London, my love

DID YOU KNOW THAT...

In 1666, most (or at least most important part) of London burned down. Only 6 people died in the fire. Later, a monument was built in memory of the fire, which is what it is called - Monument. 7 people have fallen to their deaths from its top. Later, a protective grille was installed there.
London was the first city to reach a million inhabitants. It happened in 1811. It remained the largest city in the world until 1957, when it had to surrender to Tokyo.
The world's first traffic light was built in 1868 near the House of Commons building. It ran on gas and exploded the next year, injuring (and according to some accounts killing) a police officer on duty.
St Thomas' Hospital (just across the river from the Houses of Parliament) used to occupy seven buildings. In each building, patients were received on a different day of the week so that the tasks would be better remembered. Two of these old buildings have been preserved, the others are newer buildings. Boris Johnson was also treated here for the coronavirus.
When the famous miser Thomas Cooke of Clerkenwell in 1811 died, then mourners threw cabbage roots on his coffin in solidarity with his principles.
A well-known shopping street is Bond Street. Of course, it's not related to James Bond, but the real estate developer here was Thomas Bond. But interestingly, Thomas Bond's family coat of arms had the text "Non sufficit orbis", which in English would be "The world is not enough". :-)
If you come across names like Holland Park, Wellcome Gallery (just, two 'l'-s), Liberty or Hay's Market, don't try to interpret or translate these names. These are surnames of individuals.
In the years 1986..2000, London did not have a city government. There were only borough governments. Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher did not like the city government at that time, and she simply liquidated it.
St. Paul's Cathedral, although designed by Christopher Wren, is not quite as originally planned. According to the original project, there was supposed to be a giant pineapple on top of the dome. There is no such thing. The ceiling of the church was to be very simple, as it is on the west side, the east side received variegated decorations during Queen Victoria's time. The end on the side of the altar was damaged by bombing in the war and has been restored. The allies in the war are also remembered there - if you look carefully, you can see George Washington and the star-spangled flag of the USA in addition to Jesus and Mary on the stained-glass windows. The church also has the architect's grave and an inscription in Latin on it, which in free translation would be: Looking for his monument? Look around you.
St Paul's is also the final resting place of the two generals who defeated Napoleon - Horatio Nelson and the Duke of Wellington. But under the vaults of Westminster Abbey, Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin rest side by side for many years. Relatively recently, an urn with Stephen Hawking's ashes was buried between the two.
England has not always been a kingdom. In 1649..1660 it was a republic (Commonwealth of England). It was ruled by Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell, shortly after his death by his son. Cromwell is one of the most controversial figures in the history of the British Isles. He is considered both a dictator and a freedom fighter. Parliament refused to give money to erect his statue, and one man paid for it out of his own pocket. Yet his statue now stands in Parliament Gardens, staring across the road at the bust of Charles I. Half a kilometre to the north, this king was beheaded at his command. It was cold weather and the king dressed warmly so as not to shiver. Otherwise, the crowd might have thought he was trembling with fear. The executioner asked the king for forgiveness in advance, but the king did not forgive him. After the kingdom was restored, the king's killers were also killed. On this spot at the edge of Trafalgar Square, where the equestrian statue of Charles I now stands. On the order of Charles II, Cromwell was also taken out of the grave and hanged.
Oliver Cromwell ordered the statue of Charles I to be taken down and given to a scrap metal buyer (James Rivitt). The statue originally stood in Covent Garden. The buyer, however, buried the statue in his garden in the hope that he would get a lot of money for it at some point in the future. He was able to wait for the restoration of the kingdom.
Another relatively unpopular figure is Henry VIII (the one who had six wives ). While there is usually a monument or two for each count, the man has to settle for one tiny bust above the hospital door. Henry VIII was also the king who started minting gold-plated copper coins instead of gold coins. Since the most prominent part of the king's relief was the nose, the gold layer wore off there first. The king was nicknamed the Old Coppernose among the people.
During WWII, theatres in London were closed, only the theatre Windmill in Soho continued to operate.
Every tourist can go, for example, for a walk on Liverpool Street. Interestingly, that the King can't do it that easily. He needs permission from the district government to enter the city centre. The Right Honourable, The Lord Mayor of London (City Mayor) will grant this permission in a special ceremony.
