We've been threatening this one for a while, gang! Here is the unedited history of Titus Oates, and who exactly is he? Is he a brave, whistleblowing legend, or a deluded fantasist who is about to put his foot in it? Come with us to find out more And podcast pedestal returns! After overwhelming support, the pedestal makes a comeback, and you get to tell us what you think is the most important part of the story. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A week late to Trans Visibility Day, but that is on brand for us! This week's episode is all about the Chevalier d'Eon, spy to King Louis XV, and all round enigma! Were they trans? They lived as both man and woman in both France and England over many years. What weird stipulation did the King make in a deal with the Chevalier and why? We delve into this story, surrounded by myth and mystery to try and figure out what is what from the story of this fascinating person. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It is time. We've been threatening it for a year, so let's get down and dirty with the City of London livery companies! I know, I know, it's hard to contain your excitement. Fiona gets into an A-Z of livery companies, everything you never knew you wanted to know, and we find out why the loving cup is a thing, whether the Upholders really make bras, and why oh why is a demi-virgin so named. All the chat with all* the stats *some of the stats, most of it inaccurate. WELCOME! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's us, but different! We come to you LIVE, recorded last week at the Wanstead tap in east London. There are few audio teething issues at the start, but bear with, as it does come together! We had the great pleasure of talking to the lovely Leo Hollis, author of Inheritance - the tragedy of Mary Davies, and what a story it is! A little-discussed but very influential woman, Mary inherited swathes of London which would later become Mayfair, and then nearly lost it all after an event that took place in a hotel in Paris became the subject of a court case, amidst stories of duplicity, co-ersion and unscrupulous people in her inner circle. To find out more, join us to listen! Copies of Leo's books can be found at your local bookshop - it is well worth a read. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

TRIGGER WARNING - contains themes of murder and violence against women. It's the return of Katie from Look Up London! Twice in one month, aren't we lucky?! Katie joins us to talk about some of the women involved in the famous case of the 19thC serial killer known as Jack the Ripper. But we are not focusing on him and his action. We are focusing on the women - who were they? What are their stories? Is everything we think we know about them entirely accurate? Katie is here to dispel some myths and give the women the recognition they deserve. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We're on site this week at the new, fantastic exhibition of Women of the RNLI at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, celebrating the 200th anniversary of the RNLI. We talk to former Tower lifeboat station manager Janet, archivist Hayley Whiting, and photographer Jack Lowe about his amazing project to photograph every single lifeboat station in the UK. Join us as we find out more about this wonderful institution and Jack's fascinating project. The exhibition was curated by Royal Museums Greenwich’s Laura Boon, Lloyd's Register Foundation Senior Curator: Contemporary Maritime and Aimee Mook, Assistant Curator of Contemporary Maritime Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's International Women's Day! So we have invited back one of our regular guests, Katie Wignall, to help us talk about 3 fabulous London women. Bella Burge - boxing impresario Mary Somerville - the first scientist Ada Coleman - one of the best bartenders who ever lived. And it wouldn't be us without having a competition about who is the best! Take a look at our socials to have your say. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's the first of your podcast picks, and the winner was Elizabeth Fry, the angel of Newgate. Shocked by the abject conditions she found in the most notorious of prisons, Newgate, she put her whole life on hold to try and improve the situation for the women imprisoned there. If she could make even one person's experience better, then it would be worth it. She achieved that, and so much more. Come with us as we delve into this woman's fascinating life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Londoners will tell you that London Bridge was once sold to a man who thought he was buying Tower Bridge. That man was Robert Paxton McCulloch, who in 1964 bought London Bridge and had it shipped to Arizona. But did he really think he was buying Tower Bridge, or is that just a fantastical myth spun for a bit of a laugh? This week we delve into the story of how one of London's most famous landmarks ended up across the sea in the United States, what record it set when it went there, and why - WHY - was it even sold in the first place? Find out this week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Well gang, we've been threatening this one for a while. And you know what happens when we threaten a topic? Yes, we get round to it after about 3 years. Don't say we never treat you. This week we are FINALLY getting round to chatting all things Great Exhibition. From Tempest Prognosticators to naked statues in tents, huge chunks of gold and coal, and a glass atrium that welcomed 6 million people over the course of 6 months, there's a lot of stuff to chat about. Plus we find out how it impacted London in the ensuing years. Strap in, lads, it's going to get exciting! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

