let's go to Grosvenor.
Ummmm...
She is...
Sounds:
Objects found:
Victoria Tower Garden (the other end of the River Tyburn)
After collecting 'Fragments' from the Vauxhall end, I walked along the Thames to go to the other end of the Tyburn, Victoria Tower Gardens. The gardens were reasonably busy with tourists taking a break, local children's groups, and local visitors.
Date: 11 April 2025
Time: 15:08 - 15:44
Weather: 21°C Sunny
Conversations: The south side of the garden has a playground for children, and their joyful voices lit up the mood of the space.
Okay!
Debby, Debby, Debby!
Loui, you go ahead.
Oh, no, no, thank you.
That's it.
Of course!
I'm not the oldest.
Umm, WhatsApp or Tinder? Did you get my WhatsApp?
Daddy, we found it!
Sounds:
Objects found:
Reflections and Insights
I felt that the mood of the locations and the found objects above the River Tyburn seemed more sterilised, tight, and cold than other rivers, even though natural objects such as broken branches and leaves were found. I assume it is because of the developments that have happened and are happening along the waterway.
Walking through the course of the River Tyburn, I felt that the areas along this river have some sort of classy, sophisticated, but cool tone and mood. The conversations and sounds show fewer characters and energy than other rivers. It's like carefully carrying out day-to-day life without creating any disturbance or changes, probably respecting protocols and traditions set by predecessors.
I am now curious whether the river's presence has influenced the tone and mood of the surrounding areas. I should conduct further research to uncover any findings!
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