What do you do if you first and second treasonous plots are foiled? No matter - go for a third, but this time, make it a doozy. We're back on a treasonous footing this week - it's a theme! We are heading to the Tower of London to find out about one of the most audacious plots in English history - Colonel Blood's attempt to steal the crown jewels from one of the most highly guarded and secure places in the world. No biggie. We find out why Blood is not to be trusted at any time, and how sheer coi...
Jun 07, 2023•56 min•Ep 141•Transcript available on Metacast In a small hayloft in Marylebone, a daring plot was formed. This plot was so audacious and terrifying that it could never really happen. Could it? Against a backdrop of feverish political unrest and suppression of radical thought in 1820, a group of men intent on reform decide to take matters into their own hands. What they are planning to do is unthinkable, but - to them - necessary. The idea - murder the entire Cabinet and tip the country into revolution. Is fate on their side? How are they go...
May 30, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Ep 140•Transcript available on Metacast It's Fiona's week to chat about one of her guide crushes, the polymath Robert Hooke. Is he everything he is cracked up to be? Or is there trouble afoot? We delve into one of the lesser known contemporaries of Christopher Wren, and find out why he is overlooked more often than not. Why does he not get the headlines that Wren does? And why do we need to proceed with caution on his story? Find out in this week's episode. Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com/post/ep-139-dr-robert-hooke for more inf...
May 24, 2023•58 min•Ep 139•Transcript available on Metacast Mid-may sees the anniversary of the downfall one of the most famous queens of England - Anne Boleyn. 2nd wife to Henry VIII, the story of her fall from grace is as shocking now as then. Accompanied by our guest Phillippa from British History Tours, we take a look at the details of this tragic execution - the speed at which it happened, the machinations and pre-judgement, and what may and may not be true from the story of her end. Join us to find out more. Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com/ f...
May 16, 2023•2 hr 31 min•Ep 138•Transcript available on Metacast We're joined this week by the lovely Adam Scott-Goulding, otherwise known as the Music Man for a romp around London's musical legacies. From the rock n roll of Soho to the classical Kensington, Adam joins us to talk a bit about why London is such a hub for music. Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com/ for more information on this week’s episode. Find Adam at https://www.instagram.com/adamlondonguide/ Get in touch! Instagram; @ladieswholondonpodcast Email; ladieswholondon@gmail.com Websites; www....
May 09, 2023•1 hr 1 min•Ep 137•Transcript available on Metacast Oooh, it's an epic one this week, gang. Get comfy, go on a longer walk than usual, hydrate - we are going to get through it together! We are barrelling towards the coronation, so Fiona and Alex are taking the opportunity to demystify it for you. What do all the robes and bits and pieces mean? Who is doing what and why? Take a listen, and then use it to impress your friends and family on the day! Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com for more information on this week’s episode. Get in touch! Inst...
May 05, 2023•2 hr 38 min•Ep 136•Transcript available on Metacast Let's prise open the lid on the royal treasure chest for the first of our coronation specials, with guest Viv Haxby, making her bling predictions! Viv is our resident royal watcher, and she avidly follows the private jewels, their meaning and when they are worn and by whom. This week she will talk us through her predictions on who will wear what and why, ahead of the coronation in about 10 days time. Why will some pieces be rejected, and others changed? Is this really the reduse reuse recycle co...
Apr 26, 2023•1 hr 5 min•Ep 135•Transcript available on Metacast It's up, up and away this week with one of aviation's most famous pioneers, the record breaking Amy Johnson. Her death is shrouded in mystery but her legacy is impressive and enduring. Travel with us from Hull to Cricklewood, then on to Australia, Moscow and the south coast of England as we trace the footsteps of Amy Johnson. Along the way we will meet her great love, Jason, as well as her husband Jim (!) and we will wave a fond goodbye to her over the seas of Kent. Come and discover this fascin...
Apr 19, 2023•52 min•Ep 134•Transcript available on Metacast It's the 17thC, and rogues and thieves are rife in London. None as famed or as intriguing as Moll Cutpurse, a legend among women for her law-breaking ways, scandalous pursuits, and unique character. From a young life of crime, Moll quickly became the stuff of legends. It is almost as though she herself could never live up to the many and varied stories about her - from dressing in men's clothes and smoking a pipe, to appearing on stage full of swear words and lascivious chat, to being a 'fence' ...
