London in Quotations: Walter Besant
I’ve been walking about London for the last thirty years, and I find something fresh in it every day.
Walter Besant (1836-1901), on his deathbed, 9th June 1901
London Trivia: Guy Fawkes comes early
On 12 July 1856 five died and 300 people were injured when fireworks exploded at Mr Bennett’s factory in Westminster Road. Bennett was charged that his business was making fireworks contrary to the law, and he kept combustibles at his house for that purpose. During his absence, a fire broke out through the negligence of his employees. The court found that the deaths were caused by the negligence of his employees.
On 12 July 1962 the Rolling Stones gave their first performance at The Marquee Club on Charing Cross Road
It is illegal for anyone to possess a pack of cards ‘who lives within a mile of any arsenal or explosives store’
The theatre ticket booth in Leicester Square conceals, 3-stories below, a electricity sub-station capable of supplying the entire West End
King Charles II took so long to pass away after having a stroke he apologised to his courtiers for “being an unconscionable time a-dying”
In 1902 after an “indignation campaign” the Richmond, Ham and Petersham Open Spaces Act became the first law to protect a view
A rather dubious attraction of the 1908 Franco-British exhibition at White City was a butter sculpture of King Edward VII
The Great Room at the Grosvenor House Hotel for many years the largest public room in Europe was a skating rink before becoming ballroom
Rugby netball was dreamt up by soldiers in 1907 and has been played on Clapham Common ever since. Games take place also on Tuesday evenings, but only during the summer
Dogs travel free on London’s buses but only at the discretion of the driver and must sit upstairs, TfL don’t specify which is the doggy seat
In 1748 Yorkshireman Thomas Chippendale set up his famous furniture business at 60-62 St Martin’s Lane employing just 40 men
The oldest door in the country dating from the Anglo-Saxon period is at Westminster Abbey using dendrochronology dates it at 950 years old
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.
Protected: Streets with the same name
The Ugly, The Bad and The Good!
This little anecdote starts at the Hilton Metropole. A family come out and demand Westfield, I take them to Wood Lane, “No this is not the entrance”. Then it’s off to the second entrance in Wood Lane, “No take us to the cab rank”, next it’s on to Shepherds Bush Station cab rank, “No this not this entrance we want – take us back to the hotel”. If they though with £16 on the meter I was going to retrace my steps they were sorely disappointed. I ask them to get out, suspecting it was a ruse used before leaving them – without paying – having to waddle all of 150 yards into the shopping emporium. Driving on to the Hilton Kensington a Swedish woman gets in “Please take me to Hilton Olympia” (there are a lot of Hiltons in London). She has apparently been taken to the wrong Hilton by the private hire driver. “You cabbies are marvellous”, she intones. I drop here off and receive a generous tip. One hundred yards later a hand goes out and two ladies ask for Gibson Square, it’s the first ‘run’ of The Knowledge. You could say it was: The Ugly, The Bad and The Good!
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