Historic Literary London Walking Tour

Walking into the Barbican from Bunhill Fields, you'll find St. Giles, Cripplegate. Though this church has stood a mere 600 years (with extensive renovations after a 1545 fire and World War II), some form of church has stood on this spot for nearly a thousand years. Ben Jonson and Daniel Defoe were baptized here; both Shakespeare and John Bunyan are claimed as parishioners. There are also several monuments in the church to John Milton, who was buried here in 1674. (And the nearby Museum of London is very good, especially for those who've already seen London's major museums and want to learn more about the city's history.)

To get to St. Giles, Cripplegate, take the tube to Barbican or Moorgate.