#islington — Modernist Delights

Lloyds Bank, Upper Street, Islington, London, 2025

Three city buildings: a white OFFICE shoe shop, a grey LLOYDS BANK with glass doors and steps, and a brown-brick Holland & Barrett. People walk by on the pavement; leafless trees stand in front. Sky is cloudy.

If anybody knows what sign once hung in the now-ghostly position at the top of the building, please let me know or it’ll bug me forever.

Diespeker Wharf, Islington, London, 2025

A three-storey brick building with DIESPEKER CO LTD painted in large white letters, featuring arched windows, a main entrance with glass doors, and greenery in front. The sky is partly cloudy, and a modern building adjoins it on the right.

Victorian (so much for the delights being modernist) former timber mill & terrazzo and marble manufacturing warehouse.

Jessop Court, Islington, London, 2025

A red canal boat floats on a calm canal in front of a two-storey brick cottage and a tall, modern block of flats. Trees with autumn leaves border the water, and a white van is parked beside the cottage. The sky is cloudy.

A three-storey block of flats with frosted glass balcony railings, white doors, and windows. Some balconies have planters, potted plants, or washing hanging. There is greenery, including a pine tree, in front of the building. The sky is partly cloudy.

A tall, plain concrete block of flats with white-framed windows stands between two other buildings. The entrance is at the bottom, surrounded by greenery, overgrown plants, and a small fenced-off area in the foreground. The sky above is partly cloudy.

A brown brick block of flats with balconies and a blue hospital sign is seen on a sunny day. Parked cars line the street, and trees with autumn leaves stand nearby. The sky is partly cloudy, and a tall, modern building is visible in the background.

A five-storey block of flats with beige and brown brick sections, large windows, and balconies. Leafy trees stand nearby. The sign reads Assup Court. The sky is partly cloudy and there’s a paved pavement in front.

Previously seen in the spring of 2025.

Duncan Street, Islington, 2025

Three-storey brick building with shops at street level, including a hair salon, Double Knot, and Kall kwik. Stairs lead to entrances. Leafless tree branches overhang above. A School road sign is visible. Windows reflect trees. The pavement is mostly empty.

Time to confess my secret fondness for split-level buildings. They remind me of such structures in the homeland, where shops may be on ground and first floors, the latter accessed by an external walkway, streets-in-the-sky style.

The rear of this row of buildings has garages on the ground floor with three floors above, where the front only has two, seemingly with no change in elevation. I assumed the flats, internally, would also feature some split-level malarkey, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. Instead, a Rightmove listing for one of the flats reveals another fun feature – top floor flats feature private courtyards in the centre of the building.

Notice, too, the brick benches built in between sets of steps.

View from Farringdon Station, London, 2025

A view of the backs of various London buildings, with a Tube line with a modern Tube train running on it. At the back, centre-left, two of the Barbican towers are visible.

Check the two Barbican towers centre left – which I obviously didn’t spot until posting this picture.

New and old on Regent’s Canal, Islington, London, 2025

Sunny day on the Regent's Canal, taken from on the water. The foreground features a large, lush green tree. In the middle, there are some 19th century buildings, including a mill and cottage. In the background there is a 1960's mid-rise housing block, all set against a clear blue sky.

I’m not turning this blog into Riparian Delights, I promise. This counts as a Modernist Delight because the housing block in the back is Jessop Court, built 1969. Diespeker Wharf, a Victorian former timber mill & terrazzo and marble manufacturer, and an early 19th century wharf-keeper’s cottage.

Retro signage in Islington, London, 2025

An aged sign above a shop with closed battered metal shutters. The background is cream and in various fonts it reads BEST FLIGHT - Travel Agency and Taste Byte offering Internet & Indian food, as well as other text. The sign has aluminium edging around it.

The Internet and Indian food — I would never need to leave.