History - Archive Articles

Barts Hospital’s “Hogarth” stairs to be restored

A grand set of stairs, decorated by William Hogarth, in the historic part of Barts Hospital are to be restored, thanks to a £4.9 million grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The unexpected heritage of London Bridge station’s iron girders

Little noticed by the thousands of people who use London Bridge station, but above their heads are some of the oldest iron girders in the UK.

Hopton Street’s 320 year old house

Squashed in between Southwark's tall modern buildings is a peculiar survivor, a 320-year old house.

An eternal flame burning at an east London war memorial

A cluster of war memorials with an eternal gas flame can be found rather hidden away in an east London industrial site if you know where to look.

Chelsea Pensioners to open a public heritage centre

For the first time in its 330-year history, the Royal Hospital Chelsea will have a permanent heritage centre that will be open to the public to visit.

WWII air raid shelter discovered in southeast London

An early example of a WWII air raid shelter has been uncovered during building site clearance works in Plumstead, in southeast London.

There’s a WWII bombshell next to Bexleyheath police station

Next to Bexleyheath police station is a WWII bomb, that in a literal interpretation of swords into ploughshares is now a potplant holder for a small garden.

Old sign on the Bank of England declaring “special limits”

If you look up on the wall on the side of the Bank of England building, you might see a very old sign declaring that this street is within special limits.

New archaeology trail around HS2’s Ruislip building site

Archaeological works taking place on West Ruislip Golf Course where HS2 is preparing its tunnel boring machines have revealed over 45,000 years of history, and there's now a walking trail to show off what's been found and where.

There’s a medieval wall inside a London office that you can visit

There's a large section of medieval wall from the City of London's first monastery that can be found inside a modern office, and it's open for the public to pop in and have a look.

The short-lived London Supperette Car Company

There's an amazing image that pops up occasionally online, of what looks to be a richly decorated wagon in Brixton that's said to be a mobile cafe from around 1910.

A Blue Plaque to remember the Match Girls’ Strike

One of the most important strikes in modern British history has been commemorated by English Heritage with a blue plaque at the site of the former Bryant and May match factory in East London.

There’s a vacancy for a Beefeater at the Tower of London

If you can meet the "strict eligibility criteria", there's currently a vacancy to be a Beefeater at the Tower of London.

Going on a tour of Harrow School

A famously posh private school in northwest London opens its doors four times a year for the less posh to have a peer inside and see what all the fuss is about.

A preview of Boston Manor House’s impressive restoration

In 1622/3, when all around here was fields, a grand manor house was built in West London, and 400 years later, it's about to reopen to the public after years of restoration work.

The UK’s first Stolperstein or “stumbling stone” has been installed in Westminster

A small brass plaque has been laid in the pavement in Golden Square, Soho to commemorate the life of former resident Ada van Dantzig, who died in Auschwitz.

Visit one of London’s last aristocratic mansions – Spencer House

Next to Green Park is a palace and a long row of grand houses, and one of those grand houses is open to the public.

Two more London Cabmen’s shelters given listed status

Two of the 13 remaining distinctive green cabmen's shelters that used to be a common sight in central London have been given historic listing status to protect them.

Today’s the 125th anniversary of opening the Blackwall Tunnel

On this day in 1897, London's first-ever road tunnel opened under the Thames, offering a connection across the river that East London had long been missing.

Marble Hill reopens after seven years of restoration work

Just under 300 years ago, one of the country's earliest Neo-Palladian villas was built next to the Thames, and now, following extensive restoration work, it's opening up to the public.

Victorian peepshow of the Thames Tunnel up for sale

A popular toy of Victorian times was the peepshow, and a paper peepshow of the Thame Tunnel is up for sale next week.

How the modern colour purple was invented in London

This summer, an awful lot of purple will be evident in London, from regal jubilees to the opening of the Elizabeth line, and not many people know that the modern colour purple was invented in London.

By law, Easter was supposed to be last weekend

This weekend is Easter, but it was supposed to have happened last weekend if a law from 1928 -- that fixed the date of Easter -- were to be enforced.

180th anniversary of the closure of the Kensington racecourse

This month marks the closure of a failure, an attempt to build a luxury horse racing track comparable to the best in England, right in the heart of London.