The Metropolis

From the files of the Londonist for June

Darren Atwater | Tuesday 21 June, 2011 14:50

The print edition of Snipe has been featuring some of the best of London-obsessed site, the Londonist. Here’s what interested co-editor M@tt Brown in June.

Where’s the Centre of London?

Estate agents are trying to rebrand the Holborn area as ‘Midtown’. We hope it’s a futile mission. Although Holborn is undoubtedly ‘mid’, sandwiched between the ancient City and the tourist’s West End, the term is far too generic to gain popular support.

But where is the real ‘mid-town’? Where is the centre of London?

Traditionally, that place is just south of Trafalgar Square. Most signs take their measure from the statue of Charles I. This well-weathered landmark stands on the spot previously occupied by the Charing Cross (a Victorian pastiche of which can now be found outside the station of same name). Before that, and since Roman times, a sorry piece of rock in Cannon Street known as London Stone was at the heart of our city.

There’s a more scientific way to find the centre of London, however. Take a map of the entire Greater London area. Cut it out and paste it onto card. Then, locate the point on the cut-out where the map can be balanced on the head of a pin. This is its centre of gravity. Turns out, the middle of London, by this method, is in Lambeth, not far from the Imperial War Museum. We always thought South London was the real heart of the capital.

PLUS

Ten London Stations Named After Birds
City of Moats
How Many Nipples Are There In Our City’s Galleries?
London’s Best Pub Signs: The Three Kings
How to Destroy The City

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