Category Archives: Glimpse of the past

Moving on… robslondon.com

By View from the Mirror on November 10, 2019 | 11 Comments

Dear friends,

I must apologise for the lack of posts on this site in recent months.

As mentioned in April 2019, I have been working on my second book; a history of Waterloo station. So far this has been going very well; Waterloo has a fascinating history and I can’t wait to share the results!

Since April, I have also been working on another project.

‘View from the Mirror’- aka blackcablondon.net- has been running since 2011 and is now starting to look a little tired.

As such, I have decided to create a new, revamped website where I can start afresh and take advantage of exciting new design features which have developed over the past eight years.

I am pleased to announce that this new website is:

robslondon.com

In essence, robslondon.com is similar to blackcablondon: at heart, it is a celebration of London and an exploration of the city’s rich history.

As part of the new design I have instigated new features such as a look at London’s lesser-explored suburbs, and reviews and top picks from the capital’s latest exhibitions. My own illustrations now form part of the new look.

Here are some highlights from the first batch of posts:

An A-Z of Cockney Rhyming Slang: 26 terms to discover… and how to use them!

An A-Z of Cockney Rhyming Slang

Mapping The War of the Worlds: An in depth-look at the locations featured in H.G Wells’ early sci-fi masterpiece.

The War of the Worlds Mapped robslondon.com

London True Crime: The Baker Street Robbery, 1971

Travels on the Tube: Rickmansworth: A journey to the far end of the Metropolitan line

On robslondon.com, it is also possible to book walking tours with me. At present I offer a specialised tour of Roman London and the option to create a bespoke tour.

Further walks will be added in the near future.

There is also a shop on the new website where you can purchase my first book: ‘The Knowledge: Train Your Brain Like a Cabbie’. More items (such as mugs and canvas prints) will be following soon!

I will now be posting solely on robslondon.com.

blackcablondon.net will remain online as an archive.

I would like to offer my deepest thanks to all of you who’ve subscribed to, commented on and supported this website since 2011. Your kind words have inspired me and pushed me to keep writing over the years.

If you are a friend of this website it would mean a great deal to me if you could come on over and subscribe to robslondon.com so we can continue enjoying London together and help the new site to grow!

It is now now time to sign off from blackcablondon.net, and so I will bid farewell with the traditional London cabbies’ way of saying goodbye…

“Be Lucky”

***

Posted in: Cabbie's Curios, Glimpse of the past, London History | Tagged: Baker Street Robbery, Cockney rhyming slang, HG Wells, London, London Tours, Rickmansworth, robslondon.com, Roman London, The Walkie Talkie Robbery, The War of the Worlds

Introducing the View From the Mirror Archive- a new contents page

By View from the Mirror on February 23, 2019 | 5 Comments

To date, I’ve written and posted over 270 articles on this site.

Due to the nature of blogging software these posts get pushed further and further back as time progresses meaning it can be tricky to discover older content.

To overcome this problem I’ve developed a new contents page where links and brief descriptions of every single article can be found.

Please click here or on the link in the menu bar above to access…

Enjoy!

The Battersea Peace Pagoda

Quintessential London film, The Long Good Friday… see a Tribute to Bob Hoskins

Tube poster advertising ‘2001 a Space Odyssey’, 1968… see A Monolith in St Katharine Docks

Nelson’s Column… see Buffing Nelson’s Column

Mural of Vincent Van Gogh, Stockwell… see Van Gogh’s London

Victorian depiction of the Waterloo & City Line… see Waterloo Station Part 3

Artist, Francis Bacon drinking in The French House, Soho… see Disturbing Daubs: Francis Bacon’s London (image: The Guardian)

The Dublin Castle, Camden- see Euston Station, Part 1

George Washington’s statue… see Trafalgar Square’s American Patch

The Caning on Conduit Street… see Lord Camelford: Gentleman Thug, Part 1

God’s Own Junkyard… see The Man Who Made Soho Glow

Entrance to Lower Robert Street… see a Ghostly Tunnel in the Heart of London

Basing Hill, north London… see Suburban SOS: An Early Aviation Disaster

Two mice eating cheese… see London’s smallest statue

The Tower of London in the 1600s… see The Gunpowder Plot

David Bowie Mural, Brixton… see

Jimi Hendrix posing on Montagu Place… see Jimi Hendrix’s London, Part 1

An old London cab… see London Taxis in 1960

Bill Sikes… see Fear & Loathing in Shad Thames

Ship’s figurehead… see Tobacco Dock: Wapping’s Ghostly Mall

The Sweeney… Euston Films’ Greatest Hits

Brydges Place… see Covent Garden’s Cramped Alley

Tunnel on Abbey Street…see Secrets of the Viaducts, Part 2

St Alban’s Tower

Posted in: Cabbie's Curios, Candid Capital, Glimpse of the past, In the Back, Legendary Londoners, London History, London Music, Metro Blogs, Roads of Renown, Spooky London, Stressful Streets, Tales From the Terminals, The Cruel Capital, Time Out blog, WW1 100: London's Memorials | Tagged: archive, contents, London, London cabbie, London Taxi Driver

The Queen of Soul in London: A Tribute to Aretha Franklin

By View from the Mirror on August 16, 2018 | 4 Comments

This photo of the late, great Aretha Franklin pictured with two London bobbies was snapped for Jet magazine in August 1970 when the undisputed Queen of Soul was in town for a number of dates at the Hammersmith Odeon.