The weather has cooled somewhat here in London, making it more comfortable. Our recent house renovation has taken up most of my time in the past five weeks, but I aim to press on with my Project Monopoly as much as possible before the days shorten and the temperatures dip. Here are the properties covered so far in the blog:
| No 0 – Introduction | No 4 – The Angel Islington | No 8 – The Three Oranges |
| No 1 – Old Kent Road | No 5 – Euston Road | No 9 – Strand |
| No 2 – Whitechapel Road | No 6 – Pentonville Road | |
| No 3 – King’s Cross Station | No 7 – Three Purples + Marylebone Station |
Each post will follow the same format.
MONOPOLY PROPERTY NUMBER 13: FLEET STREET
(Details of books and maps at the end of the post)
Fleet Street in and of itself is a short road, potentially making this a fleeting (haha) visit. However, if you care to explore legal London then the roads running off Fleet Street lead you to the four historic Inns of Court, the Law Society and the Royal Courts of Justice. You can spot these institutions in the map below.
The four Inns of Court (Gray’s Inn, Lincoln’s Inn, Middle Temple and Inner Temple) are the professional associations for barristers. During my training, all students had to dine 24 times before qualifying (after passing the Bar Exams) as a Barrister. It was a particular custom of Gray’s Inn that the most junior member of hall (i.e. the person sitting in the last seat on the outermost table, closest to the door) had to ask for permission to smoke at the end of dinner.
A smoking ban in England, making it illegal to smoke in all enclosed public spaces and workplaces in England, came into force only in July 2007.
Requesting for permission to smoke was quite farcical. The most senior member of hall would pretend not to hear and when they eventually decided to entertain the request, it was only on condition that the student sing a song, recite a poem or perhaps even do some acrobatic tricks. My memories are hazy on purpose, and I must add that I never once arrived so late as to be in that junior seat. In fact I make it a point never to arrive late for any function, and maybe that was the point of the exercise – to always be in time for a court session to avoid being humiliated.
HOW TO GET HERE
For transport options, Citymapper is invaluable as a tool to get from A to B. I visited Fleet Street when I went to see my dentist in Chancery Lane, taking the tube there.
As a matter if interest, smoking was banned inside all London Underground train carriages from July 1984. Smoking was still permitted on some platforms, however in November 1987 a complete ban on smoking throughout all areas of the underground was enforced following the King’s Cross fire.
ASPECTS OF MY VISIT
Walking along Fleet Street looking at some older-style buildings
The Law Society is located in Chancery Lane, off Fleet Street
Kings’ College London’s (KCL) Maughan Library, also located in Chancery Lane
Middle Temple Lane runs off Fleet Street via a gateway
Exterior of Middle Temple Church
Interior of Middle Temple Church, featured in the Dan Brown novel The Da Vinci Code
Just outside Temple Church is a bronze sculpture atop a stone column. It depicts two knights sharing a single horse, symbolising the early Knights Templar’s vow of poverty, as they were initially too poor to afford a separate horse for each knight. The 10-meter column marks the exact spot where the Great Fire of London was extinguished in 1666.
SOMETHING FOR ANOTHER DAY
Following my happy day at Le Cordon Bleu, I read that LCB has an outpost in Fleet Street where you can take cookery classes, have a pastry/ coffee at the Café and have lunch or dinner at their fine dining restaurant CORD. I would like to visit Dr Johnson’s House and St Bride’s Church (named after St Brigid of Kildare and not on account of it’s multi-tiered steeple that resembles a traditional wedding cake).
MAPS AND BOOKS
London city map 1:10,000 by Freytag & Berndt, ISBN 978-3707924268
No Free Parking: The Curious History of London’s Monopoly Streets by Nicholas Boys Smith, published by John Blake Publishing, ISBN 978-1789465389. See chapter 3 (Fleet Street: From friars to filth).
Do Not Pass Go: From the Old Kent Road to Mayfair by Tim Moore, published by Vintage, ISBN 978-0099433866. See chapter 12 (The Reds).