Apr 11, 2023•1 hr 10 min•Ep 133•Transcript available on Metacast Art galore today as Fiona ( going solo, eek!) chats to Liz Scott, curator of the Big City Exhibition at the Guildhall Art Gallery, and, featured artist, David Hepher. The good folk at the gallery have had a rummage and put some of their biggest works on display in this fabulous exhibition devoted to large depictions of London and Londoners. Be they the grand guests of Queen Elizabeth's coronation lunch, or the person crossing the road near the Barbican. Or perhaps they live, just out of sight, b...
Apr 04, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Ep 132•Transcript available on Metacast Alex and Fiona go outdoors to bring you all the action from the City of London's Shrove Tuesday event - The Inter Livery Pancake race. We mingle with the crowds and the participants at the annual contest, in which teams from Livery Companies race up and down the Guildhall yard clutching frying pans and hats, tossing pancakes as they go. And then have lunch. Some folks were taking it all very seriously, some were mostly there for the lunch. And, like many City of London events, it was all in a ve...
Mar 28, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Ep 131•Transcript available on Metacast In the heart of Covent Garden was a WW1 endeavour by some formidable women who wouldn't take no for an answer. Meet Flora Murray and Louisa Garrett Anderson, pioneers of opportunities for female doctors at the start of the 1900s. During WW1 they took the initiative to create a war hospital staffed almost exclusively by women, which was eye opening for the men being treated there as they came back from the front. We are joined by the lovely Katie Wignall of Look Up London, who talks us through th...
Mar 22, 2023•1 hr 12 min•Ep 130•Transcript available on Metacast It's new co-host time! Come and welcome our new Lady Who Londons into out little podcasting family! Join me - Alex - and for her first time in an official capacity, Fiona Lukas! We still miss Emily, and Fiona has big boots to fill, but we are starting out strongly with a look at the curious and bonkers world of theatre licensing, or 'when they banned the boob' (and other less obvious stuff!) How does the Lord Chamberlain (of all people!) link into what happens on London's famous stages? Find out...
Mar 15, 2023•56 min•Ep 128•Transcript available on Metacast Come check out Dick - was he everything we were led to believe?! Thrice Lord Mayor of London? Surely not... We talk about Dick Whittington in pantomimes and stories, and we think we know him. How much of it is true? Join me and my guest Simon Whitehouse to find out if any of it is accurate! Find Simon - on Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/bluebadgesimon Although good luck ever getting him to respond to you!! He's so busy! Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com for more information. Get in to...
Mar 08, 2023•57 min•Ep 128•Transcript available on Metacast What do the east Londoners do when bombs are falling? Well, they read, of course. We welcome author Kate Thompson to the podcast to talk all about the secret library made by enterprising Londoners. We find out who they were (bring on Minxie, Pat and Mrs Chumbley!) and how the library came to be. Kate interviewed some of the people who were involved in the library and Bethnal Green tube station, and has created their stories into her new book, The Little Wartime Library. You can find Kate; Websit...
Mar 01, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Ep 127•Transcript available on Metacast Let's talk about the London we don't see - Saxon London. Why? It's all gone! Or has it? What did the Saxons ever do for us? Except city planning, roads, governance, knightly endeavours, urbexing and so on... there's a riot of stuff happening in sexy* Saxon London, and we're here to figure out what that was. Find out more with this week's guest, fellow Blue Badge Guide Fiona Lukas *cannot prove it was sexy, soz. Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com for more information. Get in touch! Instagram; ...
Feb 22, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Ep 126•Transcript available on Metacast Joined by Beverley Cook of the Museum of London, we delve into the long, murky, often intriguing history of executions in London. Enter at your peril! As ever, we look at the people, places and events that surround the executions, and see how they became a public fixture in London's calendar. Brits are an enterprising bunch, and that is no different here, with people making money from the spectacle and pageantry of an execution day. Why were executioners allowed to keep the rope? Who was Mother ...
Feb 15, 2023•1 hr 6 min•Ep 125•Transcript available on Metacast It's been a while since we looked at A MAN on the podcast, so let's take a look at the ugliest man in England, member of one of the (supposedly) raunchiest clubs, and revolutionary reformer. John Wilkes was both a champion of liberty and a much hated politician - usually from within his own government! But what brought him there, and what was this mysterious Hellfire club that he belonged to? Hold on to your hats, we're getting down and dirty with John Wilkes! Learn more about your ad choices. V...
