Monday Miscellanea

Dave Haste
By Dave Haste Last edited 156 months ago
Monday Miscellanea

This Week In London’s History

  • Monday28th March 1819: Joseph Bazalgette is born in Enfield, North London. He would become the chief civil engineer for the Metropolitan Board of Works, creating London's sewerage system (and contributing to the eradication of cholera).
  • Tuesday29th March 1871: The Royal Albert Hall is opened by Queen Victoria, who is, however, too overcome to speak.
  • Wednesday30th March 1979: Conservative MP Airey Neave is killed by a car-bomb in the House of Commons car park.
  • Thursday31st March 1990: Violence erupts as hundreds of thousands of anti-poll-tax protesters take to the streets in the West End. An estimated £400,000 of damage is caused to property as cars are overturned and set alight. Hundreds of arrests are made.
  • Friday1st April 1965: The administrative area known as ‘Greater London’ is formed, amalgamating and consuming parts of central London and the home counties.

London Quote Of The Week

If you lived in London, where the whole system is one of false good-fellowship, and you may know a man for twenty years without finding out that he hates you like poison, you would soon have your eyes opened. There we do unkind things in a kind way: we say bitter things in a sweet voice: we always give our friends chloroform when we tear them to pieces.

George Bernard Shaw, You Never Can Tell

Photo by nocturn.es via the Londonist Flickr pool.

Last Updated 27 March 2011