Living in a tourist attraction: British woman gives insight into life in the Tower of London

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“Walking sober on the cobblestones is difficult enough. When you’re drunk, it’s an Olympic sport,” says Megan Clawson. She lived in the Tower of London for three years – and shared with her followers via Tiktok and Instagram what it means to live in a tourist attraction. Coming home drunk was particularly unpleasant. Not only because of the cobblestones, but also because of the countless surveillance cameras that caught them stumbling.

To be allowed in even after visiting a pub, Clawson also had to keep an eye on the time. Because: Every day at 9:30 PM the ‘Key Ceremony’ takes place, during which the castle is closed. The tradition, which is about 700 years old, lasts half an hour. Meanwhile, no one enters the tower.

Even when Clawson had visitors, he always had to keep an eye on the time. “I had to tell them, ‘If you don’t leave before midnight, you’ll be locked up here until tomorrow morning,'” the Brit says.

Tower life was like being in a village

Another drawback was ordering food. Delivery people would think the order was a joke or wouldn’t know how to get the pizza to the fort. But Clawson happily accepted. Because she is also enthusiastic about her time in the tower. For them, life there felt like being in a village, in the middle of a huge metropolis.

There is even a pub in the castle. “My address gave me very privileged access to one of the most exclusive pubs in the world, the Keys,” says Clawson. You can imagine this place “like any other village pub”: cozy and full of beer. The tower residents often met there. Clairon also enjoyed throwing parties at the restaurant. Because: Guests are allowed in the tower.

Tourists woke her up one day

Tourists are also allowed. Every day they visit the tower in large numbers. An unpleasant situation once occurred. During Corona, the blinds in Clawson’s bedroom broke. Since no tourists were allowed into the tower at that time, she didn’t think much about it – until the attraction opened its doors again unannounced one morning. Clawson was awakened by tourists standing outside her window. They took pictures of her room as if it was part of the attraction. Clawson quickly hung a towel from the boy band One Direction on the window. “It was intended as a temporary solution, but it ended up lasting longer and became a joke,” says the Brit.

Clawson was able to live in the Tower of London because her father was a so-called “beefeater”. They have been part of the ceremonial guard since 1485 and protect the tower. To obtain their rank, Beefeaters must have served in the British Army for at least twenty years. After her father finally resigned this year, he and Clawson had to move. Since then, she has missed one thing above all: the remaining residents. “They became my family and my friends,” she says. (Mrs)

Source: Blick