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Originally published in 1905, this work contains a wealth of information on various aspects of the history of London and its buildings. Beautifully illustrated, the author takes the reader on a tour of the buildings that began to vanish from the city at the turn of the 19th century. The following passage is taken from the preface:
'The writer, for many years, has employed his spare time in examining those older portions of London which have now been to a great extent "improved" away; he has visited them again and again, making notes on the spot, with brush and pencil, of picturesque buildings, threatened with destruction. He has also hunted up old documents relating to them, and has carefully checked any statements on the subject by previous writers. The result of what has been to him a labour of love may perhaps have interest, even value, for the public. This must be his excuse for adding to the already long list of publications on old London. The buildings alluded to in this work are widely scattered: they must be looked upon as a selection only of what we are losing, for in no single volume is there space, and no man alone can have had time and energy, to deal with a tithe of the interesting structures, from Mile End to Hammersmith, which either still drag on a precarious existence or have not long passed away. The letterpress is divided into chapters, beginning with the east and south east, progress being made by easy stages to the west, so that what has been written takes more or less the form of an itinerary, but the requirements of the subject make it impossible to follow absolutely any fixed plan.'
Über den Autor / die Autorin
PHILIP NORMAN has an international reputation as a chronicler of pop music and culture. Shout!, his ground-breaking biography of the Beatles, has remained continuously in print, selling more than one million copies, and was recently listed by Waterstones bookshops as one of the 100 best biographies in any genre. He has since written acclaimed books about the Rolling Stones. Elton John, Buddy Holly John Lennon, Mick Jagger, Sir Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton and Jimi Hendrix. Philip is also an award-winning fiction-writer (included among the first Top 20 'Best of Young British Novelists') and a playwright whose works have appeared on BBC2 and Radio 4. He has also written two musicals. Philip currently lives in London.
