William Whyte: Scholarship, Slander & Sherry - History in the House: Some Remarkable Dons and the Teaching of Politics, Character and Statecraft by Richard Davenport-Hines
It’s strange, really, that one of our most beloved, lyrical books about English rivers should have been written in the dying embers of the Victorian era. When Kenneth Grahame was writing about a rat and a mole passing their days “simply messing about in boats” – inspired by the walks he took with his son by the River Thames and its tributaries in Berkshire – the waters that flowed past his house and on to London were a cesspool often blamed for the diseases that ripped through the city, characte
Drain-spotting: The people who keep their minds in the gutter
By Bethan Bell
image copyrightAmir Dotan
Tour guides usually urge people to look up! when exploring a city, but a downwards glance can also offer portals into the unknown. Like bellybutton piercings of the streets, the gleam of these cast-iron discs are little glimpses of jewellery not usually seen.
Manhole covers, coalhole covers and drain covers all offer access to an underground world that, if not exactly thrilling, is at least full of artistry, history and in many cases, beauty.
Dr Shepherd Thomas Taylor, who studied medicine in 1860s London, is the first person known to have captured their charm.