But there is also a place where the king must never go - the House of Commons.
The most polite monument in the world belongs to Prince Albert. There, the bronze Albert sits on a horse and greets passers-by with his hat up.
1926 John Logie Baird demonstrated television. The site is currently occupied by Bar Italia (Soho).
Hammersmith Bridge was built in 1887. The first major repair took place in 1997. On the other hand, the Millennium Bridge was opened in 2000 and underwent a year-long overhaul a few days after opening.
Brixton Market was the first market to be electrified. It is located on Electric Avenue.
The official address of Apsley House is: Number 1, London. It was once the first house after the city gates.
The district of Mayfair is named after the fairs that took place there every May.
Piccadilly is named after the folded ring collar. Before 1743, the street was called Portugal. The famous billboard consists of 5490x2160 pixels with area 783.5 m². In 2002, John Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, paid £150,000 to have the text: "Imagine all the people living life in peace" on a billboard for three months. Only once has the film been shown on this screen, you can see this less than four-minute film HERE . South of the square is the Criterion Theatre, except for the box office, it is entirely underground.
Covent Garden is named after the garden that belonged to the convent of Westminster Abbey. The name change 'convent' -> 'covent' was originally nothing more than a typo.
Soho is named after the hunters' cry. Until the 17th century, it was an open area for hunting.
Today's police force was formed in London in 1829 by a man named Robert Peel. Police officers are sometimes called "bobbies" after his name.
Robert Hooke planned to put a telescope on top of the Monument. Unfortunately, it turned out that the top of the pillar moves too much due to the surrounding traffic.
Arsenal is the only football club in London to have its own Underground station.
The words to Britain's national anthem change when the next ruler is of a different gender. The anthem was first officially performed at Drury Lane Theatre (Drury Lane) in 1745. However, this song with unknown authors was performed as early as 1607 at a place called Merchant Tailors' Hall (30 Threadneedle Street).
A person who dies in the Palace of Westminster (the Houses of Parliament) gets a free state funeral. Therefore, dying in the palace is strictly forbidden. It is not known how the violators of the ban will be punished. :-) (Actually, it must be a legend, there is no official confirmation that such a law exists. But a nice legend nonetheless.)
Only one suicide, the Foreign Secretary Lord Castlereagh in 1822, is buried under the vaults of Westminster Abbey. Until 1962, suicide was a serious crime under the law.
Jimi Hendrix lived at 25 Brook St. The composer Handel once lived (and died) next door. Both buildings now house a museum.
Before 1842 a statue of Admiral Nelson was placed on top of a pillar in Trafalgar Square, a lunch was organized for 14 masons on top of the pillar.
The Russian tsar paid a quarter of the cost of building the aforementioned column.
The statue of the Duke of York also stands at the top of a high column (the total height of the monument is 42 m). Since he (son of George III) was left with millions of debts when he died, the people explain - so that the creditors wouldn't catch up. The duke was a commander in the war against Napoleon, and one day's pay for all the soldiers was withheld to build the column. Which, of course, did not make the man more popular with the people.
Blackfriars is the only railway station with entrances on both sides of the River Thames. In fact, this station is located on a bridge over the river.
There was a tavern in London called "I Am the Only Running Footman" (founded in 1749, now it uses the simpler name "The Footman"). You can eat at the place "Look mum no hands!" and get your hair cut at the "Jack the Clipper" salon. You can also go to Murder One book store.
Some subtleties of written English are difficult even for Englishmen. For example, go to St John's Wood tube station. On the outside are the letters ST. JOHN'S WOOD STATION, as it should be. But on the platform instead S^T JOHNS WOOD. The apostrophe has been lost. By the way, it is also the only Underground station name without a single letter from the word MACKEREL. :-)
Until 1916, Harrods department store sold cocaine. This department store also had the first escalator in England (opened on November 16, 1898). The "prototype" of Winnie the Pooh was bought from the same department store in 1921 for Christopher Robin's birthday (I mean the teddy bear, of course, the name Winnie comes from the London Zoo's bear who lived there from 1914 to 1934). The teddy bear was 45 cm tall and cost ≈£10. The facade of the department store is decorated with thousands of lights at night, not only at Christmas, but all year round.
