Ever wondered if Cheapside really is cheap, what you do in Threadneedle Street, or who the knights of Knightsbridge were?
Did you know that Piccadilly is actually an insult? And that Euston Road was built because there were too many cows on Oxford Street? Or that the River Fleet was covered over partly because of a drunken butcher?
Take a trip down narrow lanes, through cobbled streets and crowded markets to discover the meanings behind the citys place names. Meet forgotten residents whose names survive in the places where they lived and uncover tales from Londons murky past that have shaped the modern city.
From famous landmarks to forgotten rivers, grand thoroughfares to lost palaces, and ancient villages swallowed up as the city grew, Caroline Taggart explains the hidden meanings behind familiar places. If you have ever wanted to learn more about the history of London and discover the people, events and stories that shaped our capital city, then come on a journey that will show you London in a new light...
Caroline Taggart worked in publishing as an editor of popular non-fiction for 30 years before being asked to writeI Used to Know That, which became aSunday Timesbestseller. Her later books includeMy Grammar and I (or should that be 'Me'?)andHer Ladyship's Guide to the Queen's English. As a result, she has appeared frequently onBBC Breakfastand on national and regional radio, talking about language, grammar and Pythagoras' theorem. With her editorial hat on, she also visits writers' conferences around the country, advising would-be authors on how to get published and learning what their place names mean.
