Millennium Bridge
the blade of light that famously wobbled
The slender steel footbridge that frames St Paul's at one end and Tate Modern at the other, free to cross and one of the best free views in London.
Free to visit · City of London / Bankside · St Paul's · EC4V 3QH
Opening: Always open
The Millennium Bridge was London's first new river crossing in over a century, a low steel ribbon designed by Norman Foster and Anthony Caro to read as a blade of light across the Thames. Crossing it is free, and the view is the whole point, St Paul's dome perfectly framed at the north end, Tate Modern's brick chimney at the south.
It is famous for a wobble. When it opened in 2000 so many people crossed in step that it swayed alarmingly and was nicknamed the wobbly bridge, closing for two years while dampers were fitted. It has been rock steady ever since.
Today it is one of the great free walks in the city, linking the old City with Bankside in a couple of minutes, with the river opening out on both sides. Do it at dusk and you get one of London's finest free pictures for nothing.
Getting there: Between St Paul's and Tate Modern, a short walk from St Paul's, Mansion House or Blackfriars stations.
Best time to go: Dusk, when St Paul's lights up and the river catches the last of the sky.
Insider tip: Walk it south to north for the classic St Paul's-framed-by-the-cables shot, and come at dusk when the cathedral is floodlit. Look down at the bridge surface for the tiny painted artworks left in old chewing gum.
Free things to do in London · London Free Guide