You can buy almost anything in Harrods department store, even what is not directly on the counter. A man once bought a skunk as a gift for his divorced wife. And Ronald Reagan bought an elephant.
The last person to be executed in the Tower was German spy Josef Jakobs in 1941.
The name of the railway station in Russian "вокзал" (vokzal) is derived from the name of Vauxhall station.
The Tower was used as a prison until 1952. Among the last residents were the gangsters Kray brothers.
The Ministry of Defence still houses Henry VIII's wine cellar.
Winston Churchill is buried near Oxford (at his own request, because he was born there) and his body was taken there by train. One of his last wishes was that, should Charles de Gaulle outlive him, he would be sent off from Waterloo station (trains to Oxford mainly depart from Paddington). To wink at the French.
The annual Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square is presented to London by the city of Oslo. This is a Norwegian sign of thanks for the help given in World War II. The spruce is placed on the square on the first Thursday of December.
In order to get a taxi licence in London (the so-called black taxi), you need to know by heart all the streets and landmarks within six miles of the city centre (the equestrian statue of Charles I). It takes 2 to 4 years to learn, mostly by riding around on a scooter because it's cheaper that way. This exam is called "The Knowledge". It is far from easy, because you have to know both official and popular names. Try to say where are: The Gherkin, Cheesegrater, Trembling Lady, Darth Vader's Helmet, Farting Lane...
Until 1976, all London taxis had to be high enough to fit a top hat in the back seat.
The British Library contains 180 miles (ca 290 km) of shelves and holds over 12 million books.
The Guy's Hospital building has 34 floors (148.65 meters). It is the highest hospital in the world.
George Washington once promised that he would never set foot on English soil again. When his statue was erected in London (a gift from the city of Richmond, Virginia), the fill under it was brought from the USA.
London has the most five-star hotels of any city in the world - 75.
London has monuments to six US presidents: George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Dwight David Eisenhower, Ronald Wilson Reagan and John Fitzgerald Kennedy.
The first London telephone book (1880) contained 248 names and addresses.
There is a street in Greenwich called Ha-Ha Road. There is also a house with the address 0 Circus St. Stranger street names: Hooker's Road, Quaggy Walk and Uamvar Street, Turnagain Lane. Streets that once were but are no more: Shiteburn Lane, Pissing Alley, Gropecunt Lane, Stinking Lane.
There was once a street in London with the strange name Of Alley. Since 1855 it has been called York Place. But if you ever get there, look at the street name sign. It still says FORMERLY OF ALLEY in tiny print.
In 1945, a flock of birds descended on the minute hand of the Elizabeth Tower (erroneously called Big Ben) clock, setting the clock back five minutes.
There are currently 272 London Underground, 113 Overground, 45 Doclands Light Railway and 41 Elizabeth Line stations.
The London Underground was opened in 1863. The first electric train started running on November 4, 1890. Only 45% of the Underground runs in tunnels (However, the Victoria line is the only one completely underground. Actually, Westminster & City too, but there are only two stations there.). The total length of the roads is ≈400 km and there are 272 stations. The deepest station is Hampstead - 58.5 m. The warning "MIND THE GAP" (there is a wide gap between the train and the platform, be careful) that is often heard in the Underground was introduced in 1968 and was recorded by Peter Lodge. Although other recordings are now used, the original one is still in use. The longest journey without transfers is 55 km (West Ruislip - Epping). 47 million litres of water are pumped out of the tunnels every day (a 25 m swimming pool for a quarter of an hour). Trains travel 76.4 million kilometres per year. Although the London Underground transports three million people a day, only three children have been born there, one of them being Jerry Springer, the famous US talk show host. There are 14 stations, which the train passes in less than one minute. One person has managed to travel through all the Underground stations in 16 hours (in Paris, this record is 13 hours)
A spiral escalator was built at Holloway Road tube station in the early 20th century. It could only work for one day and then broke down. If you look through the lattice from the right place, you can still see part of it.
The Victoria Line was opened on March 7, 1969. at Green Park station. The Queen who came to the opening wanted to buy a ticket, like ordinary citizens, but the ticket machine refused to serve her.
Maida Vale Underground station was opened during WWII and all its employees were women. They received exactly the same salary as men - this was quite a rare occurrence at the time.
