It is a sad fact in London history – some murders get attention and the details poured over again and again, and some that are simply forgotten. The murder of Elizabeth Osborn in 1719 is one that has passed quietly away – a shame as her killer, Jane Griffin wanted us all to learn a lesson from the sorry episode.

Elizabeth Osborn was a maid working at the Three Pigeons, a tavern used by booksellers located in Butcher Hall Row – not far from modern day Paternoster Square. The tavern was ru...

Lockdown has been such a strange time for us all but there has been so much culture available to us online.  However, the other day whilst making my way through the back streets from the South Bank to Waterloo Station I came across a physical example of what has been produced.  A celebration of the heroes of our time – the NHS - through street art.

Under the railway bridge between Waterloo and Waterloo East is this tribute - the NHS as Superman - by Lionel Stanhope. He trained as a sign writ...

In October 1684 the diarist John Evelyn went to see what was probably the first rhinoceros to appear in England. She had been brought to London by some East India merchants who sold her at auction. The novelty factor allowed them to obtain the enormous sum of £2,320. Evelyn noted in his diary: ’Twas certainly a very wonderful creature’.

The money promised by the bidder never materialised, and the animal became an exhibit at the Bell Savage, which stood on the north side of Ludgate Hill an...

Jack the Ripper has remained a mystery for the past 132 years. That is not to say that numerous (too numerous to calculate) attempts have not been made to identify this most famous serial killer. Practically every year a new book and a new theory emerges and is pored over by Ripper enthusiasts in the hope that this is the theory that will finally nail him. But to no avail!

However, after reading five or six theories you come to realise that every book is slightly different in their view of ho...