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I Never Knew That About London

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I Never Knew That About London

By: Christopher Winn
Narrated by: Timothy Bentinck
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About this listen

Best-selling author Christopher Winn takes us on a captivating journey around London to discover the unknown tales of our capital's history. Travelling through the villages and districts that make up the world's most dynamic metropolis, I Never Knew That About London unearths the hidden gems of legends, firsts, inventions, adventures and birthplaces that shape the city's compelling and at times turbulent past.

See the Chelsea river views that inspired Turner in his final years, and find out where London's first nude statue is. Explore London's finest country house in Charlton, and unearth the secrets of the Mother of Parliaments. Spy out the village that gave its name to a car and the Russian word for railway station. Discover which church steeple gave us the design of the traditional wedding cake, where the sandwich was invented, and where in Bond Street you can see London's oldest artefact. Visit the house where Handel and Jimi Hendrix both lived. Climb the famous 311 steps of the Monument, go from East to West and back again at Greenwich and fly the world's biggest big wheel.

Brimming with facts, stories and snippets providing a spellbinding insight into the history of London, this beautiful listen is guaranteed to inform and amuse in equal measure.

Christopher Winn's first book was the best-selling I Never Knew That About England. A freelance writer and collector of trivia for over 20 years, he has worked with Terry Wogan and Jonathan Ross and sets quiz questions for television as well as for the Daily Mail and the Daily Telegraph.

He is also the associate producer of a TV series by ITV on Great Britain, airing in 2014. His website is http://www.i-never-knew-that.com.

©2007 Christopher Winn (P)2015 Audible, Ltd
Europe Travel Writing & Commentary England Great Britain Middle Ages Royalty Village Tudor

Critic reviews

"A delightful and informative addition to the capital's literary legacy... I Never Knew That About London will not fail to enhance months, even years, of gentle urban exploration.... Any number of morning or weekend outings can be constructed from these rich pages.... Winn's touch is always light, and his knowledge is never overbearing, so the selections and observations remain unfailingly interesting." (Rory MacLean, Guardian Online)
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This is a gem of a book. Seeing the taxi icon, I initially worried that it might be mere pub quiz fodder. However, it's a virtual tour of the city, along the river. There really are fascinating facts every few seconds. Apart from historical events and people there are many fascinating explanations of place names and the origins of popular expressions e.g. at sixes and sevens - no spoilers here.
So frequent were the temptations to rewind that I decided to buy the Kindle version of the book so that I could keep listening and do any 'reference work' later using Kindle's search facility.
To borrow Ian McEwan's phrase, there were so many 'detonations of cognition' that I imagine I'll revisit this book again, either in Audible or Kindle format, but more likely both. I look forward to exploring Christopher Winn's other books.
Timothy Bentinck does a fine job of narrating.

Every few seconds...

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So informative. Well written and very well read. This will increase your enjoyment, next time you visit London.

What a lot you don't know about London.

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I noticed a few errors & I'm not talking about folk who have died since this was published.
For me the biggest was talking about the D-day landings as happening in 1945! There were a few more, but as I don't know all of London's history how many more were there I wonder. Made for a disappointing listen

Errors

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Very, very good. Lots of excellent information but delivered too rapidly for me.
Will need to listen to this many times more.
Reading the book may be a better way to absorb some of the many facts.

Lots of very interesting facts.

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Wonderfully informative, interesting and amusing ~ well narrated too. There is one downside to the audio version which is that I will now have to buy the hardback to give me access to the index ahead of my London walks.

Fact after fact after fact

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