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It's about 1o-11miles each way. Chingford to Trafalgar Square. A nice distance to get into the ride but not so far it takes ages.
jeff80-
Is that the blue finish that you have recovered from the white overpainting? If so you've certainly done a good job.
Those Simplex front changers are a bit more tricky to adjust than later versions and they're a bit on the heavy side, but I note the French pros went on using them well into the 543 era, so they must have something going for them.
One small point: the chain looks too short, but the back wheel is as far back as possible in the fork end. This is not how those long ends are intended to be used with gears - they are not like vertical drop outs! If you just bring the wheel forward so it's about the middle of the slot I think you will find everything looks and works a bit better.
If you now use an imperial tape measure and look at the distance between the front and rear spindle centres, I bet you will find it's either 40, 41 or 42" which would have been a normal wheel bases for this type of frame. (This is assuming the top tube isn't bent).
clubman
That looks ace and its going to be a fun commute, i love those simplex front derailleurs.
Incidentally how far is the commute?