Human Cannonballs, Dead Whales, Strongmen & Sombreros

It started as an attempt at the 'moral elevation' of the people and ended as an amusement palace. The story of the Royal Aquarium is full of curious tales and eccentric people.

London’s Other Banqueting House

For almost two hundred years the Lord Mayor of London had his own Banqueting House - but it wasn't in the City of London.

‘That Absurd Excrescence’: The life & death of Middle Row

A hazard to traffic for at least 700 years, this block of tenements had a remarkable ability to survive the disapproval of generations of Londoners.

The Perils of Buggins’ Turn

The turbulent mayoralty of Sir Charles Whetham shows the pitfalls of assigning an important job by seniority rather than on merit.

The Great City of London Coffee-house Robberies of 1803

By examining a minor criminal case in the City, I conclusively prove that the past truly is a foreign country

To a London blogger, no street is dull

Can I find anything interesting about a 70-yard road which on the face of it has severely limited blog post potential? Read on to find out ...

Respectable Widows in Little Sodom

In this post I examine the remarkable survival of St Giles-in-the-Fields almshouses, sited in what was for centuries one of the most deprived neighbourhoods of London.

Noxious niffs, nauseous nickers & blue-billy? It’s the City Gasworks

For more than half a century the few blocks between Blackfriars and Whitefriars in the City's south western corner were dominated by the City of London Gas Light and Coke Company.

Protests, Petitions & Poverty: The Fellowship Porters’ Chaotic Fall

The centuries-old Fellowship of Free Porters couldn't survive the seismic changes of the Victorian era. I chart its chaotic and tragic collapse mainly through the eyes of newspaper journalists.

Not just London Bridge: Structural oopsie-daises in the capital

The problem of buildings falling down has existed since time immemorial. I've picked a selection of unusual incidents caused by poor design, subsidence or simple wear & tear.
Facebook
Instagram