LONDON IS BEING INVADED BY DRAGONS! Well, they mostly have been here for a while, and almost all of them are made of stone, but let's not let that get in the way of a good headline. Fiona's off on the hunt of some of London's most fearsome dragons this week, with a sprinkling of St George, a dash of Chinese New Year, and a boundary marker or two for good measure. How many can you spot around London? Dedicated to Fraggle, the bestest dragon there ever was. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Inspired by Emily's episode from last week, Alex is going back to an old favourite, the story of Dorothy Lawrence, the woman who, in WW1, set off to war-torn France armed with nothing but a notebook and a bicycle. Her aim? To get to the front and be the only female war correspondent, and jump start her journalism career. Will she make it? Come and find out! TRIGGER WARNING - some discussion of sexual abuse. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Our guest this week is the lovely Emily Laurence Baker, fellow Blue Badge Tourist Guide and champion of women's history. So it is only right that we get her to talk about one of her favourite women, Kit Cavanagh. Kit was one of those women we love - fearless and determined, who decides to go incognito into a man's world! When her husband disappears, she decides to enlist in the army - disguised as a man of course - to go off and find him. Will she find him? And if she does, what then? Will she be discovered? So many questions! Find out the answers on this week's episode! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

WARNING - discussion of the Georgian sex trade in this episode The marvellous Moll King is the subject of this week's episode - a wonderful businesswoman in the 1700s, who skirted the line of the law with loopholes and cunning. From growing up in Covent Garden and learning the lay of the land, Moll met her husband Tom King, and together they established one of the most famous - and infamous - watering holes on Covent Garden piazza. We find out how this enterprising woman skirted around the edge of the Georgian sex trade, and how she survived despite her husband's early death. Come and find out all about this legend of Georgian London. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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London calling! Have you even visited London if you haven't stood in a queue to have your photo taken in a classic red heritage phone box? This week we chat all things phones - from the first phone call made, to where you can find little cherubs on the phone on some London buildings! Why are phone boxes red? What exactly IS a K2? And how can you spot them and tell them apart from other types? We answer all your London-based phone questions on this week's episode. Enjoy! Get in touch! - ladieswholondon@gmail.com Check out the show notes - https://www.ladieswholondon.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Happy New Year! We are starting the year off strong with the tale of a London eccentric, William Reginald Bray. Known as the 'postal prankster', Bray took it upon himself to test the (then) newly formed postal service by sending ever wackier things through the post, culminating in having himself delivered by the postman! It is a story almost too mad to be true, but we have the photos and the postcards to prove it! Over his lifetime he sent thousands of items, and requested somewhere in the region of 36,000 autographs through the post. There are a few notable people who turned him down...including one who is probably for the best. Find out all about him on this week's episode. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Happy Christmas, folks! It's time to open up the grotto again for this year and welcome back one of the friends of the pod, Mr Lee Ingleby. We take a look at some festive traditions, and where they all come from. Dead birds and hares on bicycles, anyone?! See you in 2024! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Picture this - you are dug into the trenches in France during WW1, and suddenly a red double decker with a Tetley's tea advert trundles past. OK, we are being dramatic, but a large number of Transport for London's buses and drivers were shipped over to the continent during WW1. What happened to them? Did they come home?! And what happened in London in the absence of all these essential parts of London's infrastructure? Who will step into this role? Fiona takes on the mantle this week talking all about this little discussed part of the war effort. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We are joined by a friend of the pod this week, our tame black cab driver, Ollie, for a deep dive into the iconic mode of London transport. We're going to rewind further than you might think to get to the origins of the hackney carriage, the little black cabs with their orange light punctuating the dark nights. Hop in, let's get going! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices