Episodes
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We're often called clowns. I'm sure it is meant nicely. In any case, this week we take a look at one of London's most unusual events, the Clown Service every year in East London. We also trace back the history of clowning, and find where the traditions that we know and love (or are scared of!) originate
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Alex takes us to the North London borough of Harrow. Eschewing the school and it's many celebrity alumni, we are retiring to the country instead.
When Sir William Gilbert bought a house in Harrow, it came with a resident animal, who quickly became a family favourite. So much so, when he died, they acquired a new pair. What were they? There were also cats and dogs and donkeys. But it's Nancy's pet that provokes the most questions.
We are talking of WS Gilbert, creator of plays and comic operas, with his long time collaborator Arthur Sullivan. Who retired to Grim's Dyke and along with his wife created marvellous gardens and a fateful lake. Indeed it's not a long episode this week, because of the lake, and the swimming lessons he was giving to the locals.
It's now a hotel, so maybe there's an outing in the offing. There's definitely an outing in the offing, with more Crossness details this week. And lions and canals and bears, Oh my!*
Who was Grim, and what was the dyke for?
*There aren't any bears.
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Never has paying rent been quite so elaborate. Even when it's rent you're not paying, for a piece of land you don't use anymore. It's confusing. The City of London goes to town with the pomp and processions, and we are here to explain all. In fact this year (unlike all the others) we are determined to make it to some of these events. Get your diaries at the ready if you'd like to join us.
There's the Boar's Head procession, by the Butchers. The Carmen do the cart marking. City Freemen with their sheep crossing the river. And 61 nails getting handed back and forth, for eternity. Every year since.... well, who is going to have the oldest ceremony? It's a lost in the mists of time face off between Fiona and Alex. We don't just cross the river, we go upstream for the Doggett's Coat and Badge, and then even further up to check who owns those swans.
I want to hear "Good service" "Good Number" and "Whack it boys, whack it!"
A lesson for us all. John Stow's inscription: "Either do things worth writing about, or write things
worth reading". Here at Ladies Who London we hope we do things worth talking about, and talk about things worth doing.
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Hello Haringey. From Highgate to Tottenham, and the cemetery to Bruce Castle, we flit West to East and back again. Fiona's long been fascinated by a film clip, and turns out both the filmmaker and the subject have Haringey connections. So this week we are talking about the magician David Devant and the cinema pioneer Robert Paul.
Roll up, roll up, roll up, for the Kinetescope, the Animatograph and the Filoscope. And cheer loudly for the Prince of Wales. (In fact there's two mentions for the Prince of Wales this week, see if you notice them both, different person, same title.)
Plus Eleanor Morton's dates for the Soho theatre. Who else had a whistle at the Burlington Arcade? How much for a plot? And which dictator's relations lived in Haringey?
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Fiona hits the streets in search of the sound of London. Or at least the sound of the bells of London. From the Westminster the the City and beyond, listening as the hours pass by and the years drop away. Listening to the echoes of sounds that Londoners heard 300 years ago.
What's a carillon? How long does it take to ring a peal? How heavy? And can we start making them here again please.
Of course there's Big Ben, and Great Tom, and Dick gets a mention, can anyone find a Harry?
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In which Alex tells us why a Hungarian dancer was instrumental in fixing the distance for the marathon. It's a journey that takes us all the way from Pest to Chicago and from Hammersmith, through the Court of Honour, via some more dodgy colonial model villages and out to Windsor.
Theatrical and event impresario Imre Kiralfy created the area we now know as White City*, to host events and exhibitions. Including the Franco-British Exhibition of 1908. What else happened in 1908? Well Rome was due to host the Olympics.
Plus Fiona met a Zoomer, Indoor swimming, bad signposting and a family success.
*What colour do you think the buildings were painted?
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Get your pencils and paper ready to join in with us. Alex has prepared a quiz, Fiona has fun facts to share and special guest and friend of the pod Lee Ingleby is putting on a brave face for all of it.
Which tube station is the opposite of Squander? What weighs the same as 200 ping pong balls? We're not just testing your London knowledge this week, we're testing your mathematics and spelling too. What links a rocking horse, a 14 ft boat and some breast implants? Settle in for a rollercoaster of things you never knew you needed to know*.