The highest point on the London Underground is Dollis Brook Viaduct, 18 meters above the ground.
In 1930, a delegation from the Soviet Union arrived in London to learn how the Underground was built. Frank Pick, the managing director of the London Underground, was later awarded a high Soviet honour by order of Stalin.
Since 2016 there are some lines on the London Underground that also run at night (only on some days of the week though). Before that, there were only two occasions - the coronation of the king in 1937. and the reception of the 21st century - when the Underground ran through the night.
5,000 marriage proposals are made and 500 couples have been married on the London Eye. The gondolas move at a speed of 26 cm per second, which is about twice as fast as a turtle's normal walking speed.
There is no place name in London that starts with the letters J, X or Z. All letters of the alphabet appear in other positions of tube station names.
Strand was the first street in London to use house numbers.
Battersea Power Station was designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott, the same man who designed Bankside Power Station (now Tate Modern) and the famous red telephone box. The station also provided electricity to the royal palace and another 82,000 households. St. Paul's Cathedral could fit inside the station. It is currently being converted into housing and shops.
The area of Hyde Park is 142 ha; The area of the park called Kensington Gardens, which directly joins it, is 111 ha. So a total of 253 ha. The country of Monaco is 202 ha.
If you decided to have lunch in a different restaurant every day in London, it would continue for the next fifteen years.
When the London Underground was being built, one of the plans was to fill the tunnels half with water and carry passengers in boats.
The well-known Underground line plan was designed by Harry Beck, who was paid ten pounds 50 pence for it.
There are around 110 places in the UK that are called Little London. Since most of these are within 50 miles (ca 80 km) of London, it is hypothesized that these sites were inhabited by people who fled London during the plague of 1665 or after the Great Fire of the following year.
Balham is the only tube station without a single letter of the word "underground" in its name. Only two tube stations have all the English vowels in their names: South Ealing and Mansion House.
The London Underground uses two additional tracks to power the trains. The external voltage is +420V, the internal voltage is -210V.
A young man managed to get off the tube train at Mansion House station and run so fast to Cannon Street station that he got on the same train there.
If you happen to see an image of a maze on the wall in any Underground station, know that they are (each different) in each of the 270 stations. They are the work of artist Mark Wallinger and were made for the Underground's 150th birthday.
Frances and John Canning got married in 2012 and, as a joke, invited Queen Elizabeth to register the marriage. To their great fright, the Queen did come.
There are half a million surveillance cameras on the streets of London.
Railways have a contractual obligation to keep certain lines running. If you get to Battersea Park railway station (Stop A), don't wait for the train. The train arrives at this station twice a day - the first time in the early morning, the second time in the late evening (more precisely, 6:18 and 23:09). And mostly completely empty. But legally everything is correct, the line works. :-)
Knightsbridge is the only place name in London with six consecutive consonants.
At 57 Green St, there is a house in which all members of The Beatles have lived together.
St George The Martyr Church is right next to Borough tube station. Very beautiful inside, worth a visit. This church was described by Dickens in his works. The church tower has clock dials in all four directions. Three of these are lit at night, the fourth is not. In this direction lies Bermondsey. Legend has it that the people of this area did not pay the church tax properly...
When the Greenwich Observatory was built in 1675 by order of King Edward II and designed by Christopher Wren, it cost £520 to build. Oh, the inflation...
The largest police station in Europe is in Levisham, with an area of 100,000 m²
Every year, passengers lose 37,000 bank cards and 17,000 mobile phones on the Underground. Among the things found in the Underground are a coffin, a park bench, a skull, a samurai sword, a prosthetic leg and a glass jar with three dead bats.
The longest bridge in London is Waterloo Bridge - 381 m.
The famous Ferris wheel has 32 cabins (one for each borough). They are numbered 1 to 33, with the number 13 omitted just in case.
There are 10,000 foxes in London. Half a million mice live in the Underground.
In the Kimpton Fitzroy Hotel there is a bronze dragon statue with a sign saying "Lucky George". Why? Architect and designer Charles Fitzroy Doll commissioned two such statues. One was placed in a hotel, the other in the dining room of the ship Titanic, which the aforementioned man also designed.
