My Father Was A Real Cockney
My father was born in Islington and although he had all the rhyming slang and other knowledge, he never called himself a real Cockney, who was born within the sound of Bow Bells. Today, he wouldn’t have been, but when he was born in 1904, he would probably have been born inside the area, as indicated by this map.
I went past the church of St. Mary-le-Bow today and took some pictures.
According to the map, I think that both my maternal grandparents and possibly my paternal grandfather, were all born in the required area. So I could be three-quarter Cockney.
The Man Who Didn’t Know How To Use The Buses
Whilst waiting at the Angel for a bus, I was approached by a guy, who asked if he could buy a ticket on the bus to get to Stoke Newington. I told him he could, but as he looked to be in his sixties, I asked him, if he was eligible for a Freedom Pass. He was 65 and lived in Hackney, so he was!
But he said he’d never used the buses, as he was a mini-cab driver.
Perhaps major bus stops like the Angel, need instructions on how to use the buses.
Hackney Is London’s Cycling Capital
That is the strapline on this report in today’s Standard. Here’s the first few paragraphs.
Hackney has been declared the cycling capital of London after research showed that more residents commute to work by bike than by car.
The figures, drawn from the 2011 Census by the Office of National Statistics, reveal that 14.6 per cent – or one in seven – of Hackney residents use a bike as their main method of getting to work.
This is the highest bike ridership in London – neighbouring Islington is second on 9.6 per cent – and is three-and-a-half times higher than the city-wide average of four per cent.
Obviously, Hackney is near to the City and it’s an easy cycle to work. But perhaps a bigger factor, is that Hackney must be one of the flattest boroughs in London.
Transport For London Lowers Emission Limits
Transport for London is lowering the emission limits for cars in the Congestion Charge Zone and it’s all reported here.
As a pedestrian and non-car owner and driver, I must say that I am in favour. In fact after experiencing Chelsea recently, I can’t see why they bothered to reduce the size of the zone. All it seemed to do, was increase the jams.
I’d also like to see a higher Congestion Charge for larger vehicles, such as big 4×4’s. After all, how many people need such a vehicle in Central London?
Living In The Toilet
This article on the BBC, shows how even the smallest buildings in London are being converted into homes and other uses. The opening paragraph says it all.
Converting abandoned public toilets in London into flats and businesses is providing a solution to rising property prices for some.
I don’t think it’s just about property prices. The conversions that I’ve seen both in the article and on the television, seem to be stylish and are good adverts for their designers and architects.
Remember too, that many of these buildings were very well built in the Victorian era and are still sound buildings. After all we’ve seen offices and warehouses transformed into stylish dwellings, so why not the smaller ones too?
The Flexibility Of Public Transport In East London
After my tea, I had to get home. To get from Pudding Mill station to where I live halfway between Highbury and Islington, and Dalston Junction stations, there are many possibilities.
So I resorted to the Monte Carlo method and took the first train that arrived. It was going to Stratford. I could have walked through the station to the overground, but noticed that despite it almost being the rush hour, the Central line trains towards Central London were fairly empty.
So I took the first one, intending to go to Bank, to take the `141 bus to my house. But at Mile End station, where the Central and sub-surface lines have a cross platform interchange, I decided to get a Metropolitan line train to Moorgate to pick up the bus there. I waited just a minute before I was on my way.
In the end, I went just two stops to Whitechapel station, where I used the quick interchange to get an Overground train to Dalston Junction, where I caught one of innumerable 38 buses down the Balls Pond Road.
I may have used five different modes of transport, but I had a seat all the way and never waited more than a minute anywhere.
Incidentally, CrossRail will change all this, as the simplest route, would be to take CrossRail to Moorgate and then get the 141 bus. Let’s hope they get the bus connection right.
A Very Colourful Business
I would have thought that making pom poms was a business, where nimble Asian fingers were needed in a sweat shop somewhere East of the Gulf.
So I was surprised to see on the local BBC News that a lady has started a business called Paperpoms UK to make them in South London.
And it looks like she’s being successful!
So don’t ever knock a business idea because it seems a bit odd or very niche market!
Certainly, the free publicity tonight from the BBC, won’t hinder their success.
London Underground Stations To Avoid
Londoners all have the Underground stations they don’t use. Here’s a few of my list.
Green Park – I was talking with a friend last night about my experience here yesterday and she also said she doesn’t use the station either, although she has to when she goes to the Royal Academy. I don’t as I will use a 38 bus from the stop just around the corner from my house. Outside of the rush hour, it’s almost as quick and I have to get a bus to Highbury and Islington station to get the Underground anyway.
