Are you a Cockney?

Simon Meyer, the St Mary-le-Bow Tower Master.

Photo: PA / The Telegraph

There are many people who claim to be a Cockney but, are they speaking the truth? According to London tradition, Cockneys are born within earshot of the bells of St Mary-le-Bow, a church situated in Cheapside and built after the Great Fire of 1666.

There has been many debates and studies about how to delimit the bell-hearing range. The areas reached were Bethnal Green, Whitechapel, Spitalfields, Stepney, Hackney, Hoxton, Shoreditch, Bow, Mile End, Poplar, Wapping, Limehouse and Millwall. Other investigations, less exaggerated, limited the area only to Bethnal Green, Whitechapel, Stepney, Hackney and Hoxton.

But nowadays the Cockneys are endangered. Due to the noise pollution, the development of the city and the construction of high buildings, every day is more difficult to heard the chimes of St Mary-le-Bow.

Also, maybe a true Cockney may never be born again, because the only hospital inside the audible area has not a maternity ward.

Highgate Cemetery and Karl Marx

This picture shows the original grave where Karl Marx was buried together with other four people including his wife Jenny von Westphalen, their grandson Harry Longuet, their housekeeper Helena Demuth and one of their daughters Eleanor Marx.

This great philosopher, sociologist, economist and revolutionary socialist died on the 14th of March, 1883, only 15 months after his wife's death. Eleven people attended to his funeral, which took place on the 17th in the Highgate Cemetery. 

Piccadilly, c. 1900

Piccadilly, c. 1900

West End Live

"Do you hear the people sing?" Of course you do, because more than half a million people are singing this weekend "thank you for the music" in Trafalgar Square.

The West End is well known because of its buildings, shops, monuments and tourist attractions. But one thing that makes this area unique, same that happens in Broadway, is the impressive amount of Theatres. The best plays in the World are performing, without any doubt, in the West End.

The only problem is that most of the shows are very expensive and many Londoners cannot afford to enjoy them. That's why West End Live is returning for its 11th year to bring the most impressive performances on stage for free.

Holborn Circus, 1910

Holborn Circus, 1910

The thinnest house

To rent a house in London is becoming unachievable for most of the population. Nowadays, tenants cannot afford to rent a room and they are being forced to share them, sometimes with complete strangers.

The price is completely unaffordable in areas like Chelsea, Belgravia, South Kensington or Knightbridge. Specifically in this last district, in the number 5 at the junction of South Terrace and Thurloe Square, there is a property estimated to be worth over two million pounds.

It is not extremely expensive compared with other residences in the capital but this house is one of the thinnest apartments in the UK. The building is measuring just one meter at its narrowest point and 10 meters at its widest side. The property is actually triangular but looks rectangular due an optical illusion.

Brewers Quay, 1930's

Brewers Quay; 1930's

The origin of the tiered wedding cake

There are three things that cannot be missed at a wedding: the groom, the bride and the cake. 

In 1840, Queen Victoria decided to wear a white dress at her wedding with Prince Albert. Since then, the brides choose the white colour for their special day. The traditional wedding cake is also white to symbolize virginity and purity and to reflect the wife's virtues.

A wedding cake can have different flavours, forms and textures. But there is one thing that all of them have in common; they have tiers. To be exact, the traditional wedding cake must have three tiers. Why?

Pageantmaster Court, circa 1930

Pageantmaster Court, Ludgate Hill, c. 1930

Mudchute, a countryside in the heart of London

Ask to any Londoner child if they have ever seen a bear, a sheep or a pig. Probably they know about these animals and they will tell you about Paddington, Shaun or Peppa but, have they ever seen a real one? 

Living in a city is a great opportunity to have access to musicals, museums, shows, etc. But there is one thing that you are missing: nature.

London has a lot of parks but it is a city with a high level of pollution. And, of course, you can see foxes, dogs, cats, mice and doves in the city but, is it possible to see a llama, an alpaca, a ferret, a donkey or a pony?

Thanks to The Mudchute Park & Farm, it is. This charity, who has been in existence for thirty years, is taking care of 32 acres of land to create and preserve a small countryside in the Isle of Dogs, in the heart of London.

It's a girl

Today, London woke up with great news.

The Duchess of Cambridge, in less than three hours after she arrived at the Lindo Wing, has given birth to a girl. The princess, who is fourth in line to the throne, was born at 8.34 am with weight 8lbs 3oz.

London Marathon 2015

More than 38,000 people have taken part in the London Marathon last Sunday. Since the first time that it took place, on 29 March 1981, around £716 million have been collected.

