Mid-August, the kids are crawling the walls and the all-consuming football season is about to kick off. Is there no escape? There is! You can head back to a time before the beautiful game, when beautifully manicured kids did what Victorian Dad damnably well said.


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The year is 1851 and Great Britain puts on a Great Exhibition to show the foreigners how Great she is. A huge success in its first home, Hyde Park, the Crystal Palace is moved to south London and lasts until fire in 1936.

But the park which bears the Crystal Palace name is still there and lurking in its undergrowth and swimming in its dark waters is a collection of colourful dinosaurs, ready to scare away your summertime blues.

Here’s a great and funny video – The Lost Valley of London – by local film-maker Anthony Lewis, which delves into the history and mystery of the Crystal Palace.