Described as a "den of beasts", Newgate's women were often victims of circumstance who went on to make new lives after being transported to the colonies.

When Pentonville "Model" Prison opened its doors in 1842 it was a great carceral experiment. One which turned its human guinea pigs insane spending 24 hours a day in total solitary confinement.

The laboratory of 2 Plough Court, hub for Quaker scientists and inventors, and an ancestor to today's Glaxo Smith Kline.

Known for its bad food and its worse atmosphere, the Hotel d'Italie is far from the most famous of Victorian restaurants. But in 1894 it was host to one of the most exciting literary dinners of the century - the launch party for the scandalous and decadent Yellow Book. With everyone from Aubrey Beardsley to W. B. Yeats, it was a night to remember! Listen to find out more ...

The beating heart of the grime scene in the 2000s, star of countless grime videos

The wonderful inventions of John Joseph Merlin, immigrant, instrument maker, and socialite extraordinaire. With a poem about his inventions, to listen to while walking around Hanover Square.

Here, in 1803, was one of the first public demonstrations of high-pressure steam locomotion, by Cornish inventor Richard Trevithick, aka Captain Dick.

In the eighteenth century, Leicester House was transformed to a since-lost museum. Among its curiosities was a stuffed Hippopotamus and objects brought to Britain by the colonist Captain James Cook.

In the wake of plague, Civil Wars and the Great Fire of London, the city became engrossed in the details of a murder in Covent Garden at the end of the seventeenth century.

In 1791, workmen at the Tower of London discovered extensive historical graffiti left by prisoners - including the ill-fated Lady Jane Grey - centuries earlier.