The statue of Eros in the middle of Piccadilly Circus does not actually represent Eros (although the signs on the Underground say so), but his twin brother Anteros (also doubted, probably with reason) and commemorating the philanthropist and child protector Lord Shaftesbury. But why is the statue shooting someone with a bow? Anyway, it's the world's first large public statue entirely cast in aluminium. Shaftesbury Avenue starts from this square, but the statue does not face that way. People say that the statue has been moved. The statue has really left its place three times - for the construction of the Underground station, for its protection during the Second World War, and in 1960 for restoration - but it is still always put back correctly.
Where is the centre of London? Officially a statue of Charles I at the edge of Trafalgar Square. But if you were to mathematically find the "centre of gravity" of London, it would be Geet House, Lambeth.
There are ≈600 bus routes in London. A group of retirees spent five years driving all of these end to end.
Tower Bridge is often confused with another bridge upstream - London Bridge. The latter is, however, a fairly new (and plain) building. The old bridge of the same name was demolished in 1967, all the stones were numbered and transported to the USA and rebuilt there. Now the old London Bridge stands in Arizona and crosses the Colorado River. Beautiful!
1814 there was an explosion in a London brewery that caused a flood of beer. 610,000 litres of beer created a wave 15 feet (4.57 m) high on the street. 9 people died, one of them (just a rumour) from alcohol poisoning. The Dominion Theatre now stands above the brewery.
33% of Londoners were born abroad.
Marylebone was once called Tyburn, after the river that flowed there. Do not pronounce it Mary le Bone. :-) There is a church here dedicated to a saint named Mary and the name comes from the words St Mary Bern. Bern meant river in the archaic language.
The world's largest McDonald's was built for the last Olympic Games (they have been held in London three times in total: 1908, 1948, 2012).
The British Parliament has two chambers - the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Their seats are green and red respectively. According to these, two bridges, Westminster Bridge and Lambeth Bridge are also painted green and red respectively.
Some places in London seem to be unlucky for musicians. In 1974, American singer Cass Elliot gave concerts in London. She had rented a flat at 9 Curzon Street. After the last concert, the 32-year-old singer died of a heart attack there. A few years later, the Who drummer Keith Moon rented the flat. He died there of a drug overdose. He was also 32 years old.
There are strange rules in the British Parliament. Deputies may not talk to each other, but only through the speaker. They can only speak not using the names: "Mr Speaker, the Honourable Member for Tewkesbury smells like beef and cheese." From 1313, there is also a rule that armour cannot be worn in parliament. You can't applaud in the parliament, you can only shout and stomp your feet. The House of Lords has 792 members who are not elected, they are appointed by the Queen/King on the recommendation of the Prime Minister. The House of Commons has 650 members who are elected. Members of the House of Commons hold office for 5 years and are prohibited from resigning. In fact, there is a very strange way to resign as an MP. There are some positions where you cannot have a deputy at the same time, but these positions have long since been abolished. An application for such a position must be submitted. :-)
The church we know as Westminster Abbey does not officially bear that name. In fact, the name is Collegiate Church of St Peter at Westminster
There is a park in Holborn called Lincoln's Inn Fields. The dimensions of this square are almost exactly the same as the famous pyramid of Giza.
There have been countless gentlemen's clubs in London since ancient times. One of the most interesting among them was the Wolf Club, which could include men whose spouses would not allow them to sing in the bathroom.
The height of St. Paul's Cathedral 365 feet (111.25 m), a result of architect Sir Wren's interest in astronomy. The cathedral is located on a hill called Ludgate Hill. The meaning of the name Ludgate is "back gate".
The Mayor of the City of London (who is not the Mayor of London) resides in a building called Mansion House. If you want to see it, you have to go to Bank Underground station. Not Mansion House station, as it is named after an old pub. Well, it's still a mess...
When you get to the front of a house called Somerset House, look at the powerful stone arc with the entrance to the building below. In the old days, the house was located right on the bank of the river, and in fact, there was originally a canal on this spot through which goods could be brought to the house by boat. When the Embankment was built (the bank of the river was filled in), the channel was liquidated and the house is now located a little further from the river.
If you happen to see the Wellington Arch in the park called Hyde Park Corner, know that the part on the park side is actually the ventilation pipe of the Underground station.
