Four sculptural lampposts now stand between Colindale Station and Tally Ho Corner, linked by the 125 bus. Here is where each one is, who it is named after, and where to get the free map.

Four sculptural lampposts have been installed across the west of the borough as the Waylamps of Barnet, a heritage trail running from Colindale to North Finchley along the route of the 125 bus.

The project’s own page describes the lamps and the free map and field guide that go with them. It does not say where the lamps are. The trail map, published as a PDF, does.

Where the four Waylamps are

Each lamp is named after a person with a Barnet connection. The map gives these directions:

  • Matters, Colindale. “Turn left outside of Colindale Station and look down the road.” This one rotates, casting “spinning shadows of planes and streams across the pavement”. It is named for Muriel Matters (1877 to 1969), the suffragist who took off in an airship from West Hendon to drop Votes for Women leaflets over London.
  • Milligan, Finchley Central. “Tucked into Albert Place is a carousel of shadows, creating a lively theatre of projection all night long.” Spike Milligan (1918 to 2002) was a frequent visitor to Stephens House and Gardens in Finchley, where a statue commemorates him.
  • Slocombe, Dollis Brook. “Hidden by the hedge on the edge of the Dollis Valley Brook you will find this tree of trumpets.” Agnes Slocombe MBE (1935 to 2025) was one of Barnet’s longest-serving councillors and the borough’s first Black Mayor.
  • Reiniger, North Finchley. “Just up from Tally Ho corner you will find the final Waylamp.” Lotte Reiniger (1899 to 1981), the silhouette animator, worked from a studio in New Barnet between 1952 and 1980. Her cut-out style shaped the look of all four lamps.
Schematic of the four Waylamps along the 125 bus route: Matters at Colindale Station, Milligan at Albert Place in Finchley Central, Slocombe on the edge of the Dollis Brook, Reiniger near Tally Ho Corner in North Finchley
Graphic by Barnet Live

How they work

By day the lamps cast patterned shadows on the pavement. After dark they light up under their own solar power and throw a second set of images. The designs draw on Reiniger’s animation and on the lamppost drawings of illustrator William Heath Robinson, who is buried in East Finchley Cemetery.

The lamps were designed by Wayward, a landscape and art practice, with andre kong studio. The project page says the designs came out of shadow puppetry workshops, walks with local residents and archive research.

The map and field guide

The trail is not a single walking route. The map treats each lamp as a starting point for nearby places: the Dollis Valley Greenwalk, College Farm, Stephens House, artsdepot, the museum hangars on the old Hendon Aerodrome.

The field guide and map are free to download. Printed copies are available at:

  • Colindale Library
  • Hendon Library
  • Finchley Church End Library
  • North Finchley Library
  • artsdepot, North Finchley

Who paid for it

The Waylamps are part of Light and Flight, Barnet’s year-long cultural programme for 2026. The programme is funded by a Cultural Impact Award from the Mayor of London’s London Borough of Culture scheme, with support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and Arts Council England. Barnet Council said in March that the programme builds towards a finale in November 2026.

The Colindale section was launched at a free drop-in event at Cultivate Colindale, 14 Quakers Course, on 26 June, according to the event listing. The project page dates the full trail to “summer and autumn 2026”.

What it means for you

  • The four lamps are permanent, free to visit and best seen twice: once in daylight for the shadows, once after dark for the lights.
  • The 125 bus links all four. Colindale and Finchley Central are on the Northern line. Tally Ho Corner is the North Finchley bus hub.
  • The map is also a decent list of things to do on the west side of the borough. Our own things to do in Barnet page covers the rest.
  • The Albert Place lamp is the one to check if you use Finchley Central: the map says it projects “all night long”.

Barnet Live has not visited the lamps. Every location in this article is taken from the published trail map, linked above.