From Greenwich to Buckingham Palace, the runners went over 26.2 mile (42.2km). This event was instituted to commemorate the Greek soldier Pheidippides who, in 490 BC, run 25 miles (40 km) from the battlefield near Marathon to Athens to announce the Greek victory over Persia. In the present, this would be the same distance as the length of the Victoria line, twice.

And this year runners not only participated in the race to raise money. Some of them also made of it the most important day of their lifes.

The Spanish frigate Méndez Núñez

Everybody who visits London this weekend have the opportunity to walk on Spanish ground without leaving the country. How is that possible?

The Spanish Navy frigate Méndez Núñez is mooring on the West India Dock. The ship dropped anchor the past Friday and it will be in London until tomorrow. The ship is open to the public on Sunday (10:30-12:30 and 16:30-19:30) and Monday (10:30-12:30). The crew is organising a very interesting tour in which you can know everything you want about this ship and the Navy. 

The Méndez Núñez has returned from Scotland, where the ship participated in a NATO joint training exercise. The Joint Warrior was the largest military exercise in Europe with numerous warships, aircraft, marines and troops involved. In total, around 13,000 personnel participated in the practice.

London’s most common second languages tube map

If diversity is wealth these are the ten richest cities in the world: Dubai, Singapore, Hong Kong, San Francisco, Sydney, Paris, Los Angeles, Manchester, London and New York, the city with the largest immigrant population in the world.

Everyone says that London is a multicultural city. But, why? The English capital have 8.308 million residents. In 2011, the 44.9% of the population were White British while the 37% were born outside United Kingdom. For that reason, in the capital it is possible to hear more than 300 different languages.

The traditional fish and chips shares customers with the Bhapaa Aloo, Tandoori chicken, Crepes, Pizza, Paella or Dumplings. In London it is possible to eat and drink anything that you want without the need to travel.

But also, London allows the possibility to get in touch with a big variety of dresses, religions, fashion trends and cultural offers.

If you had the chance to live or visit London during the Olympic Games 2012, you probably noticed that every single one of the competing countries had some representatives communities in the city. 

Indigenous Australia

Simon Hogan, Ian Rictor, Roy Underwood and Lennard Walker.
Spinifex people. Pukara, 2013

The sixth largest country in the world, with 7,617,930 square kilometres, is also a big unknown. Besides having the Great Barrier Reef, Australia is one of the most developed and wealthy countries (in terms of wealth, in 2013 Australia took up the second place in the world ranking after Switzerland). Its quality of life and its health and education systems make this nation one of the most perfect places to live.

The best known part of the Australian history better known started in 1788, when the British colony was established. The first of January, 1901, the six states (New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia) along with the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory formed the Commonwealth of Australia.

Shakespeare in love

Shakespeare in love, a 1998 film, was directed by John Madden and starred by Joseph Fiennes and Gwyneth Paltrow. It was one of the most successful English films of all times. The movie is placed in 1593, a period in which William Shakespeare was suffering from writer's block. It is a story about true love and love about theatre, so bringing it on the stage seemed like a natural fit. 

Last year, it was the 450th anniversary of the birth of the English author, so it was the perfect moment to perform this adaptation. The chosen theatre to bring Shakespeare back to the West End was the Noël Coward. This stage was only about one mile away from where the playwright worked so, probably, he walked pass this theatre many times in his life to get to the Globe Theatre, in Southbank. 

The premier was the 23rd of July of 2014 and today, 18th of April, the curtain dropped for the last time. The play was really fun, from the beginning to the end, with some romance, tears and love. And all of this is possible thank to the work of one of the largest companies ever seen on a play on the West End with 30 performers and a dog.

Harley Street, circa 1890

Harley Street, circa 1890.
Photo by Hulton Archive/ Getty Images

Cheapside, 1890

Cheapside, 1890

Shaun in the city

Everything is possible in London's Spring, even if the weather is a little bit cold. The stress, tourists and pedestrians have to share the city now with the sheeps that came back to the capital for graze. 

From the 28th of March until the 25th of May, London is being taken by 50 giant sculptures of Shaun the Sheep. The animated character, created by Nick Park, is the protagonist of the main public art trail, taking place this year, and all the statues are grazing in green parks and important landmarks. 

Unfortunately, he came alone and his friends Bitzer, the Flock, the Farmer, the Naughty Pigs, Pidsley and Timmy and his mother couldn't walk with him.

Greek art at the British Museum

The ancient Greece spanned from the 9th Century BC until the end of Antiquity, around 600 AD. It was one of the most incredible and prolific civilizations in the History. Greece was the language of Homer, the sculpture of Phidias, the philosophy of Plato and the oratory of Pericles. 

