POSTCARD FROM LONDON (FOR FREE)

Although you can no longer get into Kew Gardens for 3d, Bob Barton finds plenty to do in the capital for free

- By Bob Barton

As a youngster with a limited amount of cash, I used to spend days out in the capital enjoying delights that were totally free. These included getting lost in the maze at Hampton Court Palace, window shopping in the multifarious toy section of Gamages' department store and exploring the roof garden of Derry & Toms in Kensington, with its exotic flamingos. I could spend a day in the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew by handing over a threepenny bit.

These bargains may have gone but there's still lots that can be enjoyed free of charge. London's National Museums, hundreds of acres of Royal Parks and the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace included. However, I'm devoting this Postcard from... to some lesser-known bargain attractions that I've visited recently.

I beg your indulgence, as I've been pining for a machine that no-one uses anymore. The subject of my preoccupation is a search for the humble typewriter. This was a quest during recent forays in the capital. Ever since I was given a 1930s Royal "sit-up-and-beg" as a nine-year-old (it cost £5 secondhand), I've been an ardent fan of this largely abandoned technology. (Though not as committed as Tom Hanks, who has reputedly collected 300 typewriters and often replies to fan letters using one.) I bashed out an article for my school magazine and was hooked. Before long, I was typing stencils for the school's Roneo duplicator and using correction fluid like a pro.

Reading-born television personality Simon Doonan, a former creative director of Barneys New York department store, said the soundtrack to the 20th century was the clacking and clanging of typewriters. I couldn't agree more, though my first clunky Royal involved more hammering than clacking.