Ladies Who London
Join us, Alex and Fiona, as we take a light look at London's history in a relaxed and entertaining way. As qualified Blue Badge Tourist Guides, we share our passion for the city with you in a chatty and fun podcast, looking at the weird, wonderful and unknown in this huge, ancient place we call home.
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Ep 58 - Halloweeeeeen! Bouncing demons and gris...
This Halloween we both share stories from London's gruesome past, including some grisly, complex murders, and a mythical fire breathing demon who terrorised the streets for 60 years
65 min
152
Ep 57 - Omoba Aina aka Sarah Forbes Bonetta, Qu...
We unearth the story of Queen Victoria's black goddaughter, Omoba Aina, and how she came to be under the Queen's protection
54 min
153
Ep 56 - Rotherhithe - Prince Lee Boo & Omai, fr...
Two men from far flung lands chose to travel to London - what will their fates be? Find out more about them here.
48 min
154
Ep 55 - Lambeth - Lucy Houston and the Spitfire...
Meet the Spitfire Sisters, a trio of unlikely women who have one thing in common - their work, effort and determination brought about the most iconic British aircraft, the Spitfire.
60 min
155
Ep 54 - River Thames - SS Great Eastern, the st...
The largest ship of its day, known as the Floating City, which smashed all the records and captured headlines around the world...and the impact it had on the great man of engineering, Isambard Kingdom Brunel
73 min
156
Ep 53 - Soho - Windmill Theatre, a riot of bare...
The most titillating of theatre at the Windmill, under the eyes of a formidable septuagenarian widow, Laura Henderson!
51 min
157
Ep 52 - 1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!
We're celebrating one year! So we have a special guest, friend of the pod Lee Ingleby, to come in for a wine-augmented chat about all things pod, and test our London knowledge!
57 min
158
Ep 51 - Bloomsbury - Russell Hotel, a titanic d...
A sneaky look at one of London's most historic hotels, with links to the fated Titanic
46 min
159
Ep 50 - St James - Elizabethan Sumptuary laws, ...
Hey fashion police, this one's for you! On this week's episode we take a look at one of the oddest laws around, the Elizabethan sumptuary laws which governed who could where what and when. Literally making it illegal for you to look good.
49 min
160
Ep 49 - Bank - Beefsteak club, an odyssey of Br...
On this week's episode, we have two guests, Lottie and Fiona. With Emily, our guests attack the topic of the Beefsteak club with gusto, getting stuck in to one of the weirdest clubs in London's history
74 min
161
Ep 48 - Covent Garden - Margot Fonteyn, pirouet...
We are taking a look at one of Alex's icons, Margot Fonteyn. Now if the thought of ballet puts you off, never fear - this is a story that will certainly give you something to think about. Who would have thought a dainty, sweet girl from Surrey would end up involved in a coup in central America?!
52 min
162
ep 47 - Wapping - Thames tunnel; banquets, brav...
How do you make a tunnel interesting? Well luckily, this week's subject, the Thames tunnel needs no help at all. We take a look at how the first tunnel under a river anywhere in the world is so much more than just a tunnel, and how you can still travel through this tunnel today.
56 min
163
Ep 46 - Mayfair - Georgian sex bomb Kitty Fisher
Oooh, Kitty Fisher, you scandalous thing! This week we take a look at one of London's most celebrated Georgian women, the courtesan, harlot, and most talked about women of 18thC London. Part of the booming Georgian sex trade, Kitty Fisher was a master of self publicity and charm
57 min
164
Ep 45 - Hyde Park - Jack Sheppard, Jailbreaker ...
The star of the show this week is the utterly fantastic Jack Sheppard - small time crook and petty villain, who got a huge following and famous reputation as a regular jailbreaker from some of London's most famous prisons! How did he do it? Did he really goad the guards who had him locked up?
48 min
165
Ep 44 - Bloomsbury - Noor Inayat Khan, Spy Prin...
This week we are on the trail of a spy princess, the incredible Noor Inayat Khan. She came to England in 1944 and joined the war effort as a spy, heading behind enemy lines and risking her life to broadcast information back to the UK. Will she make it out alive?
53 min
166
Ep 43 - Southbank - Festival of Britain, London...
We've left behind the gruesome stories of last week and headed nearby to the South Bank area to find out about the Festival of Britain. Was there really an alien spaceship hovering over London? Why were people so amazed by the cinema there? And for us Blue Badge Guides, is this where it all started?
50 min
167
Ep 42 - Waterloo - Necropolis Railway, London's...
One of London's most curious bits of history this week, London's necrotrain - a train designed to transport London's dead, plus their mourners, out to a green leafy cemetery about 25 miles out of London. Was there really an option for coffins to travel in different classes?
53 min
168
Ep 41 - Clerkenwell - Prison explosion, a high ...
The goth guide lives up to her reputation today by picking a devastating explosion and jail break in Clerkenwell on this week's podcast. How do a white ball, a barrel full of dynamite, and a serial jail breaker all come together?
39 min
169
Ep 40 - Clerkenwell - London's Secret Mail Rail...
We're going underground! Not to the famous London underground, oh no. We are going for one of London's secret tunnels which used to house the almost mythical postal rail system. Did they really use to shoot people down through tunnels using a vacuum system?
40 min
170
Ep 39 - Kensington - Beatrix Potter, a literary...
Emily delves in to one of Alex's favourite childhood authors, Beatrix Potter, and tries not to ruin Peter Rabbit for everyone! We take a look at her life and loves, and try not to freak out about the demise of the family rabbit...
48 min
171
Ep 38 - Kensington - Isabella Lucy Bird, indepe...
We're trotting off around the world this week with another phenomenal woman, Isabella Lucy Bird. We find out how a spinal tumour led her to become a best selling travel writer, and what she got up to well into her 70s.
46 min
172
Ep 37 - Fleet Street - Dr Samuel Johnson, multi...
This week we are taking a look at the original collector of unusual words, Dr Samuel Johnson, and his English dictionary. What common word did he leave out, whilst including a very random other word? And what particular ailment did he have that would have raised eyebrows?
49 min
173
Ep 36 - Whitechapel - Whitechapel Bell Foundry,...
We are heading east this week to Whitechapel, home of the renowned Whitechapel Bell Foundry, where bells such as Big Ben and the Liberty Bell were forged. But the story of Big Ben's arrival is not as simple as you might imagine...
45 min
174
Ep 35 - Soho - Denmark Street, rock n roll history
Bash the cymbals and crash those drums, we are heading to Soho for a bit of rock music history. Denmark street is the centre of all the excitement, and we are going to take a look at what makes this street in London quite so special.
55 min
175
Ep 34 - Embankment - Somerset House & Waterloo ...
Ladies, unite! We are here for the ladies' input this week, as we take a look at Waterloo Bridge and find out if there is any truth to the often quoted rumour that this was built by women during WW2.
46 min