Feb 09, 2023•42 min•Ep 123•Transcript available on Metacast Journey with me back to the stews and brothels of medieval Southwark, where the church rules the roost, and the geese enjoy their protection. But what happens when the geese are no longer needed? You guessed it - the bishops turn their backs. It's the first episode since Emily left, so Alex is at the helm all on her own, taking you to one of her favourite stomping grounds to discover exactly who the Winchester Geese were. Why are the Bishops of Winchester even tarting around in London?! What are...
Feb 01, 2023•46 min•Ep 123•Transcript available on Metacast It's time. None of us are ready, but it's happening. Emily is heading away, so join us for a one-off episode to say farewell to our favourite Lady Who Londons. NB - if this is your first time of joining us, maybe don't start with this episode!! Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com for the show notes to each episode. Also come and join Emily at www.instagram.com/artspoken.uk Get in touch! Instagram; @ladieswholondonpodcast Email; ladieswholondon@gmail.com Websites; www.ladieswholondon.com www.gu...
Jan 25, 2023•1 hr 9 min•Ep 122•Transcript available on Metacast Emily takes a look at her favourite Turbine Hall installations in her penultimate episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jan 18, 2023•1 hr 7 min•Ep 121•Transcript available on Metacast A rare royal for us, we are taking a look at the exciting, unusual, sexy Queen Caroline - how she broke the mould and shaped her own future. Left in a pretty sorry state by her parents, Caroline needed to think smart to escape. Fiercely intelligent, savvy and ambitious, her life reads like a soap opera, with family feuds, peacekeeping and very exciting friendships with some of the most interesting members of society. Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com Get in touch! Instagram; @ladieswholondon...
Jan 11, 2023•1 hr 4 min•Ep 120•Transcript available on Metacast Octavia Hill is one of the heroes of Victorian philanthropy, with a legacy that is huge even today. Find out why you will have heard of her achievements in the modern day, and explore her history with us. Plus there is big news on the podcast, with changes ahead. What's happening? Find out more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Jan 04, 2023•47 min•Ep 119•Transcript available on Metacast Get your Dickens out, it's time to get Christmassy! Welcome to our little grotto, curl up by the fire and welcome this week's guest, Simon Whitehouse. Find out more about The Man That Made Christmas, and why we associate him so heavily with the festive period. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 22, 2022•53 min•Ep 118•Transcript available on Metacast Can you imagine London being underwater? Well that's pretty much what happened in the shocking flood of 1928. After a freezing December, London was overwhelmed with water, flooding huge swathes of the city and famous landmarks like the Tower of London, and forcing the government to think of ways to protect London from high tides. How did London deal with this flood? What was the legacy of the flood and clean-up operation? Find out more here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices...
Dec 15, 2022•47 min•Ep 117•Transcript available on Metacast Move aside MayFair, there's a better fair in town, with blindfolded pigs, wife selling, and glass wigs, oh my! Enjoy 700 years of history of one of the greatest fairs in London's history, which started with a cloth market and grew over centuries. Which famous execution fits into the fair's history? How does a ghostly monk feature? And what exactly is a Pie-powder? Find out on this week's episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Dec 07, 2022•47 min•Ep 116•Transcript available on Metacast Welcome to the Wellcome! The medicine man will see you now, and will probably show you something interesting too… Grab your tabloids (eh?!) and buckle up for some weird and wonderful medical stuff. Where did Henry Wellcome come from? What is his lasting and very famous legacy? Find out on this week’s podcast! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nov 30, 2022•55 min•Ep 115•Transcript available on Metacast Travel with us to 19thC Old Nichol slum, to meet the inhabitants, and find out who Dicky Perrott is, and why he helped bring about huge changes in the area. Emily and Alex are off to visit one of the most dangerous places in East London in the 19thC, and find out what it was like and how changes came about through the publication of a crucial book. What will happen to poor Dicky Perrott?! Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com Get in touch! Instagram; @ladieswholondonpodcast Email; ladieswholondo...
Nov 23, 2022•54 min•Ep 114•Transcript available on Metacast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Nov 16, 2022•47 min•Transcript available on Metacast When history gets weird - what exactly did a whipping boy do? Was a tosher really a job? And what was a necessary woman? This week as Emily is indisposed, Alex is joined by Fiona Lukas again, who brings her own lovely brand of random information to our pod. Visit https://www.ladieswholondon.com Get in touch! Instagram; @ladieswholondonpodcast Email; ladieswholondon@gmail.com Websites; www.ladieswholondon.com www.guideemily.com and www.alexlacey.com/podcast where you can also book for our virtual...
Nov 09, 2022•54 min•Ep 112•Transcript available on Metacast 
