News and views

The World Naked Bike Ride is an excellent protest.

Here’s a photo of the Londn WNBR entering The Mall and approaching Buckingham Palace.

Here’s a link to our new website: https://wnbrlondon.uk/

So sorry to say it, but here is the news you were probably expecting to hear.

The World Naked Bike Ride in London will not take place on 13th June. Participants and spectators should not go to the start locations.

WNBR London has considered current circumstances and concluded we must take a cautious approach for the safety of our participants and the general public. We assume it will still be unwise to encourage public gatherings in June.

We have seen no reliable evidence to indicate when it will be safe to take the ride onto the streets so we have not proposed a new date for the ride.  It is possible that there will be no ride in 2020. We will review the situation at each of our monthly meetings and have the ability to mount a ride at short notice if circumstances change. We will let you know if there is any news. Our next update should be around 14th May.

The ride has been increasingly popular over the past 16 years, with its fun, attention-grabbing campaign for safer cycling along with healthier environment, lifestyles and behaviours. This year was planned to be the biggest ride ever, with 8 start groups covering over 53 miles (85Km) of London’s congested and polluted streets, crossing 14 Thames bridges on the way, and merging into a spectacular 1,000+ rider peloton.

But this June we will be focused on safety for all, and grieving for the suffering of many of our participants, supporters and the public at large. We particularly applaud the many of our supporters who are active in the response to this global crisis.

It’s Not the World Naked Bike Ride

We will not be riding on 13th June – but that doesn’t mean we cannot mark the date. This year we will be campaigning safely with activities that are “Not the World Naked Bike Ride”. Watch out for announcements about how supporters can join us not on the ride.

Cycling during the lockdown

We echo the views of experts and other cycling campaigns that cycling is a valuable activity during times of lockdown and social isolation.  As a means of transport for essential workers it is far safer than using public transport.  In terms of accident prevention, it is a much smaller factor than the driving of motor vehicles. Practised with due consideration for social distancing it is an excellent, healthy form of exercise.

In recent years WNBR London has had multiple start points with routes that allow our environmental campaign to deliver its messages on 53 miles (85 Km) of London’s congested and polluted streets, crossing 14 Thames bridges on the way. We regularly have over 1,000 riders so it would be hard to fit you all in one place. This also means you can choose a convenient location.  But, wherever you start, all groups converge to form one peloton that can be around 4Km long when stretched out! This post talks about how to choose your start point.

So, what considerations might you have?

• Convenient location
• Transport links (train/tube/bus)
• Bike hire locations
• Length of ride
• Scenic / sightseeing opportunities
• Where your friends are starting from
• Opportunity for social time before ride
• Bodypainting
• Crowds vs Small Group
• Public vs Private
• Minimising spectators and photographers

Click here for an interactive map showing start locations and train stations.

Croydon is a new start this year. It will be the longest of the routes at 20⅓ miles (32½ Km). Riders will need to keep up a good speed before joining the other groups in Central London. The venue is in a gated, private property so will be convenient for bodypainting and some pre-ride socialising.

Kew Bridge slips to second longest at 17¾ miles (28½ Km). It tends to attract a small group of enthusiastic cyclists.  The ride crosses the meandering Thames five times before joining in with the Clapham Junction start. Altogether you should get to cross the Thames eight times! The ride starts from the southbound roadside at the north end of the bridge. This means there is nowhere to socialise or do body painting – and no point in arriving early. It is a relatively small group of riders.

Clapham Junction is very convenient for the train connections, after all, it is the biggest junction and has the most trains passing through – over 2,000 on weekdays. Our start point is alongside the station (Platform 1 side) in a fairly small public square, so there is no time for socialising or body painting. The overall route is 9 miles (14½ Km).

Deptford at 10⅓ miles (16⅔ Km) is another fairly long ride. It will meet other groups at Tower Hill and continue as part of a merged group. The start is at Matchstick Piehouse, a theatre, café and bar. It is a private location which means you can arrive early from noon to socialise, do bodypainting, eat pies and drink.

Victoria Park is another new route for 2020. It is around 11½ miles long (18½ Km). The group is led by one of our disabled cyclists and will take a comfortable route to merge with the Deptford and Tower Hill groups before becoming part of the overall peloton.

The other rides are relatively easy rides into the centre.

