In the summer of 2021, Tim Bryars was alarmed to find council contractors digging up the doorstep of his bookshop in Cecil Court, Covent Garden. Worried they were about to drill down into the 17th century basement, he popped his head around the front door and asked what they were doing.
Lighting - you'd think it was uncontroversial but no: a motley crew of lamp lovers are campaigning to get London's last gaslit lamps listed status - and they're winning.
Although 174 of the original 300 lamps were saved last year following a campaign backed by the Daily Mail, almost 100 of the lamps that are not currently listed remain under threat.