Taking the dog for a walk in Romford’s most prestigious park, we left our car in the free car park. The space in the car park’s corner was tight, so I put the offside front wheel 2 inches up on the kerb, allowing more distance from the adjacent van and allowing my wife to get out. I come back to a parking ticket, I’m not parked on a disabled bay nor obstructing the entrance or pavement. No the parking bay had a 4ft fence on two sides and nobody could use the distance between the kerb and railings to walk around the car. And what is a parking warden doing walking around a free car park ¾ of a mile from the town centre?
Johnson’s London Dictionary: Jellied Eels
JELLIED EELS (n.) A traditional dish comprising eels boiled in vinegar, garnished with the creature’s solidified jelly, and served cold, eaten with a wooden fork. Alcohol doth make the dish appetising.
Dr. Johnson’s London Dictionary for publick consumption in the twenty-first century avail yourself on Twitter @JohnsonsLondon
The London Grill: Lev Parikian
We challenge our contributors to reply to ten devilishly probing questions about their London and we don’t take “Sorry Gov” for an answer. Everyone sitting in the hot seat they will face the same questions ranging from their favourite way to spend a day out in the capital to their most hated building on London’s skyline to find out what Londoners think about their city. The questions are the same but the answers vary wildly.
Lev Parikian is a writer, birdwatcher and conductor. He is the author of Into the Tangled Bank, longlisted for the Wainwright Prize, Light Rains Sometimes Fall, Why Do Birds Suddenly Disappear? and most recently Taking Flight – The Evolutionary Story of Life on the Wing. He lives in South London with his family, who are getting used to his increasing enthusiasm for nature. As a birdwatcher, his most prized sightings are a golden oriole in the Alpujarras and a black redstart at Dungeness Power Station
What’s your secret London tip?
Look up! So many buildings are more interesting above the ground floor. And as an avid birdwatcher, I’m always on the lookout for interesting things, whether it’s a peregrine perched on my local church tower in West Norwood or a flock of starlings swirling around above Trafalgar Square (albeit in far smaller numbers than was common in the 1970s when flocks ran to tens of thousands of birds).
One of the joys of London is its abundance of green spaces in a thriving metropolis. Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, Regent’s Park, St. James’s Park and much much more. And birds even find a toehold where the man-made environment predominates. I once heard a black redstart – a rare bird which established a breeding foothold in the ruins of post-war London – singing as I came out of Waterstones on Piccadilly. The song was clearly audible over the rumble of traffic, so I looked up just in time to see it fly away from its perch on the roof of the Hotel Le Meridien.
What’s your secret London place?
Are there any secrets any more? We visited Venice last year, and before we went I googled ‘secret Venice’ – the bookshop ‘Acqua Alta’ turned up on every single one of the first ten sites that came up, so I think it’s safe to say the secret’s out. I feel sure the same thing applies to London. And whenever people share their own special secret places in London I feel horribly out of touch – I definitely don’t make the most of living in this great city.
That said, I do enjoy walking around my local cemetery in West Norwood. It’s one of the ‘Magnificent Seven’, and a place of peace and repose, as well as a trove of interesting graves. Mrs Beeton is buried there, as well as Hiram Maxim (inventor of the automatic machine gun), and C. W. Alcock, who created the F.A. Cup and organised the first Test match (at The Oval, London’s finest cricket ground).
What’s your biggest gripe about London?
Oh, I don’t know. People disregarding the needs of others, I suppose – so easy to do in a big city.
What’s your favourite building?
I’m extremely fond of my local art gallery, Dulwich Picture Gallery – although I usually forget there’s a special exhibition on until it’s too late. On a larger scale, I can always while away a happy hour or two at the Natural History Museum, whether exploring the wonders inside or examining the many imaginative features of the exterior.
What’s your most hated building?
The skyline of the City has been transformed in the last few decades, hasn’t it? And I must say I’m far from a fan of some of the more extravagant and visible skyscrapers.
What’s the best view in London?
I’m biased because it’s a five-minute walk from my house, but the view across London from Norwood Park is hard to beat. There it all is, laid out in front of you, and on a clear day you can see to Ally Pally and beyond.
What’s your personal London landmark?
Maybe not a landmark, but whenever I’m at Lord’s or The Oval I look out for the pied wagtails – the chirpiest, jauntiest little birds – that hang around on the outfield of both establishments.
What’s London’s best film, book or documentary?
Not ‘about’ London so much, but The Long Dark Teatime of the Soul by Douglas Adams, written when St Pancras station was still awaiting redevelopment, reimagines that extraordinary building quite wonderfully.
What’s your favourite restaurant?
For about 20 years now our go-to restaurant for celebrations and family occasions has been Chez Bruce in Wandsworth. We’ve never had a meal there that wasn’t at the very least excellent. The service is great, too – attentive without being obtrusive – and then there’s the legendary cheese board. It’s quite an achievement to keep such consistently high standards for so long.
How would you spend your ideal day off in London?
Breakfast at Brown and Green at Gipsy Hill station on my way to a morning’s birding at the London Wetland Centre in Barnes. Lunch at Brindisa in South Kensington, then an hour at the Natural History Museum and pop into John Sandoe Books for a browse. Dinner at Chez Bruce. And let’s say that my son (a jazz pianist) happens to be gigging nearby – that would top the whole thing off admirably.
London in Quotations: Charles Dickens
Fog everywhere. Fog up the river, where it flows among green aits and meadows; fog down the river, where it rolls defiled among the tiers of shipping and the waterside pollutions of a great (and dirty) city. Fog in the eyes and throats of ancient Greenwich pensioners, wheezing by the firesides of their wards; . . . And hard by Temple Bar, in Lincoln’s Inn Hall, at the very heart of the fog, sits the Lord High Chancellor in his High Court of Chancery.
Charles Dickens (1812-1870), Bleak House
London Trivia: River Tragedy
On 3 September 1878 at about 7.40 pm the largest loss of life on the Thames occurred when the paddle steamer Princess Alice with over 800 day-trippers, mostly women and children, returning from an excursion to Margate was rammed by the collier Bywell Castle many were thrown into the Thames one-hour after the twice-daily release of 75 million gallons of raw sewage from sewer outfalls at Barking and Crossness had occurred, over 650 died.
On 3 September 1939 the first World War II air raid sirens were heard over London just 7 minutes after Britain had declared war on Germany
In 19th-century London, fake ice cream was made from mashed turnip, there is no record of any convictions for its sale
When the statue of Eros, Piccadilly Circus, was put back up after World War II it was erected the wrong way, originally it faced Shaftesbury Avenue
There were claims the first baby born on the Underground was called Thelma Ursula Beatrice Eleanor (so that her initials would have read TUBE) but this story later proved false – her name was Marie Cordery
On 3 September each year members of the Cromwell Association hold a service in front of Oliver Cromwell’s statue outside Parliament
The only true home shared by all four Beatles was a flat at 57 Green Street near Hyde Park, where they lived in the autumn of 1963
In the Mitre Tavern stands the trunk of a cherry tree that once marked the boundary between the Ely Palace estate and London beyond
Pathé News didn’t have rights to 1923 Cup Final – so smuggled camera into Wembley disguised as a large wooden hammer (West Ham one of teams)
The longest distance between stations is on the Metropolitan line from Chesham to Chalfont & Latimer: a total of 3.89 miles
Rotherhithe once known for its shipbuilding industry, in 1620 the Pilgrim Fathers set sail on the Mayflower on the first leg to New England
In the 19th century those said to have enjoyed a Spitalfield’s Breakfast had actually eaten nothing as Spitalfields was an area of poverty
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.
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