Tower Hill is arguably the most scenic ride, starting alongside the Tower of London, crossing four bridges, riding alongside the river, passing through Trafalgar Square and Westminster. It’s handy for London Bridge, Waterloo, Charing Cross, Fenchurch St and Liverpool St stations. We use a reasonably large public park, so it is possible to arrive early, picnic, socialise and do body painting. Because it is a public space there will be onlookers and photographers.  The ride from here is about 7¾ miles (12½ Km).

Hyde Park is the best known starting point and always attracts large crowds (including photographers), so those riders need to enjoy being in a crowd! Each year we have to agree details with the Royal Parks (and the Parks’ Police), but we expect to be able to gather early enough for socialising and bodypainting.  Being a large group of riders, it tends to move slowly. It is a short route at just over 7½ miles (12¼ Km).

Regents Park is an easy ride down through the centre of town, and particularly good if you are bringing your bike in via Euston or Kings Cross stations.  The Royal Parks do not give us permission to start from the Park, so we start roadside instead. There has not been a problem with people visiting the park before the start, but do not get naked, do bodypainting or look like you are lining up for the start! This is the shortest route at just under 7½ miles (12 Km).

We can no longer offer the start at West Norwood as the property owner has moved – and now offers the route from Croydon instead. We have also given up trying to reinstate the former start at Kings Cross as the regeneration of the site has made it unsuitable.

All the routes merge for the core part of the route, from Westminster Bridge onwards, to form the 1,000+ rider peloton (which always moves at a safe, comfortable pace and gets stuck a bit). The main route ends near Hyde Park Corner.

If you are worried about how far you can cycle, bear in mind that you can choose to finish any time you want to.  You don’t have to do the full course to show your support for the campaign.

Start points and routes may be subject to change due to unforeseen traffic conditions on the day so riders should check the exact locations and details on the WNBR London website, FaceBook pages or Twitter feed.

Natasha and Simon bravely fielded the questions in the studio, accompanied by a fully decked out WNBR London bike.  Cy and our bodypainters, @feelgoodpainted and @ashasart_soul, made it all happen behind the scenes.

Watch Heart’s studio videos

https://www.instagram.com/p/B251Zx7nSjQ/

https://twitter.com/thisisheart/status/1177475465864368130

Broadcast Audio

Watch WNBR.London’s behind-the-scenes video

Photo Gallery from WNBR.London’s morning at Heart Breakfast

Photos by: Heart UK, Cy Wol and Amanda @feelgoodpainted 

Amanda Holden’s Jiggly Instagram post

Our team photographer, Scott Hortop,  has completed work on the photos from WNBR London 2019. There are some brilliant shots of the ride and many of you waved enthusiastically when you saw Scott – so we know you’re looking forward to seeing your photos! You can view these in two sets:

• Top 30 Art Shots
• Full set of 298 photos

These copyright photos are not intended for publication and we will not be making print-quality shots available in a digital format.  We will only re-use a photo if any featured person can be identified and gives their permission.  If you would like an A4 printed version of your picture, these can be obtained from the photographer using the links on the site (profits go into WNBR London fundraising).

If anyone is unhappy to see themself featured in a photo, just let us know and we will take it out of the set. You can get the reference for the photo by starting to purchase a print then looking at the details in the shopping cart details before you click “clear cart”.

Enjoy!

Many thanks to the many of you who have sent feedback through our website, social media and email.  We want to share this with everyone, even the bad bits (which we’ll be looking at in our lessons learned session).  To avoid any editorial judgements it’s in alphabetical sequence of contributor:

• Albert: Well done. Another great ride. You even managed to get the sun to come out and play for a bit.
• Andy: We wish we’d been at one of the rides at the weekend but the weather forecast looked poor. Seems we needn’t have worried.
• Anthony: we had a great time yesterday, we really enjoyed it! Not sure if I met you but thanks for organising
• Chris: I’m definitely doing the @WNBRLondon again next year!
• Chris: Brilliant stuff well done to everyone!
• Colin: It was a great day, with a lovely festive atmosphere. The vast majority of the Londoners coming out to watch were very enthusiastic although there was a small far right group wanting to demonstrate against us. The stewards did a greatly great job of controlling the traffic, which was not always easy as some drivers seemed very impatient. All the riders were very friendly and generally respectful to each other, with regards to photos etc. The scale of the ride, set against the iconic London landmarks made for a very memorable experience and I am very glad that I took part.
• Colin: I was not very impressed with the slow speed of clearing the road at Buckingham Palace when a police vehicle was travelling with blue light and sirens. Earlier I was very unimpressed with the extremely slow speed of clearing the road when an ambulance was travelling with blue light and sirens.
• Danielle: Yesterday was good fun ! How many times in your life have you ridden through London completely nude?
• Danielle: I attended the lastest London wnbr on the 8th of June 2019, had a fabulous time and would love to participate again
• Danni: XD my boobies!
• David: Fantastic day as always. 25 miles and 5 hours naked on the streets of London.
• Dean: To the rider who shouted “Fucking Weirdo” at me as he cycled past – because I took a photo – shame on you. I have supported WNBR London since 2007, have taken part several times, and would only ever take a photo of the ride whilst it’s in progress – which I believe the organisers deem acceptable. Pretty cowardly behaviour too, as he then rode off down the street before I had the chance to reply. Verbal abuse is unacceptable at the best of times, let alone on a fun ride such as this.
• Ed: My ride today: The weather favoured us with Sunshine. A great atmosphere, no bother, stress nor aggravation, there was no confrontation, shouting at people nor sanctimony.
• Eva: Absolutely loving life riding round London bollock naked on Saturday. The sun even made an appearance for the final lap!
• gwerin: It was a great day out. The marshals did a great job of managing the traffic and there was a great atmosphere among the riders. These rides are already helping to encourage bike use. Hopefully they will also help to make motorists more aware of cyclists.
• Guy: (photographer) The world naked bike ride in London. Aimed at raising awareness of cyclists and freedom of expression. Ironically was verbally abused by hard right yellow vest protestors as it passed down Whitehall! Luckily the police held back the ‘disgusted’ mob.
• Ian: Great day out the crowd reaction was amazing made one or two new friends along the route hope they stay in touch especially the guy from ST Albans. Can’t wait for next years ride
• Ian: I’ve done the ride twice once in Southampton and this year in London just loved the experience
• IanL I had a fantastic time on the ride today. My thanks to all those who gave their time to make it ( yet another ) great ride.
• John: fantastic day with really fantastic people all for a good cause to make roads safe for everyone
• Kirstin: Andy and I enjoyed our 5th bike ride yesterday. It seemed there were less people than previous years and we put it down to the poor weather.
• Koala: Encore une belle journée cette année. Merci
• Lee: Hi all this was my first time I was only looking on from the street. It was amazing too see. congratulation to u all
• Lucy: The perfect way to unwind. Brilliantly organised and mad fun as ever great job
• Mark: iBikeLDN smashed it. Not even sure I can pick out my favourite but YMCA by Buck House is probably going to be i
• Martin: I had a great time thanks to the weather, fellow riders and the tunes lol.
• Mary: just to say a real BIG THANK YOU we had such a fantastic fun day ……..My partner LOVED it she is now on about it NONE STOP ……. we/she did the full Monty lol and she didn’t stop smiling all the way round……..We meet some great people from all over ……Some one up there was smiling on us all as the weather turned out real good in the end didnt it lol………….Thanks again fantastic thing and we will DEFF see you next year .. THANK YOU
• Matt: That was amazing!! First of very many. See you next year!!
• Mel: Thanks as ever to the organisers, especially those at Tower Hill who always do such a great job
• Merf: I did the bike ride yesterday. It was amazing.
• Michael: Thanks to you all for making it a brilliant day a BIG thanks to sophie for all your efforts .. loved the body paint !!
• Nick: It was actually ace music
• Paul: Good stuff, I enjoyed the ride and congtatulations to all those who put time and effort into these events.
• Richard: Brilliant initiative – wish that we could have ridden too
• Richard: As A new participant I wish to congratulate you all on your excellent organisation the day was a real pleasure for both myself and my wife who attended for the first time, your marshals took the time to see everyone was safe and not left behind which was a concern of mine as my wife it’s a relatively novice biker. The atmosphere on the ride was excellent fun and purposeful, If there was a disappointment it would be the after party…
• Robert: had a great ride. Thanks to all the Marshalls
• Tony: The ride was awesome! Shame that the Afterparty was truly terrible. However, a very fun day!
• Warwick: Thank you for an amazing day and experience! One of the most memorable and best days in London ever – and for important causes. Thank you organisers and bold and fun naked riders

Our photographer this year is Scott Hortop, aka Scotty H. His first involvement with WNBR was as a marshal at the London ride in 2013 and then as guest photographer of the Tower Hill start of the 2014 ride. He is currently helping with the organisation of the Brighton Naked Bike Ride, an event he participated in originally in 2013 from a body positivity angle but now he is mainly motivated by it being part of the diverse climate protest movement.