There are just a few preserved artworks from this period. The paintings had weak support and the sculptures, despite they were made with durable materials, were destroyed and the stone and bronze were "recycled" in the Middle Ages.

Perfection, beauty, balance, harmony and technique were their goals and the main themes were gods and mythology, heroes and battles and athletes.

Picadilly Circus, 1948

Picadilly Circus, 23rd July, 1948

Game of Thrones at the Tower of London

We are in March but it looks like "winter is coming".

 The Tower of London is the perfect set to perform a battle, a treason, or a romantic escape. Seven months ago, the artist Paul Cummins symbolized the Flanders battlefields with 888,246 red ceramic poppies placed around the Tower. 

Happy Red Nose Day!

It has been 30 years since Richard Curtis and Lenny Henry founded Comic Relief. Maybe they did not think about the importance of that decision, but nowadays, this British charity has became the major one based in the UK. Thanks to all the hard work, Comic Relief has raised over £950 million in all these years.

How can they do that? Very simple. The Charity has the "Golden Pound Principle". It means that every single penny donated, it is spent on charitable projects. The workers, and costs are covered by private sponsors. So, when you make a contribution, you know that your money is not going to be wasted.

Besides, Comic Relief organises two big biennales. Sport Relief and Red Nose Day. 

Today, and since it was first launched in 1988, is Red Nose Day. Every two years, people have the opportunity to have fun at work, home, school or uni while they help the needed.

Secret Cinema presents Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

It is a dark time for the Rebellion. Although the Death Star has been destroyed, Imperial troops have driven the Rebel forces from their hidden base and pursued them across the galaxy.

Evading the dreaded Imperial Starfleet, a group of freedom fighters led by Luke Skywalker have established a new secret base on the remote ice world of Hoth.

The evil lord Darth Vader, obsessed with finding young Skywalker, has dispatched thousands of remote probes into the far reaches of space....

Michael Jackson's Statue

This glove belongs to Michael Jackson's Statue. The sculpture is 2.3 metres high and it is made of resin and plaster.

Mohamed Al Fayed, who was a friend of the artist, commissioned the figure after Michael's death with the idea of placing it in Harrods. But in 2010, Al Fayed sold the iconic department store to Qatar Holdings for £1.5bn. The Qatari family refused to install the statue in their mall, so Michael Jackson sculpture was finally placed outside Craven Cottage, the Fulham Football Club stadium, on the 3rd of April, 2011.

The acceptation of the statue was very negative but the truth is that, as time went by, it was accepted as an important part of Craven Cottage.

Baileys or Bailey's

Baileys was created by Gilbeys of Ireland and it was introduced to the international market as the first Irish Cream on 1974. The idea was very simple. They put together Irish whiskey, cream and some herbs (obviously the recipe is a secret) and they made a millionaire business.  

Nowadays, the trademark is owned by Diageo, a British multinational. This company is currently the world's largest producer of spirits and one of the major manufacturers of beer and wine. Some of its products are Guinness, Kilkenny, Jonnie Walker, Cardhu, Smirnoff, Gordon's, Captain Morgan or Pimm's.

But, how is Baileys linked to London? Diageo is headquartered in London but this is not the important fact. The name of this alcoholic drink was inspired by the Millennium Bailey's Hotel, a building placed in the 140 Gloucester Road, Kensington. It was established in 1876 and it took its name after its owner, the Member of Parliament Sir James Bailey.

Regent Street, circa 1890

Regent Street, circa 1890
(Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Covent Garden, circa 1890

Covent Garden. c. 1890
(Photo by London Stereoscopic Company / Getty Images)

Chinese New Year

The 19th of February was the Chinese New Year celebration. This means that from now we are living in the Year of the Sheep. This animal is a symbol of peace, harmonious co-existence and tranquility and it is also the representation of the Arts.

The Chinese Zodiac says that babies born this year (or people who were born in 1967, 1979, 1991 or 2003) are clever, polite, kindhearted, wise and indecisive.

Outside Asia, London's Chinese New Year celebrations are the largest. Last week, as every year, thousands of curious joined London's Chinese communities on this festivity. On Sunday, all of them walked along Trafalgar Square and Chinatown, where the main festivities took place.

Pancake Day

It has been a year already, and tomorrow it will be, again, Pancake Day. What does that mean? It means that we need to clear our cupboards and finish up all sugars, fats and eggs because Lent starts on Wednesday. 

There are many different recipes but lemon and sugar pancake is the classic one. If you don't care about the diet try it with banana, strawberries and nutella or berries and vanilla ice cream. Yummy!

