Egyptian House, 170-173 Piccadilly is one of those functional early 20th century buildings that in the next hundred or so years people will begin to love. It’s a bit of a hybrid, echoes of Georgian and Victorian architecture muddled up with just a glimpse of what was ahead in terms of Art Noveau and Art… Continue reading A Little Bit of The Pharaohs In Piccadilly
Tag: History
Rome wasn’t built in a day
Six Word Saturday
“Smash the Pagan Idol!”
You can hear the mob baying, whipped up into a frenzy of anti Catholic fervour by the ringleaders. The crowd some three hundred strong fill narrow Lime Street to bursting point. Some carrying flaming torches which throw an eery glow on the assembled throng, casting deep shadows that heighten the sense of malevolence amongst the… Continue reading “Smash the Pagan Idol!”
Owen’s Fields
The entrance to this small park was once the entrance to a school playground that separated Dame Alice Owen’s Girls’ School and Owen’s Boys’ School and is now known as Owen’s Field in Clerkenwell. The girl’s school was built in 1890 and was a substantial building with underground cellars. At the outbreak of the Second… Continue reading Owen’s Fields
Drunk and incapable
I’d always wondered what the “incapable” meant in the phrase. Incapable of what exactly? Creating children’s novelty balloons, reciting pi to twenty decimal places or perhaps listing FA Cup winners since 1924? Turns out the guidance to a police officer is as follows, a drunk and incapable person is someone who has consumed alcohol to… Continue reading Drunk and incapable
Sorry, no fish today
Had the luxury of travelling on a bus a few weeks ago from Victoria to Charing Cross. I call it a luxury because it gives a different perspective from pavement level when you sit upstairs (at the front pretending to be the driver obviously). Instead of sitting on the Westminster Abbey side I went for… Continue reading Sorry, no fish today
Bucolic Bonnington Square
Bonnington Square in Vauxhall was built during the 1870s. Only a “six” away from the Oval cricket ground it comprised compact neat rows of London brick houses surrounding a central double terrace primarily used to house railway workers who were employed at Nine Elms Goods Yard close by. Booth’s map has the square marked as… Continue reading Bucolic Bonnington Square
In the beginning was the word
And the word was “Doves“. I was skimming through a book that I was given for Christmas, the excellent A Field Guide to Larking by Lara Maiklem. I’d wanted this book as it’s packed with loads of information regarding a new hobby I’m starting, that of Mudlarking on the banks of the river Thames. As… Continue reading In the beginning was the word
He’s behind you!
“Oh no he isn’t, oh yes he is”. Sorry but I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to slip in a pantomime reference considering the time of year. Afraid this might be lost on anyone outside of the UK. Took some American cousins to a pantomime a few years ago and to begin with they were… Continue reading He’s behind you!
Thou Shall not pass (or escape)
Six Word Saturday
A LONDON MISCELLANY 