On 18 November 1910 the day was known as Black Friday when 300 suffragettes clashed with police at a rally in Hyde Park protesting against Prime Minister Asquith’s refusal to allow debate of the Conciliation Bill granting women universal suffrage, the first documented use of force against women, 2 died and 200 arrested. After Black Friday, Asquith promised the Liberals would include a Suffrage Bill if elected.

On 18 November 1987 a discarded cigarette ignited debris beneath an escalator at King’s Cross Station thirty-one would die in the conflagration

The first man to wear a top hat in public caused so much hysteria and commotion in St James’ that he was arrested for disturbing the peace

London’s thoroughfares once had Thieving Lane; Whores Nest; Pissing Alley; Cutthroat Lane; Foul Lane; Blowbladder Street; and Cats Hole

Love them or loath them W. S. Gilbert of Gilbert and Sullivan operatic fame was born in London on 18 November 1836, S stands for Schwenck

When Napoleon was thinking of invading England his failed attempt was mocked by an unusual ale house sign: ‘My Arse in a Bandbox’

Established in 1902, Ealing Studios in West London are the oldest continuously working film studios in the world

Opened in 1652, Pasqua Rosee’s was the first coffee house in London located on St Michael’s Alley was burned down during the Great Fire 1666

In 1577 John Northbrooke’s Treatise deplored blasphemous swinge-bucklers, tossepots, loitering idle persons and the governing of football

In 1890 the City and South London Railway was the world’s first deep-level underground railway and the first railway to use electric traction

In 14th century London employed rakers to rake the excrement out of toilets, notably one Richard the Raker died by drowning in his own toilet

Margaret Thatcher went to the same Mayfair hairdresser, Evansky as Barbara Castle, while Thatcher sat in main area Castle had a private room

Trivial Matter: London in 140 characters is taken from the daily Twitter feed @cabbieblog.
A guide to the symbols used here and source material can be found on the Trivial Matter page.