If you are going to feel guilty because of the extra calories, you can participate in some of the races that will take place in the capital. Parliamentary Pancake Race will start at 10 o'clock while Bankside Pancake Day Race will begin in Borough Market at 12:30. At the same time, the starting signal at The Great Spitalfields Pancake Race will be happening. The participants will go through Brick Lane wearing fancy dresses and holding their crêpes.

So there are 48 days left before Easter Sunday. Are you ready to chose your Easter Egg?

55 Boadway

Not always the artists and their work are well recognized. The best example from Art History is one of Michelangelo's masterpieces, the Last Judgment. This marvelous fresco, done between 1536 and 1541, was partially modified due to the Council of Trent. Paul III and the Roman Catholic Church had condemned, at that time, nudity in religious art. For that reason, the great mannerist painter Daniele da Volterra, known as Il Braghettone, was hired to cover the genitals of Michelangelo's work.

Coming back to UK, the American-British sculptor Jacob Epstein did some controversial pieces. In London, it is possible to see some of his works like Rush of Green and W.H.Hudson Memorial, both of them placed in Hyde Park, or Ages of Man. But it was on 1929 when censorship and social pressure influenced Epstein's work.

Above the entrance of the London Underground Ltd headquarters, popularly known as 55 Broadway, Epstein designed the sculptures Day and Night. His work was considered controversial and indecent because, according to the censors, the small figure, the Day, had a "big" penis. Epstein agreed to remove from the naked statue one inch and a half. This is the length that the censors thought was acceptable and decent. 

London Underground will move to its headquarters this year and 55 Broadway, placed in St James's Park, will be a residential building. Whatever the case may be, it is still possible to enjoy the interesting front of this building.

The Institute of Sexology

In this photograph, taken in the late 1920s, we can see a nurse next to the Marie Stopes birth control clinic. Marie Charlotte Carmichael Stopes was a British author, palaeobotanist, academic, eugenicist, campaigner for women's rights and pioneer in the field of birth control. 

This picture, property of the Wellcome Library, is part of the exhibition The Institute of Sexology. This unique exposition will be at the Wellcome Collection until the 20th of September, 2015.

'The Institute of Sexology' brings together the pioneers of the study of sex through films, photographs, sculptures, archives and sexual instruments.

Besides this picture of Marie Stopes, the show collects some works and objects from Magnus Hirschfeld, Sigmund Freud, Margaret Mead, Virginia Johnson or Richard von Krafft-Ebing, among others.

Undress your mind and explore how sex was observed and analysed, since the 19th century, from different points of view as perversion, sadomasochism or homosexuality.

Peppa Pig World

A family of pink pigs has captured the hearts of children from UK and all over the world since the first show was aired the 31st of May, 2004. 

This British preschool animated television series teaches our children through activities that Peppa, her family and her friends practise. Besides, in every five minutes episodes, kids can see and enjoy with rabbits, sheeps, cats, dogs, ponies, zebras, elephants, donkeys, foxes, kangaroos, wolves, goats, and pigs, of course. 

Psychologists point that one of Peppa's strenght is that adults and children are able to watch the show together. Dr Jane Herbert, psychologist at Sheffield University, remarks that “Peppa Pig is popular because kids like anything with child voices. It’s got very bright colours with all the pink so they'll like to look at it. Also, children see Peppa Pig down town, in shops and on the television so it's pervasive in their environment.” 

Cheapside, c.1890

The statue of Robert Peel. Cheapside. c.1890.
 (Photo by William England / London Stereoscopic Company / Getty Images)

Did you beat the Blue Monday?

Christmas is over, all the mince pies and puddings are not in the table anymore but on our hips, the weather is horrible, our bank account is not as prosperous as it used to be and it is Monday.

If you felt miserable this morning, don't worry because your were not the only one. Today, and since 2005, is Blue Monday, the most depressing day of the year.

Cliff Arnall identified it as the Monday of the last full week of January. On his research he worked with variables like the weather, debt levels and failed New Year's resolutions. Even if you don't believe in pseudoscience, recent studies show that today people is muddier, sadder and more negative than usual. 

And what is worse, lawyers are calling this day Divorce Monday because it is the most popular day to start with these proceedings.

So, try to spend the day as best as you can and think in positive. Tomorrow it is going to be a better day.

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, the musical

London has the flavours, sounds and laughs of Spanish because Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (known as Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios), the musical, finally started. From the 12th of January until the 9th of May, the Playhouse Theatre is going to be the capital of Spain. 

This fantastic film, directed and written by Pedro Almodóvar in 1988, won five Goya Awards, including the best film. But this crazy story was appreciated not only in Spain, because it also won awards and nominations all around the globe and it put the Spanish director on the international map.

This masterpiece occurs in the 80's. In that moment, Madrid was a city full of colours, music, fun, freedom and "mad people" like all these women.