On 15 June 2011 Harrods was sold to the Qataris for a reported £1.5 billion by Mohamed Al Fayed, and started selling superyachts this day. According to The Times, the Mars model retailed at £100 million.

On 15 June 1215 King John’s Magna Carta was signed at Runnymede to limit the power of the monarchy

The narrowest house in London lies next door to Tyburn Convent and was built to block a passage used by grave robbers. It is one metre wide

Holborn Viaduct was built in 1869 to overcome the steep slope on both sides of Farringdon Street and is the world’s first road flyover

At 9 Curzon Place where Cass Elliot of Mamas & Papas died in 1974, Who drummer Keith Moon died from drugs in the same flat – both aged 32

William IV was the last king ever to dismiss his government, although all subsequent monarchs have in principle been free to do so

Harry Potter’s magic luggage trolley sticks out of a wall between platforms 8/9 not 9/10 because J.K.Rowling was thinking of Euston

There are 32 pods on the London Eye, one for every borough, but they’re numbered 1 to 33 – no number 13 for superstitious reasons

In June 1939 92,000 watched the greyhound racing Derby at White City, only football and cinema drew larger audiences during the 1930s

Electric cabs on Victorian streets numbered a mere 19 at the time 10,361 horse drawn cabs plied for hire and continued in service until 1947

Prince Philip who first referred to the Royal Family as “The firm” also described Buckingham Palace as “not ours, it’s a tied cottage”

The last thatched cottage in inner London survived in the Paddington area until 1890s when it was demolished for St. David’s Welsh Church

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.