I set myself a task today. I thought I’d try and write about London with regard to the senses. Seeing is a bit of an obvious one, but there’s always, hearing, smelling, touching and tasting to explore. I’m going to start with the tactile. There are many old bits of London that you can run… Continue reading Touch Wood
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The Beavers Of Oxford Street
Whenever I walk the streets of London I try to make the effort to look up once in a while. Sometimes you can be too focussed on what’s in front of you. Take a moment to look above the horizon and you might be surprised at what you find. Many interesting and bizarre ornaments and… Continue reading The Beavers Of Oxford Street
….one in a taxi, one in a car
Funny how things come back to you years and years after the event. The title comes from something we used to sing at school when it came to carol concerts at Christmas to the tune of “We three Kings“. Rather unseasonal I know given the abundance of Easter bunnies, but I thought it a better… Continue reading ….one in a taxi, one in a car
As Grave As The Grave
I’ve just finished reading John Bennett’s excellent book, Krayology, which examines the rise and fall of the notorious 1960s London Gangsters Ron and Reggie Kray. Well worth a read if that’s your sort of thing. So far I’ve limited my guided audio walking tours to the confines of the City walls and the environs on… Continue reading As Grave As The Grave
Brass in pocket
Possibly John Rivet was a 17th century example of nominative determinism, that is when your surname influences you to gravitate towards a chosen profession. It’s unclear if the young master Rivet ever wanted to be a Lumberjack, but he eventually became a metal worker. One thing is certain about him, he was a bit of… Continue reading Brass in pocket
……..AND THE BONUS BALL IS
The Nation Lottery started in the UK on the 19th November 1994, however, this was not the first nationwide lottery to be run in Britain. “The Lottery” by William Hogarth 1721 showing the two lottery wheels. The first state lottery was the idea of Master of the Royal Mint, Thomas Neale in order to raise… Continue reading ……..AND THE BONUS BALL IS
“Just a single please”
This is about a very bizarre one way journey that our London Ancestors could have taken during the Victorian period. By the early 1850s, London had a problem with overcrowding. No, not as you would assume with housing or population or traffic, those go without saying. Victorian London had too many corpses and not enough… Continue reading “Just a single please”
A Cock And Pye Story
To make a Peacock Pye. Pick it, and leave the Feathers on the Neck, cut the Neck off close to the Body, skin the Neck close to the Head, and cut it off; put a Stick tight into the Skin up to the Head, dry it in an Oven; cut off the Legs, and keep… Continue reading A Cock And Pye Story
All your (rotten) eggs in one basket
I’m a football fan of a vintage that can remember back to a very ill thought out concept that was run by British Rail, the Football Special. We’re going back to the mid to late 1970s when the scourge of football violence was reaching it’s peak. Whoever at BR thought it was a good idea… Continue reading All your (rotten) eggs in one basket
That Crazy Cat/Dog/ Magpie/ Monkey Lady/Man
Friend Street in Islington is a very unassuming thoroughfare which allows you to cut through from St John’s Street to Goswell Road. Recently while writing a new audio tour I used it as just that, a cut through and didn’t pay it much attention. Over the Christmas period at a bit of a loose end,… Continue reading That Crazy Cat/Dog/ Magpie/ Monkey Lady/Man
A LONDON MISCELLANY 