On 30 October 1957, the Government unveiled plans to reform the House of Lords which included admitting women for the first time. Under the scheme, male and female life peerages were created ensuring ‘a balanced representation of the different political parties’.

On 30 October 1959 Ronnie Scott’s jazz club opened at 39 Gerrard Street, Soho

During the 1860s, London’s most notorious prison, Newgate, became a kind of theatre, visitors could tour the prison being briefly locked in a windowless cell was one of the highlights

On Blackfriars Bridge the side facing out to sea is decorated with marine birds, the inland side is adorned with freshwater birds

Poet Edmund Spenser’s Westminster Abbey tomb may contain unpublished work by Shakespeare who threw manuscripts into his grave to honour him

The City of London has never been under the authority of the monarch. The Queen may only enter the Square Mile of the City if she is given permission by the Lord Mayor

The bronze statue of Peter Pan was erected in Kensington Gardens in 1912. It marks the spot where J M Barrie first met Jack Llewellyn Davies, the boy who was the inspiration for Peter

By 1870 there were 20,000 public houses and beer shops in London, today according to the Campaign for Real Ale at least 10 are closing every week

The Oval held a particular attraction for the United States billionaire philanthropist, J. Paul Getty II, who built a replica of the ground at his estate at Wormsley Park in Buckinghamshire

London Heathrow Airport is the world’s busiest airports by international passenger traffic, and the third for total traffic

Over 800 members of staff are based at Buckingham Palace, some of the more unusual jobs include fendersmith, clockmaker and flagman

South Kensington is still sometimes referred to as ‘Little Paris’ the area is not only known for its Francophile bookshops but also its French doctors and dentists

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.