please empty your brain below |
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I was told the secret of the Carting Lane lamp as part of a walking tour of this historic area. As a group we regarded the lamp for a minute or so, then resolved to keep the secret to ourselves. I have not spoken of it since.
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Being so adequately warned, I shan't mention the zebras either.
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Brilliant post. Thanks DG and more please.
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This comment has been redacted.
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Fascinating! I had never heard of this before.
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I'm trying to work out who's annoyed you by referring to it as a 'secret'. Even Atlas Obscura's entry is surprisingly calm.
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this post has a bit of a whiff about it
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Knew about and seen it, but still enjoyed your post
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Finally DG has become the clickbait site we all knew it would be.
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I was beginning to miss Londonist. Thanks DG!
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I think we all know the Carting Lane street lamp is powered by ***redacted***.
The secrets now out Mr. Geezer |
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Far too much info, methinks. Do you have insurance?
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I first learned about the Carting Lane lamp in Geoffrey Fletcher's 'The London Nobody Knows' published in the early 1960s - well worth tracking down. Like the Carting Lane lamp, many of the other places and things Fletcher documented, expecting them to be swept away by modernisation, remain.
A few years ago I attempted to track down all the remaining places he drew for the book - my Flickr set of them is here (since then, sadly the Limehouse funeral directors is no more) |
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I must admit I had to resort to Mr Google to find the 'secret'. Must have walked past it many time but never noticed...
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A couple of years ago I was explaining the secret to a friend and within a short time had a little group of tourists gathered round while I continued with a brief lecture on London's Victorian infrastructure.
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...and I should have added - great post, DG. thanks for prodding several memories to the surface.
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It is sad that a row of them have been removed from the West End. They lasted until at least 2012.
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I know it's been a trying year DG - for all of us - but now is not the time to lose it.
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These can also be seen in Winchester and Whitley Bay.
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Even more astounding is, there's not a bit of litter, or rubbish bag in sight.
So nice that it's really worth a mention. |
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Nice. Build the tension and then the denouement.
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Pedants would undoubtedly say that the thoroughfare is Strand, and doesn't, nay shouldn't, need the definite article. The reference quotes Whitehall as another example of a single-word street name where the definite article isn't required. I blame Burlington Bertie!
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My initial thoughts until I read to the end of the post were also very Londonist related - a site I have deliberately chosen to avoid for a long time now. As always though, an excellent DG-style post.
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Nice! I have walked up and down Carting Lane many times but never noticed this - or if I did, I've since forgotten!
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Really enjoy this sort of secret post.
Thanks very much. |
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It must be another entrance to Churchill's Secret Bunker (tickets £22-£28 for a virtual tour)
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I've walked up and down there loads of times. Wish I knew!
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Ah yes, that lamp.
It is an interesting lamp. |
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More pub quiz trivia- the Savoy Theatre was the first public building in the world to be lit entirely by electricity. There's a plaque near the lamp.
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A visit to Whitley Bay has much to offer, not least if you are intrigued by JE Webb's lamps. Of 17 erected between 1900 and 1910 ten remain. All now listed.
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there is a bloke on YouTube who walks around London and his videos have titles like "unseen London "hidden London" etc , annoys me a bit
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I stumbled upon this lamp through a notification from the much-missed Google/Niantic app 'Field Trip', which would alert you to interesting things you happened to be passing.
Such a shame it's gone. |
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Carting Lane? Farting Lane, more like. Or is that giving too much away?
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Amazing post. Thanks for this post I really enjoy this more, please.
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