Secret history
you will spy its name visible on the wall beneath.
This was Little Compton Street which connected Old Compton Street to New Compton Street.
When Charing Cross Road was built in 1896, Little Compton Street disappeared.
A barbers in Leadenhall Market, is the door to an ancient Roman world below ground.
For in the basement of Nicholson & Griffin are the remains of a Roman basilica, used for justice and as a meeting place.
It would have been massive – it was originally built in AD70 followed by an extension took about 30 years to complete, covered two hectares of land, was three storeys high and one of the largest construction projects north of the Alps.
Of course, you can’t just wander into the basement for a look but while you’re having a haircut or browsing the market, spare a moment to think about the world that once existed on this spot.
Between Hyde Park Corner and Green Park stations, Down Street was a tube station from 1907 to 1932.
Seemingly insignificant to travellers, it took on a vital role in the Second World War when it secretly became the Railway Executive Committee’s bombproof headquarters.
Here in the warren of narrow tunnels the nation’s railways were co-ordinated.
What’s more, Winston Churchill secretly took refuge here at the height of the Blitz.
The London Transport Museum runs tours to Down Street station as part of its Hidden London events. Find out more at: www.ltmuseum.co.uk
If you walk through Trafalgar Square you might pass an attractive street light on top of a circular stone stand in the southeast corner. This is actually what has been dubbed Britain’s Smallest Police Box
It’s not a Doctor Who Tardis-style police box – www.historic-uk.com tells us it was built in 1926 inside an ornamental light that was hollowed out.
Windows and a phone to Scotland Yard were installed and whenever the phone was picked up, the light on top of the box started to flash, according to the history website Historic UK, which also informs us that today it is a broom cupboard for council cleaners.
The Great Fire of London of 1666 destroyed all but a handful of buildings. But you can drink to one of survivors, The Olde Wine Shades.
The ancient building is said to be the oldest bar in the city and have the oldest brick vaults in London down in its cellar. It was originally a merchants’ house and it is believed smugglers used the old tunnel to the river from the cellars.
Apparently, Charles Dickens used to frequent the watering hole and there are many of his works on the walls.
The Shard might tower over it now, but back in 1929, when it was first unveiled, 55 Broadway was Britain’s first skyscraper.
It was considered radical and offensive at the time – today the Grade I listed building is revered as an Art Deco treasure.
The London Transport Museum runs tours of the block that was once the headquarters of the ‘Underground Group’.
Find out more at www.ltmuseum.co.uk