Author Archives: John Pullen

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”

All countries and cities go through periods of change. They can be positive such as when improvements are made to the inner workings of the city. But they can also be negative with disasters and the like plaguing a place. For London, it could be said that the seventeenth century had a bit of everythingContinue reading “London’s Century of Turbulence”

Picture the scene. It is Hyde Park in central London. The year is 1792 and the cold of the early morning is leaving a low blanket of mist across the grassland. Two horse-drawn coaches appear and make their way towards each other. They stop and a coachman steps down from each and opens the doorContinue reading “Petticoats at Dawn”

It could be a story or a movie straight out of the Hammer House of Horror series of films. You go down into the Underground in London to catch a Tube train and unbeknown to you, you have been chosen as its next victim, then be prepared to have this creature drink your blood. ThisContinue reading “It Lurks in the Underground Tube Network and Drinks Blood”

Over recent years, the Windrush has come up in the news on a regular basis. It has normally been commenting on the plight of many of the people who travelled on it to Britain in the late 1940s. From this we can guess, unless you already know, that the Windrush was a ship called theContinue reading “The Windrush of Change”