Kings Cross St Pancras – It may be fully step-free, but it’s another station with endless subterranean passageways and I still get caught out by going to the wrong end of the platform, when getting off a train. If you want to exit, it’s better to go to the Euston Road exits, as that way it’s generally a short walk and an escalator. Following the recommended route puts you in the endless passageways. But again, I have the luxury of a 30 bus direct to the station. When they finish the plaza in front of the station, bus access will get much better, so this station, should improve overall later this year.
On the other hand changing between the deep lines isn’t too bad, which can’t be said for Green Park.
London Bridge – This is another station, designed by an architect with shares in a shoe company. I would never change Underground trains here and avoid getting on them as well. It used to be much easier, when the 141 bus ran from the new bus station. It doesn’t at the moment, as after they’d built it, the sewer collapsed, but in a few weeks it will be different.
Victoria – This is another on the list at present, but probably only until the station and the Underground interchange has been rebuilt in a few years.
Bank – This is another station that I avoid at weekends to change onto the DLR, but it is much better during the week. It’s also improved over the last few ears, with several extra escalators. It will also get better in the future, as I believe it’s getting some more lifts.
Camden Town – It’s just so busy with all the markets and the tourists they attract. It had been slated for rebuilding completely, but nothing is on the cards at the moment. I either use a bus or the Overground to Camden Road station to get there.
I’ve already had a couple of suggestions from a friend.
Mile End – I know this one well and used to use it a lot, when my son lived round the corner. My friend suggests you should avoid it because it is a suicide hot-spot and because of it’s depressing decor. But I’ve always found it a good way to get onto the District or Metropolitan lines from the Central or vice-versa. It also has a very useful black cab rank outside the station, which is rare on the Underground.
Edgware Road – This is the subsurface station, which can be a nightmare as it is the gap in the Circle line. I’ve waited there in the past for a lot more than several minutes to turn the corner to the south. I was talking to station staff at Kings Cross and the new Circle line layout generates a lot of queries, especially from those, who are visiting London after several years.
You will notice, that I often do a split journey using a bus at one end. I also know the bus stops pretty well, so for example, if I was returning home from say Paddington on the Metropolitan line, I’d go to Moorgate station and get a 141 bus from there, as the stop is by the station. In a similar way, say if I was going to Wembley, I’d take a 56 bus to Barbican station and get the Metropolitan from there.
I do hope that Crossrail doesn’t muck up the bus connections too much. After all, it would be easy to go to Heathrow, by getting a 141 bus to Moorgate and then getting Crossrail direct to the airport.
You will also notice that two of the stations I avoid are on the Jubilee line. I don’t think, it was the best designed of the Underground lines and we are paying the price that shoddy design. Spectacular some of the stations like Canary Wharf , Westminster and North Greenwich might be, but couldn’t a proportion of the money been better spent at the interchanges like Green Park, London Bridge and Bond Street.
Westminster always amazes me, as I walk through its subterranean structures. But then it is in effect the foundation of Portcullis House; that grandiose monument to Parliamentary excess.
London’s Step-Free Bus Stops Show Their Worth
The picture shows the bus stop I used to go to lunch today.
A Typical London Bus Stop
It is typical of many stops in London these days, with a wide pavement reaching out into the road, so the bus can draw close alongside.
This one has the standard shelter with a seat and I suspect a map inside showing all the local routes. It’s also got a litter bin.
It looks like too, that Hackney Council has been keeping the snow off the pavement to make it all very safe.
When I got off, there was no chance I would slip, as I only had a downward step of a few centimetres to get off the bus.
It would be interesting to look at the statistics of accidents where passengers are getting on and off buses. I suspect they’ll be some very bad anomalies.
I also think that the expense of these more spacious stops may well pay for itself in less accidents.
I’m With Guy De Maupassant
Will Self has written an article about the Shard for the BBC web site. I liked this bit.
It was said of the French writer Guy de Maupassant that he ate dinner in the restaurant of the Eiffel Tower every night of the week, and when asked why, replied, “Because it’s the only place in Paris from where you can’t see the Eiffel Tower.”
I wonder if Guy De Maupassant would agree with me on Europe’s tallest building. It is just too easy to see, as I showed in this article.
On the other hand, I’ve no desire to eat dinner every night in the building, as it will only encourage someone to build something even more intrusive.
The Anonymous Widower 
