In discussing the characteristics of eighteenth-century East London – or Essex as it was before boundary changes in 1965 – I was reminded that William Stukeley, the great eighteenth-century antiquarian and freemason, was buried at his request in an unmarked grave in the churchyard of St. Mary Magdalene, East Ham. So, we went in search of it – and found, just to the north of the roaring A13, a perfectly preserved Norman country church and surrounding churchyard:-
| Charles | Saumarez | Smith | 
That A13 is full of wonderful surprises!
Who’d have thought Stukeley was buried there?
When my kids were at infant school we lived for a couple of years in Beckton. The church yard of St Mary Magdalene is designated as a nature reserve and we used to go there often for family activities and in search of the lizards that were said to sunbathe on the gravestones. I seem to remember that one of the gravestones contains victims of the Titanic disaster. The church is usually open for Open House London and is worth a visit, as is the twelfth century St Mary’s, Little Ilford also in Newham.
We really liked it – a beautiful and surprisingly peaceful place. We’ll try Little Ilford next. Charles