On 19 May 2004, just weeks after a £600,000 security screen was installed at the public gallery of the House of Commons protesters threw condoms full of purple flour hitting Tony Blair during Prime Minister’s Questions. It was realised that the front three rows of the public viewing gallery, normally reserved for ambassadors was not behind the screen. It was the most serious attack since CS gas was thrown into the chamber 30 years previously.

On 19 May 1649 the Rump Parliament passed an Act to turn England into a Republic, it lasted 11 years before we regained our senses

In 1678 the body of Sir Edmund Berry Godfrey was found on Greenberry Hill later three were hanged for the murder their names Green, Berry, Hill

The 19 May is St Dunstan’s Day celebrating the Benedictine Bishop of London who granted a charter authorising the building of Westminster Abbey

Britain’s first fatal car crash took place on Grove Hill, Harrow. Today a plaque on the spot warns drivers to take heed

On 19 May 1536 Anne Boleyn, second wife oe Henry VIII, was beheaded at the Tower of London for alleged adultery

Douglas Adams based characters of Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Universe on Islington where he lived, Hotblack Desiato was an estate agent

The Apollo 11 crew’s first alcoholic drink back on Earth was the Moonwalk, invented by Joe Gilmore of London’s Savoy hotel

On 19 May 2007 The new Wembley Stadium ‘officially’ opened for the FA Cup Final between Chelsea and Manchester United (1-0)

Demonstrating a new crossing in Camden aimed at reducing pedestrian road deaths Transport Minister Hore-Belisha was nearly knocked down

Many of the streets in the city were named after the particular trade which practiced there, for example Threadneedle Street was the tailor’s district

When John Noakes climbed Nelson’s Column (removing pigeon poo) for TV’s Blue Peter a sound engineer didn’t record the stunt, Noakes had to reclimb all over again

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.