On 16 February 1978 after a long campaign in which ‘G. Davis Is Innocent, OK’ was daubed on every available wall in East London, mini-cab driver George Davis was cleared in the Crown Court after his wrongful conviction for an armed £47,000 robbery at the London Electricity Board offices in Ilford, for which he had been sent to prison. Two years later he was convicted of a £50,000 London bank raid at the Bank of Cyprus, Tottenham.
On 16 February 1824 John Wilson Croker established a ‘club for scientific and literary men and artists’ – the Athenaeum, he is also credited with coining the word Conservative for a political description
Cab drivers who drive too slowly can be charged with ‘loitering’, but are exempt from compulsorily wearing seat belts whilst working at whatever speed they are travelling
The circumference at the Gherkin’s widest point is 178 metres, which is only two metres less than its height of 180 metres
There were three assassination attempts on Queen Victoria at Constitution Hill a road under half a mile long and Princess Anne was shot at there
Josef Jakobs a German spy captured in World War II was the last person executed at the Tower of London, he was shot by firing squad
Sherlock Holmes fictional home 221b Baker Street is the Santander Building Society which has an office dealing with the detective’s fan mail
Museum of London tracing the capital’s history from Prehistoric times to the present day is the largest urban history museum in the world
Sudbury Hill’s Wood End Estate has 11 streets named after sports people: Mary Peters Drive; Lilian Board Way; Brasher Close; Bannister Close
The word ‘taxi’ originates from the name of the inventor of the taximeter in 1907, a German called Baron Von Thurn und Taxis
Vauxhall Cars take their name from its first factory on the site of Fawke’s Hall, beside the river near where Vauxhall Bridge now stands
Dr Johnson’s Memorial House in Gough Square contains a brick from the Great Wall of China donated to the museum in 1822
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.
On 9 February 1915 an IRA 500kg bomb in a truck explodd at South Quay, Canary Wharf at 7pm, killing two and injuring 39, causing over £100 million damage
In 1992 driving a Porsche 911 a driver clocked up 147 mph, the highest speed recorded by the police on the M25 needless to say he got banned
The oldest surviving Blue Plaque is Napoleon III staying at 1c King Street in 1848 it’s the only one installed during a candidate’s lifetime
On 9 February 1915 Only Fools and Horses actor Lennard Pearce, who played Grandad in the TV show, was born in Paddington
The Connaught Hotel was called The Coburg, but like the Royal Family changed its name during World War I to avoid anti-German sentiment
In 1851 Britain’s greatest painter J. M. W. Turner bequeathed the contents of his studio to the nation the Tate holds 39,389 pieces
In 1912 the first Royal Variety Show took place at the Palace Theatre. Queen Mary was shocked by male impersonator Vesta Tilley
Only 14 men have run each and every one of the 34 London Marathons, one is former head teacher Mike Peace his best time is 2:37.12 in 1991
Over 47 million litres water are pumped from the Underground each day, enough to fill a 25m swimming pool every quarter of an hour
The man appointed by Charles II to put out the Great Fire of London was his brother the Duke of York – after whom New York was named
The statues of Livingstone and Shackleton outside the Royal Geographical Society have given rise to cabbies calling it “Hot and Cold Corner”
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