Having photographed at nine rides now, Scott is acutely aware of the challenges of photographing people wearing little or no clothing, most of whom do not know him. He shuns the big black cameras with big lenses that he once used professionally, and this certainly helps, but most people will only feel truly comfortable if they know how their image might be used.

Scott sees his role as guest photographer to get images that fulfil two needs:

• The need of WNBR as a protest movement to have images to help publicise the causes that are important to us
• The desire of many riders to be able to have a place to remember the event and perhaps find images of themselves

Along the route of the ride there will be photographers from news agencies who will be looking for images to appear in the Sunday and Monday editions of the newspapers and online. Many participants in the ride are quite happy to get featured and from our point of view that is great, their body painting, slogans and demeanour cry out for coverage. If you are not that sort of person, then don’t be put off participating, we can’t guarantee anything but if there is one place where it’s possible to be low key while naked it is among the huge numbers of the London World Naked Bike Ride!

There are some tips about photography policy and how to avoid unwelcome attention on our Photography Policy page.

Scott will be at the Tower Hill start, at the finish and at the Afterparty. At these venues he’ll only be taking photos where he’s clear he’s got permission – he may additionally ask you if the image can be added to our library to use in our publicity. We hope that you’ll help us in this but if not that’s fine.

Scott will also be out on the route at two or three locations away from crowded areas getting photos of riders as they pass. If you see him then a simple smile and wave makes for some of the best images. As for any other photographer,  if you do not want to be photographed, hold up your hand in a stop gesture or shake your head. Like it or not there will be thousands (mainly excited spectators and tourists) taking photos of the ride but he’ll be easy to spot in a bright pink tabard (poor chap). Why bright pink? No dodgy or pro photographer is going to be wearing bright pink!

The day after the ride, Scott will be busy at the Brighton WNBR (not taking photos) and he’ll be working to edit his images as the following week progresses. He’ll put the best photos on his website and they will carry a watermark that will deter people who may wish to steal images but which should not ruin your enjoyment of them. If you want a print they will be available at a reasonable cost with 50% of money made coming into London WNBR coffers. If there’s a picture of you that you want removed you only have to ask.

Married with two grown up children and now more or less retired, in previous lives Scott was a professional commercial photographer with a focus on party photography and capturing people in the workplace.

His website is at www.ScottyH.com and his photos from various naked bike rides are hidden away at https://www.scottyh.com/-/galleries/events/world-naked-bike-ride

In recent years WNBR London has had multiple start points with routes that allow our environmental campaign to deliver its messages on 65Km of London’s congested and polluted streets, crossing 14 Thames bridges on the way. We regularly have over 1,000 riders so it would be hard to fit you all in one place. This also means you can choose a convenient location.  But, wherever you start, all groups converge to form one peloton that can be around 4Km long when stretched out! This post talks about how to choose your start point.

So, what considerations might you have?

• Convenient location
• Transport links (train/tube/bus)
• Bike hire locations
• Length of ride
• Scenic / sightseeing opportunities
• Where your friends are starting from
• Opportunity for social time before ride
• Bodypainting
• Crowds vs Small Group
• Public vs Private
• Minimising spectators and photographers

Click here for an interactive map showing start locations and train stations.

Kew Bridge is the longest ride at 17¾ miles (28½ Km). It tends to attract a small group of enthusiastic cyclists.  The ride crosses the meandering Thames five times before joining in with the Clapham Junction start. Altogether you should get to cross the Thames eight times! The ride starts from the southbound roadside at the north end of the bridge. This means there is nowhere to socialise or do body painting – and no point in arriving early. It is a relatively small group of riders.

Clapham Junction is very convenient for the train connections, after all, it is the biggest junction and has the most trains passing through – over 2,000 on weekdays. Our start point is alongside the station (Platform 1 side) in a fairly small public square, so there is no time for socialising or body painting. The overall route is 9 miles (14½ Km).

Deptford is new for 2019.  At 10⅓ miles (16⅔ Km) it is another fairly long ride, crossing two of the best Thames bridges,Tower Bridge and London Bridge, before joining the other groups. The start is at Matchstick Piehouse, a theatre, café and bar. It is a private location which means you can arrive early from noon to socialise, do bodypainting, eat pies and drink.

