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Fancy a dip in the Thames?

Although the river is a lot cleaner today than in previous years, the stretch that flows through the environs of Central London is not immediately the first place you’d think of for swimming. The completion of Sir Joseph Bazalgette’s London sewer system in 1870 meant that the quality of water in the River Thames was… Continue reading Fancy a dip in the Thames?

Taken At The Flood

The Dominion Theatre stands on Tottenham Court Road. Construction of the theatre began in March 1928 with a design by W and TR Milburn with a budget of £460,000. The theatre hosted the premier of Charlie Chaplin’s slapstick comedy “City Lights” in 1931, with the star in attendance. There is a rather sad and macabre… Continue reading Taken At The Flood

Cleary Gardens

Space where you can sit and reflect, away from the noise and commotion of the City can be hard to find. One such little oasis is Cleary Gardens, nestling between the busy Queen Victoria Street an Upper Thames Street. The development of the garden into what we see today dates from the 1980’s when it… Continue reading Cleary Gardens

A small glass of Old Tom

As you may know Gin or “mothers ruin” was the scourge of the working classes in late 17th century Britain, as depicted in the famous engraving above by William Hogarth, Gin Lane. By the early part of the new century moves were afoot to stamp down on the availability of the demon drink but it… Continue reading A small glass of Old Tom

Gone, but not forgotten

There is a headstone in a London cemetery which reads; “Darling Dolly My sunbeam My consolation My joy“ A touching memorial from a grieving husband for his deceased wife perhaps? However this monument sits nearby to other heartfelt memorials, “In loving memory of our faithful little friend WOBBLES” or “DICK for 12 years the faithful… Continue reading Gone, but not forgotten

A bottle of Château Thames Embankment

Do you remember the TV series Rumpole of the Bailey, based on the stories written by John Mortimer? Hopefully you do, or the next parts not going to make much sense. The courtroom hack brilliantly played by Leo McKearn loves nothing more after a hard day at the “Bailey” to head to his favourite Fleet… Continue reading A bottle of Château Thames Embankment

Gentlemen Professors Of The Art

I’ve always loved reading the stories of E. W. Hornung about the exploits of Arthur Raffles, gentleman thief and cricketer. It’s thought that Raffles is based on George Ives, a poet, criminologist and a very good cricketer. The name Raffles seems to have been taken from the title of a novel, “The doings at Raffles Haw“,… Continue reading Gentlemen Professors Of The Art

Keeping up appearances

Theft it seems rears it’s head on virtually every street, alleyway and courtyard when you delve back through the archives. If you scrutinise the records hard enough you can even find trends of crimes for specific areas or even streets. I found in one small area of the City a very prosperous (until they were… Continue reading Keeping up appearances

Dogstones

Now there’s a word for you, “Dogstones”. Gallstones found in canines perhaps, or some type of artisanal device for holding something in place? If you Google it, it appears there’s a large stone in Oban in Scotland, but that’s not it. Let me cloud the waters even further by linking the Dogstone with a Hen… Continue reading Dogstones

Please Sir, I want some more

The immortal line penned by Dickens in Oliver Twist which was serialised from 1837. I actually have a connection to Oliver, we’re both “Workhouse Boys”, well that is to say I live in a converted workhouse, where the only deprivation suffered is if the WiFi goes down, or Ocado miss something off the delivery! London… Continue reading Please Sir, I want some more