In 1759, explorers took the Metropolitan line North West, deep into the Chiltern Hills... where they discovered a lost kingdom. A land where time hadn't just stood still, it had never really begun.
Have you ever been to Chesham? It sits there invitingly at the top-left of the tube map, so easy to reach and yet... so far. Zone 9, in fact. It remains on that long list of places 'it'd be nice to visit one day' that never quite gets ticked off. But what would we see if we did make the effort?
Artist Mark Cowie's guide to 'The Lost Kingdom of Chesham' explains why so few of us have ever ventured there. It is an isolated, insular place, where Old English is still spoken. The clocks run differently, and transport is provided by hobby horse. The local delicacy is peri peri raven.
If you like Mark's work, prints are available via Instagram @tonyhantz or, if you can make it to the Lost Kingdom of Chesham, at JPS Stationers.
Browse our archive of hand-drawn London maps, including Mark's own wider guide to the Amersham/Chesham area.
