On 21 April 1955 a strike which had paralysed Fleet Street ended, the Electricians and Engineers Union, seeking a rise of £2 per week had stopped all publications from the famous newspaper street. The only unaffected paper was the Guardian produced in Manchester. Big news events the Fleet Street papers have missed included Sir Winston Churchill’s resignation and the announcement of a general election.

On 21 April 1834 saw a meeting on Copenhagen Fields, Islington protesting against the deportation of the Tolpuddle Martyrs to Australia

One for the Road and On the Waggon derive from condemned prisoners going to Tyburn being given a drink at the Angel PH St Giles High Street

On 21 April 1933 The Rum Quay West India Docks caught fire burning for 4 days. 6,500 puncheons (3.1 million litres) of rum kept it going

On 21 April 1926 The Queen (Elizabeth II) was born at 21 Bruton Street, Mayfair, eldest daughter of George VI & Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon

The clock at Horse Guards has a black square on the dial denoting the time King Charles I was executed outside Banqueting House opposite

The location shots in the 1950s film Passport to Pimlico were shot not in affluent Pimlico but poorer Lambeth and Vauxhall in south London

On 21 April 1964 BBC2 was launched; however, a fire at Battersea Power Station caused power cuts and only brief news’ updates were shown

In 1895, an American visitor demonstrated a new type of basketball where the girls played with wastepaper baskets at both ends of the hall. This was the first game of netball to be ever played in the UK. The rules were codified in 1901

The first man ever to fly from London to Manchester did so by following the whitewashed sleepers of the London and North Western Railway

Established in 1805 Truefitt and Hill of St. James’s Street remains the world’s oldest barbershop having served nine consecutive Monarchs

Only members of the Royal Family are allowed to drive through the central arch at Horse Guards – Kate Middleton did so after her marriage

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.