If a guide should take you to see a place called the Roman Bath, you shouldn't really believe what he says. It is said to be a bathing pool built by the ancient Romans. The reality is more prosaic, this water reservoir was used to keep a nearby fountain running. It was not built by the Romans, but it was built in the Tudor era (1485..1603). Later it was also used for bathing.
40% of the fluids a Londoner drinks during the day is tea.
Less than 50% of households own a car.
When you get off the tube at Hyde Park Corner, look across the road. There is a relatively unassuming looking Lanesborough Hotel. One night in a suite at this hotel costs £27,000.
If you have money left over from the previous one :-) , you can buy a cocktail at a place called Gigi's in Mayfair for over 800 pounds.
Most churches in London are named after some saint. But there are also exceptions. The Catholic Church near Belgrave Square has the really strange name of CCC4vat2. Unbelievable, but true.
Near Marble Arch was the place of execution (Tyburn Tree, after a river that ran nearby). Before arriving there, a small stop was made where the person condemned to death could express his last wishes and opinions. The now famous Speakers' Corner is located on this spot, where anyone who wishes can make a speech on Sundays. The speech will no longer be followed by an execution. :-D (Actually, historians still argue about the exact places. Take these places as agreed places, we don't know the exact places.)
Buckingham Palace and Windsor Palace do not belong to the king. They are owned by the state and the king is only a tenant.
2134 tons of gold are sold/bought in London every day. Doubts have been expressed whether this gold actually exists or is just being sold for a fictitious value.
Abney Park Cemetery was established in 1840 and covers 32 acres (≈13 ha). There are 2,500 planted trees, and they are planted alphabetically by Latin name, from acer to zanthoxylum.
In the middle of the British Museum was the reading room in which Karl Marx wrote his book Capital, while being above average drunk. Friedrich Engels helped him by lending money. However, Marx wrote the Manifesto of the Communist Party in the Red Lion tavern (Great Windmill Street, Soho, one hundred meters from Piccadilly Circus, now called Be At One). More precisely, it must be admitted that he also wrote part of it in Brussels...
Over a thousand people who died of the plague are buried under Aldgate Tube station.
Both Underground and mainline trains stop at Whitechapel station. It is interesting that overground trains stop on a lower floor than underground trains.
Place names in London are often very old and cannot be interpreted according to current English. For example, Cannon Street. It has nothing to do with cannons or canons. Candle makers lived on this street and over a long period of time the name changed candle -> cannon. Also, the name Fleet Street is not about a fleet. The street is named after the river, but the river's name comes from the old Anglo-Saxon word flēot, which is supposed to mean the entry of a tidal wave. More examples. Threadneedle Street was originally called Three Needle Street. However, Maiden Lane takes its name from the word "midden" meaning "manure" (was collected there).
If you cross the Chelsea Bridge, know that this is the place where Julius Caesar crossed the river 54th B.C.
The Savoy Chapel is the first church in London to receive electric lighting (1890). Unlike tradition, it is oriented north-south, and all services begin with the singing of the anthem.
Wembley stadium has more toilets than any other building in the world - 2618.
If you go to dine at the Savoy Hotel restaurant with 12 friends, a large wooden cat is added to one place at the table so that the number of guests is not an unlucky 13.
A tower was once built in London that would be higher than the Eiffel Tower (planned height 358 m). It was established in Wembley Park according to the project of Sir Edward Watkin. But the tower was never finished, it turned out to be unstable and dangerous and was demolished in 1907. Wembley Stadium is currently on this site.
In the 18th century, 20% of women in London were prostitutes.
In the same century, you got free admission to London Zoo if you brought a cat or dog to feed the lions.
Cars move at the same average speed in central London as horse-drawn carriages used to.
72 billionaires live in London.
There is only one street in the City of London called "road", that is Goswell Road. The street got its name in 1994, there were no roads before it.
If you go shopping on Carnaby Street (right next to the Liberty department store), remember that you are walking on a mass grave of plague victims.
In the 16th century, it was forbidden for men to beat their wives after 21:00 because it might disturb the neighbours.
The second most common mother tongue of Londoners after English is Polish.
