Dr Pamela Cox’s excellent social history series, Servants: Life Below Stairs, ended this weekend with a brief glimpse into paid domestic service in Britain today. Once it was widespread for families from the middle classes upwards to have live in staff to keep their homes in order, but […]
Over in London’s square mile today people were reportedly waiting for three hours in the pouring rain to go up the landmark ‘Gherkin’ building. “Not worth it for six minutes at the top,” someone wrote on Twitter. Officially 30 St Mary Axe, the 41 storey construction, completed in […]
In contrast to the ugly concentre monstrosity that spans the Thames today, the London Bridge of medieval times was an awe-inspiring stone structure which attracted visitors from all over Europe. Taking over 30 years to complete, and claiming the lives of an estimated 150 workmen during its construction, […]
With gleaming waterfront apartments around London Bridge on the market today for sums that only those on bankers salaries could afford, it is hard to imagine upmarket parts of south London like Borough and Shad Thames tarred by heavy industry and nothing short a miserable place to live. […]
Fleet Street, on the fringes of the City, has to be one my favourite places to head to for an evening out with friends. Pubs like Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese, tucked away down a narrow alley, are oozing in character. Here you’ll find a maze of cosy rooms […]
Taking a stroll along the promenade at Blackpool is always bracing. No matter what the month there always seems to be a constant gale and, if my own experiences are anything to go by, the sun never shines. Yet despite the unreliable weather, I love this northern seaside […]
Dancing to the lively sounds of the Africa stage at the River of Music festival on Saturday evoked happy memories. The infectious rythms and energy of the performances at London Pleasure Gardens, in the shadow of the ExCeL centre, reminded me of the happy sounds I heard last […]
It’s getting trendy these days for museum exhibitions to examine the world that famous historic figures would have seen. ‘Dickens and London’ which ran at the Museum of London earlier this year for example was an excellent portrayal of the Victorian capital, timed to coincide with the 200th […]
Usually deserted at the weekend, the City of London is alive today with activity. Stalls fill Guildhall yard and Cheapside. Livery companies have opened their doors so you can see their wonderful meeting halls, many of which are listed. And with impromptu concerts springing up both inside and […]
Working as a journalist in Hull it wasn’t hard find to find bad news. With devastating floods, murders and large scale job losses some could say that the city was tainted. Yet from a selfish point of view, all of this meant there was usually plenty of choice […]
Past In The Present 