Plus a plea for love from another friend of the pod and the world premiere of the Christopher Wren Alert.
*You probably don't, and in some cases certainly shouldn't.
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This week it's the rose red empire of Hackney famous residents from the 1500s. We discover why Alex didn't watch Wolf Hall. She's a sensitive gal you know.
And we go way back to 600bc, before returning, via the world's first coal powered electricity generating station, where? Really!? How Extraordinary! To the bright lights and power hungry pubs of Shoreditch in the late 1800s. Time for some civic minded Victorian engineering, to produce: More Light, More Power. The unassuming brick building on Coronet St hides a powerful past life, disguised now with the glitz, glamour and muscles of steel needed for aerial circus skills.
Plus Crossness dates - 5th Apr, get in touch if you want to join us at the pumping station. Important Hat news, Rev and Amazing Grace, and at some point everyone lives near Krapy Rubsnif.
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Today we are ringing London, joined by special guest, author and walker, Anna Sayburn Lane. Refugee Tales is a modern recreation of Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. A five day walk with stories along the way. Each evening there's entertainments (and snoring, especially from the men's dorm!) The walkers are a mix of interested supporters and people who have been through the process of arriving in this country as a refugee. Sharing a path, breaking bread, and chatting along the way. This year, for their 10th anniversary the main walk in July with be around part of the Capital Ring.
Plus the profound effect a walk to Canterbury can have on your life, Christopher Marlowe, a fresh red room and and a hint of Something Rotten
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Climb aboard and come away with us on the high seas. Take a trip to France on Henry Grace a Deau. The pride of Henry VIII's fleet. Or overtake her whilst laden with tea, wool or pianos, on board The Cutty Sark. How many woolly jumpers can you fit on the only extreme tea clipper left in the world? Henry's ship was built nearby, and maybe ended it's life nearby as well. A war ship that broke the rules, bedecked with guns in all directions. The Cutty Sark you can still visit in Greenwich. Climb her masts, peer inside her chests and squint at her figurehead. Nannie, what's that you're wearing? Alex tells us of a hard life well lived, and gracious lady who's enjoying her retirement*.
Plus teaspoons and cheeseboards, news of Crossness and get your skates on if you want to see the Winter lights.
*the ship, not Alex.
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This week we are talking hats. What's Fiona's favourite London hat? Celebrating National Hat day, and giving you time to prepare for London Hat Week. We've got a bit of a beaver update to start us off, and sadly their ancestors make an appearance in one of London's notable hats - The Beaverskin or Muscovy Hat of the Swordbearer of the City of London. The hat pocket plays an important part in one of the solemn and important (or, bonkers, depending on your point of view) City ceremonies.
We can't talk hats without visiting the hatters, and where better than Lock and Co. It would be quicker to list the stylish celebrities who haven't had a hat made there, than those that have.
What do you get if you cross a homburg and a Bowler? and bonus points if you know who might be wearing one. And where oh where was London's most unlikely hat wearer.
Plus mercury madness, Nelson's Olympic flame, and what do Chaplin and Churchill have in common?
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Ooh it's a mixed bag this week. A little bit of this, a little bit of that. Farming. Industry. Royal Enfield - which might not be from Enfield. What is an Enfield anyway? A heraldic beast with a bit of Fox, a touch of Eagle, maybe some wolf, that's what. And this week's main topic might be a wolf in sheep's clothing. He was a figure of fun in our house when I was growing up. Norris McWhirter - the man who checked the Guiness world records. Turns out there's a whole other story of his life I knew nothing about. If you wanna be the best, and stand out from the rest, oooh dedication's what you need.
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Well here it is, the second half of our live record evening. We set out to discover the most important/ best/ typically London/ Londitudinal building. Can the champions of Regent St sway the room, to win against The Barbican? Will rock, paper, scissors, finally settle the age old question, is Roman stuff more important than Greenwich? And, critically, is St Pancras railway station better than the Wanstead Tap?
