Jake Bullough runs Beara Beara

PASSING through Argyle Walk in King’s Cross, you could be forgiven for thinking you had stepped back in time to the 19th century.

Padlocked to the railings is a Penny Farthing – an early type of bicycle with one large front wheel and one small wheel at the rear.

According to its owner Jake Bullough, the bike may be old-fashioned but it is still very much in use.

“I know it sounds silly, but I like riding it around – it’s more or less the same speed as a normal bike, and it’s just sort of fun,” he said. Mr Bullough rides the bike across London.

“Everybody stops: cars stop, everybody’s waving, they absolutely love it. It brings a smiles to peoples’ faces,” he said.

“About 90 per cent of the time people say ‘well done mate, love it’, and then 10 per cent of the time people [insult me], because they think I’m trying to be some cool hipster dude.”

Mr Bullough, who is the owner of leather bag designer Beara Beara in Whidbourne Street, said he bought the bike because it chimes with the “vintage” designs of his bags.

Riding the penny farthing is “not that difficult,” Mr Bullough said, adding: “It’s all about predicting where people are and not forgetting that you’re on this bike, not a regular bike.

“There are a couple of different things you’ve got to keep in mind: you’ve got no brakes, and no gears. “Hills are dangerous, and when you’re on a flat surface you’ve got to keep your distance between yourself and everybody else because if you need to stop suddenly, you’ve got to jump off.”

The furthest he has ever ridden his Penny Farthing is during the “Ring of Beara” cycle challenge in Ireland.

“I like my physical challenges,” he said. “I thought: let’s add another dimension to it, so I said: ‘right, I’ll do it on my Penny Farthing’. I think it was 68 miles in a day.”

He added: “The frustrating thing is when you get to the top of the hill, if it’s too steep on the other side, you can’t do that. It’s way too dangerous – you just free wheel. With a big wheel, you pick up more momentum.”

It was during this cycle that he came the closest to falling off. He recalled: “Half way down I realised I shouldn’t have done it. I still wake up now thinking: oh, I came so close.”