From June 1, 2008 alcohol was banned on public transport in London. The night before, a large demonstration took place on the Underground ring line, where "the last one was taken".
In 1439, people were forbidden to kiss to prevent the spread of the plague.
The name of the River Thames comes from Sanskrit. "Tamas" means dark.
On the banks of the Thames is Cleopatra's Needle, an obelisk brought from Egypt. It was erected in 1878 and below that in a capsule are cash, a razor, a Bible, a train timetable, a couple of cigars, a portrait of Queen Victoria, 10 newspapers and pictures of twelve of England's most beautiful women.
William Shakespeare spelled his name many different ways: Willm Shakespere, William Shakspere, Wm Shakspe, William Shaksper and Willm Shakp.
In 1631, a Bible was printed in London in which the "no" was omitted from the seventh commandment and the commandment was: "Thou shalt commit adultery". A copy of this book currently costs £90,000.
Chelsea Physic Garden is the second oldest botanical garden in England, founded in 1673. It was built on four acres of land owned by Hans Sloane. The rent for the use of the land was £5 per month. And this money is still being paid to Sloane's descendants!
Waterloo Bridge is sometimes called the Ladies Bridge because it was built mainly by women during the WWII. It was on this bridge that Bulgarian dissident Georgi Markov was killed in 1978 with an umbrella.
Since 1/5 of London is covered with trees and shrubs, according to the UN classification it can be considered a forest.
In 1952, a bus was travelling over Tower Bridge when it opened. Bus driver Albert Gunter pushed the accelerator pedal to the bottom and happily jumped over the gap with the bus. It was only a few feet wide, unlike the later Hollywood films...
There are 20 underground rivers in London. The best known of these is the River Fleet, which starts as two branches on Hampstead Heath and flows into the Thames under Blackfriars Bridge. It is assumed that the world's first watermill worked on this river. Of course, rivers have gone underground as a result of human activity. More space was needed in the city and the rivers were very polluted. So they were directed under the vaults. When you get off at the forecourt of King's Cross station, remember that you are walking over the river (the crooked hotel next door follows the bend of the river). One such river also flows through Green Park (about where the eastern parkway is) as it comes under the garden of Buckingham Palace.
When the first tram lines were built in London, their construction was initiated by a man named George Francis Train :-) .
The organizers of the 2012 Olympic Games wanted to invite Keith Moon to play the opening ceremony. Only later did they learn that the legendary drummer had already died 34 years ago.
The Russian delegation was 12 days late for the London 1908 Olympic Games. Russia had not yet switched to the Gregorian calendar.
Tower Bridge is raised for ships to pass about 1,000 times a year. The opening takes 61 seconds.
As early as 1810 there were officially 250 offences punishable by hanging in London. For example, stealing a rabbit or staying 30 days with gypsies (29 days or less was allowed!).
When the poet Edmund Spenser was buried in Westminster Abbey, Shakespeare, who was present at the funeral, threw a manuscript of one of his works into his grave. This unknown work is still there.
Near Leicester Square is the Nôtre Dame de Paris church and in it a mural of the crucifixion (1960) by the French artist Jean Cocteau. It is actually a self-portrait of the artist.
Queen Elizabeth I never married. She was called the Virgin Queen. The US state of Virginia is named in her honour.
One of Queen Victoria's wedding gifts was a ball of cheese weighing half a ton.
Nowadays, brides mostly wear a white dress and a veil. This custom started with the wedding of Victoria and Albert. Everyone tried to imitate the queen.
Queen Victoria reigned for 63 years and 7 months. She married Albert of Saxe-Coburg at a young age, but because of his German ancestry, Albert became a prince 17 years later. A few years later, Albert died of typhus, and the queen subsequently wore only black clothes. Victoria had 9 children and because they married into different courts, Victoria was also called the Grandmother of Europe. Unfortunately, she had the gene for haemophilia, and this "heritage" spread to other royal families (for example, the son of the last Russian Tsar, Alexey).
Place names in London are sometimes very misleading. There is a large railway station called Clapham Junction. But it's not in a part of place called Clapham. In Battersea instead. Another example. There is a park called Finsbury Park. But a place called Finsbury is several kilometers from there. The famous Abbey Road crossing is almost exactly 12 km from Abbey Road station.