West Norwood has now been confirmed. It is a private property where you can arrive early to get bodypainted if you wish. Riders are also invited to return to the start point for a BBQ after the ride. The ride is about 10½ miles (17 Km).

The other rides are relatively easy rides into the centre.

Tower Hill is arguably the most scenic ride, starting alongside the Tower of London, crossing four bridges, riding alongside the river, passing through Trafalgar Square and Westminster. It’s handy for London Bridge, Waterloo, Charing Cross, Fenchurch St and Liverpool St stations. We use a reasonably large public park, so it is possible to arrive early, picnic, socialise and do body painting. Because it is a public space there will be onlookers and photographers.  The ride from here is about 7¾ miles (12½ Km).

Hyde Park is the best known starting point and always attracts large crowds (including photographers), so those riders need to enjoy being in a crowd! Each year we have to agree details with the Royal Parks (and the Parks’ Police), but we expect to be able to gather early enough for socialising and bodypainting.  Being a large group of riders, it tends to move slowly. It is a short route at just over 7½ miles (12¼ Km).

Regents Park is an easy ride down through the centre of town, and particularly good if you are bringing your bike in via Euston or Kings Cross stations.  The Royal Parks do not give us permission to start from the Park, so we start roadside instead. There has not been a problem with people visiting the park before the start, but do not get naked, do bodypainting or look like you are lining up for the start! This is the shortest route at just under 7½ miles (12 Km).

This year, unfortunately, we have again been unable to agree the start at Kings Cross due to conflicting events.

All the routes merge for the core part of the route, from Westminster Bridge onwards, to form the 1,000+ rider peloton (which always moves at a safe, comfortable pace and gets stuck a bit).

If you are worried about how far you can cycle, bear in mind that you can choose to finish any time you want to.  You don’t have to do the full course to show your support for the campaign.

Start points and routes may be subject to change due to unforeseen traffic conditions on the day so riders should check the exact locations and details on the WNBR London website, FaceBook pages or Twitter feed.

We were moved and inspired by the story of Geoff Collins’ last ride with WNBR London. It speaks so strongly to our themes of body image, healthy lifestyle, good attitude and cycling. But most of all, it is a story of strength, determination and bravery.

Geoff was treated for bowel cancer and had a stoma fitted. He immediately fought back to regain his health and fitness. He had been a keen cyclist and was quickly back in the saddle.  To demonstrate that having a stoma is OK and to show the world that he and not his stoma was in charge of his life, he rode with WNBR London in June 2018.

Sadly, cancer caught up with Geoff and he died in October 2018.

The full story by Richard Biddle deserves your attention. See http://www.colostomyuk.org/tour-de-stoma/

Eyes were wide open and opinions divided when UK Member of Parliament Michael Fabricant published a video where he apparently cycled naked in a London park to promote his idea for a charity naked bike ride in support of a local hospice. He said he was inspired by the UK’s World Naked Bike Rides.

Opinions were varied in the WNBR community.  We celebrate and encourage diversity – WNBR and cycling should be for everyone – even MPs. We also welcome publicity that helps us to promote our mission.

As a campaign that seeks to improve wellbeing through improved environment, healthier lifestyles and better attitudes, we are a political protest group – but not in terms of party politics. We would not wish to appear aligned to any specific politician or party or political philosophy. We also do not wish to divert our focus by becoming aligned to unrelated causes or campaigns. Nevertheless, if politicians wish to ride with us or support us in other ways – the more the better.

Some of the opinions expressed by WNBR supporters on social media were:

• It’s not that far from Birmingham where a WNBR is needed
• WNBR is not meant to be a charity fundraiser – it has serious themes which people need to be aware of [Ed: although some people do ride to raise money and we do not object to that]
• His time would be better spent reversing Tory cuts
• Some poor bastard has to use that bike after him. I hope he at least cleaned it [Ed: as readers of our website and social media will know, we ask everyone using a hire bike to use a seat cover]
• His website does mention that he was inspired by the various WNBR he’s seen in a few cities he’s visited
• Will Boris Johnson join him?

According to the BBC, Prime Minister Theresa May’s official spokesman said: “The Prime Minister wishes Michael the very best of luck with his fundraising. He is raising money for an excellent cause and I’m sure that St Giles’ Hospice will be very grateful for his efforts.”

WNBR London wishes Michael Fabricant the best of luck with his charity work!

You can watch Fabricant’s naked bike ride promotion on Youtube at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NiSPywlJbA0