Day: July 22, 2012

Sunday on Fleet Street

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After a stroll on Fleet Street nothing ever looks the same . . . .

Fleet Street, London, June 2011, c.b.w.

Interesting facts about Fleet Street:

  • It was named after River Fleet, London’s largest underground river.
  • British newspapers originated on Fleet Street and called the street home until the 1980s.
  • The length of Fleet Street marks London expansion in the 14th century.  The East end of the street marks the spot where the River Fleet ran against the medieval walls of London.
  • At the west end is the Temple Bar, which marks the current City of London/City of Westminster boundary, (extended in 1329).  In addition, the west part of the street was destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666.
  • The barber Sweeney Todd is traditionally said to have lived and worked in Fleet Street.
  • Aside from journalism, Fleet Street is also known for coffee houses and taverns (some of which have been there for centuries).
  • Fleet Street is now more associated with the law and its Inns of Court and barristers’ chambers, because the Royal Courts of Justice and the Central Criminal Court on Old Bailey are nearby.

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Sorry there’s no poem this week.  My muse and I are still on vacation!  I hope a pretty photograph and a little history lesson makes up for the lack of lines.

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c.b.w. 2012

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