To put it briefly, Tess's place in Barbican is nothing short of awesome. It's right around the corner from the station, and there's a really good supermarket literally outside the front door. There's also the lunch market on Whitecross St, adjacent to Tess's building, which is super convenient.
The flat itself is great. Has a great kitsch charm to it, especially the bathroom with its telephone style shower/bath head. The flat is on the top, 6th floor, so beware that you have to climb 5 floors to get to there! This wasn't a lot of fun with a 23kg suitcase. But once I was up there, it was fabulous.
Tess is great, and has a lot of great suggestions for places to see, and things to do - especially things beyond the tourist guides. She was super helpful when I first arrived, suggesting a great coffee place down the street (Fix - highly recommended), and providing a guide to the surrounding neighbourhoods.
Bed was comfy, shower was hot, and the apartment was really clean. I couldn't ask for any better. Thanks Tess!