Author Archives: John Pullen

Muswell Hill is in north London and as its name suggests, it is high up overlooking London. And perhaps the most striking building there is Alexandra Palace or as is better known to Londoners, Ally Pally. It’s not an ancient palace as some in London and it was not designed to house members of theContinue reading “The Palace for Television”

One of the most interesting sights to see today in Greenwich, London, is the ship, the Cutty Sark. It sits in a specially built dry dock besides the Thames and close to the old Royal Naval Hospital. It is a museum and you can go on board and inspect its upper and lower decks. YouContinue reading “The Cutty Sark Tea Delivery”

During the 1930s most of us are aware of the rise of the far right in Germany in the form of the Nazi Party. Adolf Hitler was their leader and as we all know, it led to the breakout of World War II in 1939 until Germany lost in 1945. But Germany was not theContinue reading “The Battle of Cable Street”

Over many years there have been stories and tales of folklore referring to humans who either exhibited strange powers or were reincarnations of the Devil. It is of course easy to equate the actions of some individuals as being straight out of Hell. Jack the Ripper is one of those who come to mind. ManyContinue reading “Spring-Heeled Jack”

Theatres have always played an important part of the cultural life of locals and visitors. Yes, there was a period when the Puritans under the leadership of Oliver Cromwell closed them down as unhealthy ways to enjoy yourself. Mind you, he even banned Christmas. But, apart from that, theatres have been a positive part ofContinue reading “A Very Theatrical Riot”

An area of central London may not be one that jumps to mind such as Soho, Mayfair or Belgravia, but do not dismiss Bloomsbury as it has plenty to offer and has an interesting history.  You can find it just north of New Oxford Street and east of Tottenham Court Road. Its northern boundary isContinue reading “Museums and Plague Pits – Welcome to Bloomsbury”

There are a number of Royal Parks scattered around London and they include Regents Park and Hyde Park. However, the original royal park was St James’s Park and it has several interesting points during its history. It is no surprise that it is within the St James’s area of London, but where did it firstContinue reading “From Leprosy to Leisure”

There are currently over 40 million motor vehicles in Great Britain. And if we consider that presently there are about 70 million people living here, that means that over half have access to a vehicle. Of course, that is not true, but think about what it might have been like when there were very fewContinue reading “The First Car Crash in Britain”

Believe it or not there is quite a competition as to which is the narrowest house in London. Many years ago, in one of my “Secret London History” series of books, I wrote about such a property near Marble Arch just across the road from Hyde Park. It forms part of a convent and likeContinue reading “A House for Supermodels!”

Over 1,000 years ago, there were two main parts to London and they the City of London and Westminster. This separation could be illustrated by the fact that the original site where St Paul’s Cathedral is now, was the first great religious building and it was called East Minster. So, when the large abbey toContinue reading “The Medieval Side of London”