London – Page 64 – A LONDON MISCELLANY

ABC of City of London Wards

This is the second post about the wards that make up the the City of London. You can find the post about Aldersgate HERE The City of London is divided into 25 wards. These wards are a survival of the medieval governmental system that allowed very small areas to exist as self-governing units within the wider city. The wards… Continue reading ABC of City of London Wards

1984 and all that

I’ve been catching up on my reading lately, George Orwell in particular. I’d read Animal Farm at school and hadn’t thought much of it until years later when I reread it and started to understand what was going on. I know exactly when I read 1984 it was in 1984, due mostly to the film… Continue reading 1984 and all that

A Tall Story, but a good one.

There’s not a more evocative street name in London than “Bleeding Heart Yard” nearby to the jewelry district of Hatton Garden. Charles Dickens knew it well, using it as the home and workshop of the impoverished plasterer Mr Plornish and his family in Little Dorrit, but there’s a more sinister and evil tale connected to… Continue reading A Tall Story, but a good one.

Urban

One Word Sunday Part of the now defunct London “Pedway” system from a time when we were all going to live and work in Streets in the sky.

Gog and Magog Giants of Albion

Six word Saturday These two figures adorn the clock of St Dunstan’s in the West, Fleet Street. They are meant to represent the Giants that inhabited the land of Albion (Britain) and were discovered by Brutus of Troy. This story is all down to Geoffrey of Monmouth who wrote a history of Britain around 1136,… Continue reading Gog and Magog Giants of Albion

The Entente Cordiale

I think it’s true to say that Victoria is probably not my favourite area of London. It’s one that seems ill at ease sitting next to the very grand Belgravia and the less grand Pimlico estates. If I go there at all it’s usually to Victoria Railway Station, never a pleasure, always a chore! However,… Continue reading The Entente Cordiale

The Hand and Shears

I’ve been in for a pint on numerous occasion and always enjoy the slightly dark interior and no nonsense decor. The pub sits on the corner of Middle and Kinghorn Street in a delightful Georgian enclave tucked away in the shadow of St Bartholomew’s church. I knew that the building dated from the mid 1800s,… Continue reading The Hand and Shears

ABC of City of London Wards

I was recently looking through a list of Wards in the city, and thought it might be a good idea to run through the list giving a bit of background on each Ward. The City of London is divided into 25 wards. These wards are a survival of the medieval governmental system that allowed very small areas to exist… Continue reading ABC of City of London Wards

Ship Ahoy!

I tend not to labour on a subject for too long when writing this blog, but I seem to be on a bit of a roll with the 1893 OS map of London. As described in an earlier post, Cartophilia told how the Cartographers that put the map together had the insight to add inscriptions… Continue reading Ship Ahoy!

Quantity not quality

I’ve just received a copy of the 1937 edition of Ward Lock’s London, a quirky little 7 x 5 inch tourist guide. Ward, Lock & Co. was a publishing house that started as a partnership and developed until it was eventually absorbed into the publishing combine of Orion Publishing Group. Ebenezer Ward and George Lock starting a… Continue reading Quantity not quality