Tunnel

I have a mild obsession (my family seems to think it’s more of an addiction) with the Greenwich Foot Tunnel, which allows pedestrians to walk under the River Thames between Greenwich and The Isle of Dogs. This wonderful Victorian relic from the early 1900’s runs around 50 feet below the Thames and takes 5 to 10 minutes to walk. For a field sound recordist the acoustics down there are amazing.

I made the field recording used in 'Tunnel' in February 2026. Starting on the Isle of Dogs in Mud Chute Park, I walked through the tunnel, spent some time by the Cutty Sark in Greenwich, then made the walk back to the Isle of Dogs. These are some of my thoughts and highlights:

• With the kick drum that runs throughout I tried to suggest the feeling of a heart beat. After all the Thames is the OG arterial route of London.

• 'Owl screech' girl @ 3:10... this made me smile as my own children used to love hearing their own vocal 'creations' reverberate back at them when they were younger. You can hear 'Owl screech girl' several times before and after the 3:10 mark and she's clearly enjoying the sublime acoustics as much as I am!

• Busker @ 5:32... as I 'went topside' on the south bank of the Thames there happened to be a busker in fine voice by the Cutty Sark. As wonderful as it was to catch his performance in the original recording I couldn't include him in the release version of Tunnel. I was reluctant to cut him out completely though so I obfuscated him within a cavern of his own reverb.

• Thames Clipper @ 7:02... whenever we're in London we try to get about as much as we can using the Uber Boats/Thames Clippers as they're a fantastic way of getting in and out of the city. I just happened to walk past the Greenwich Pier as Earth Clipper was manoeuvring into place at the pontoon. It may seem trivial but I can not overstate how happy I was to capture that familiar to me sound.

• Its the busker again @ 7:35... he might, or might not, have been making his way through some Status Quo this time.

• 'Is that the last one?' girl @ 8:47... as I headed back down into the tunnel I passed a young girl and her father on their way up. I could relate and had to chuckle at her excited question to her father as those long, shallow, spiral steps up seem to go on for ever.

• Girl says 'heya' to me @ 12:17... lots of people seemed to notice that I was carrying a recorder (the big grey fluffy 'dead cat' on the top is quite a giveaway) but 'heya' girl was the only one to acknowledge me verbally. I think she was part of a large group of, possibly French, students. What a treat for them to have the Greenwich Foot Tunnel on their itinery!

• Final thought: I love London. I love its multiculturism, diversity and the rich tapestry of humans who visit and call London home. A stroll through the Greenwich Foot Tunnel provides a, perhaps unusual, window into London and its people. I highly recommend it.

Ghosts of the Thames

Born and raised in London, it remains one of my favourite cities in the world and we spend as much time there as we can.

During one of our regular trips I decided to pick up a new bit of musical equipment. Having spent the day in central London, I left my family to make their own way home at the Embankment Thames Clipper stop and headed to Camden to visit the retailer in question.

Later on, as I sat wearily on the Thames Clipper heading back to North Greenwich it occured to me that the dress code seemed to have changed. Had I missed a memo? I then remembered that Florence and the Machine were performing at The O2 Arena that night. Everyone was dressed as Florence apart from me!

Recorded in one take, Ghosts of the Thames was the first piece of music I made when I was reunited with my family at our apartment overlooking the Thames in North Greenwich.

I adore the Thames, and with Ghosts of the Thames I tried to capture the history, majesty, intrigue and unpredictable ever changing nature of this mighty river.