Once a dark and mysterious recess on the edge of London, plagued by bands of gypsies, heavy fog and mystery, Putney Heath was made a public park in 1871. This was only after a long battle in the courts with Earl Spencer, the local landowner who wanted to build houses on the site. Some of the earliest aviation and railway experiments took place on the heath at the turn of the century, but now the area is characterised as one of London’s few truly naturally wild areas to walk, play and relax.