Joined once again by Leo Hollis, plus lovely listeners, Dan from the Tap and friend of the pod, Katie Wignall, Alex and I ask you to put on a silly hat, maybe have a glass of something to hand, or even one in both hands, just in case, and brace yourselves for the silliness ahead.
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Our story this week is of a hardworking immigrant family, beavering away to improve the quality of life for Ealing. But first there’s hills made of rubble, classic comedy capers (we find out which world leader was their biggest fan) and the first incline lift in a tube station.
An experiment is underway at Paradise Fields, to see if Beavers can live in an urban setting. Since moving in last year the family have been coppicing trees, damming lakes, and filtering the water. We chat about why beavers were hunted to extinction in Britain, their extraordinarily useful fur and secretions, and how they are making a comeback.
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We're still on an airfield this week. But it's all about the woman wielding the tools, keeping the planes aloft. It's 1941 and Lilian Bader is one of the first women to qualify as an instrument repairer. Her Barbadian father had served in the Navy, her husband drove tanks, her son flew helicopters. Across the generations her family served across the forces, and gave back more than they received. Lilian not only broke barriers as a woman of colour, she campaigned to remember the contribution made from across the commonwealth. Her unit were the first women in the WAAF to be given overalls rather than wearing skirts. Overalls that hang on the Women of World War two memorial in Whitehall. The uniforms and clothes adopted by women to commemorate all those who served, military and civilian.
Plaster wedding cakes, Pilots of the Caribbean and Who wants to be a millionaire? Plus Christmas trees, singing and an Easter egg. What's that you say Ben? BONG.
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Mayday, M'aidez! I'm worried that Alex is turning to a life of crime!
Croydon: The international airport of London in the golden age of glamorous travel. Even the cargo was golden, and enticing. And this week we're learning why you should organise your own getaway car. Plus a superstar kidnapping caper. It's all go. Just as well Alex has had a relaxing holiday. No, I'm not jealous at all, I've been living it up in London with Bert.
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We are slightly overexcited this week, as we're chatting with comedian and writer Eleanor Morton. Her fabulous book of lessons from historical women features many of our favourite women. And a host of, maybe, less familiar ones. From mountaineering and marathons to creating familiar music and much loved characters, we're casting the net wide this week. Who slapped who, and why? Who found adventure in the most dangerous of journeys? How does hiding in a cupboard help anyone?
Plus ghosts, tour guiding, the month of Edinburgh, and another potential podcast outing.
No animals were harmed in the making of this episode, although Rusty does join in.
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We're taking a stroll through the medical powerhouse that is south Camden and focussing on Elizabeth Garrett Anderson. She's been on the fringes of many an episode - her sister and her daughter have already featured, now she gets the limelight. And boy does she deserve it. She overcame hurdles and jumped through loopholes, even learning another language in her fight to become the first female Dr to practise (while presenting as a woman) in the UK. Her co-founders of the London School of Medicine for Women, were equally determined, playing the establishment at their own game to learn their skills. Inspiring women whose legacy still lurks along the Euston Rd.
Plus a miniature distillery in Scotland. Cheers!
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In a new guessing game Alex tries to pick the material chosen to sculpt the Prince of Wales. 100 years ago the crowds were gathering in Wembley for the extraordinary spectacle that was the British Empire Exhibition. A showcase for trade, manufacturing and, it turns out, people. Problematic? Just a tad.
But there was a miniature railway, a palace of engineering, a palace of art including the teeny tiny wine bottles in Queen Mary's Dolls House. And a regular display of destruction of the House of Commons. What's not to like?
When the empire was at it's height, but with the cracks beginning to show, an exhibition was bound to be both brilliant and disturbing. Join visitors John Betjeman and Virginia Woolf as we explore the exhibition together.
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Calling all penny farthing enthusiasts, we need answers! New records have been set, and we want to know more.
Alex takes a dive into the Thames this week. Not the modern Thames, oh no, she's bravely gone back to 1858, the year of the Great Stink. What's that got to do with Bexley? The Crossness pumping station, that's what. An important part of Bazalgette's solution, his new improved sewage system, to transport the poop of London out the East. A very functional building then, presumably. Wait, have you met the Victorians?
And will our funky theme tune be hitting the charts or clubs any time soon?
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