Like to be beside the seaside? Try Fulham

The seaside has returned to the city with the reopening of a historic urban beach in Fulham.

In Edwardian times, families from across the capital descended on the beach, nicknamed Margate Sands, in Bishops Park every summer. But during the Second World War it fell into disrepair and by 1949 was closed as a safety hazard.

It reopened yesterday as part of an £8 million restoration programme of the park and the adjoining grounds of Fulham Palace, the former home of the Bishop of London.

Hammersmith & Fulham council, with the Heritage Lottery Fund and Big Lottery Fund, has also restored the park’s ornamental lake, created three play areas and refurbished the café.