The Little Book of London Book

Those of us who live in London and love the city (despite all its manifold faults) often have our own list of clandestine destinations, secrets and interesting facts about the capital -- which we’re happy to show off to people not lucky enough to live here. But however well you think you know London, the chances are good that that David Long's The Little Book of London will enlarge your storehouse of knowledge. The quirky facts here are delightfully arcane -- such as the fact that the guns of HMS Belfast, moored on the Thames near Tower Bridge, are targeted at Barnet and, if fired, would destroy Scratchwood Services on the M1. Or the fact that the first parking meters were installed in Mayfair with a charge of a shilling (enough to keep parking attendants at bay for an hour -- the same amount today would buy you 45 seconds). In fact, it is often the wonderful historical nuggets here that are the most entertaining, even the grisly ones (such as the watchmaker who threw himself off the Whispering Gallery in St Paul's Cathedral in 1856, or the man who took a similar dive from the North Tower of the Crystal Palace 12 years later). Such items are crammed into the nearly 200 pages of this eccentric book, so if you are seeking bizarre facts about the railways, the Royal family, theatres or the number of rock stars who have popped their clogs in London, it's all here. And did you know that when Conan Doyle installed Sherlock Holmes in 221b Baker Street, the street numbering ran no further than 85? (That's the trouble with this book – you can't resist quoting it!) --Barry ForshawRead More