The London Daily Newsletter Monday 12 December

On 12 December 1901, Guglielmo Marconi received the first trans-Atlantic radio signal in St. John’s, Newfoundland (now in Canada) using a 400-foot kite-supported antenna for reception. The transmitting station in Poldhu, Cornwall used a spark-gap transmitter to produce a signal with a frequency of approximately 500kHz and a power of 100 times more than any radio signal previously produced. The message received was three dots, the Morse code for the letter S. To reach Newfoundland the signal bounced off the ionosphere twice.

Knockholt
Knockholt station is two miles from the village of the same name.

Knockholt itself is split into two areas, [[3982|Knockholt village]] and [[3993|Knockholt Pound]]. The unusual distance of the station from the village is due to a potential name confusion with Halstead in Essex – the nearest village to the station is Halstead, Kent. Hence the railway company deciding to name it unusually. Hayes, Kent (Hayes, Middlesex) and Farnborough, Kent (Farnborough, Hampstead) have caused equal confusion over the years but this didn’t seem to matter so much. Knockholt is also rather unusual in that it spent from 1965 to 1969 within the boundary of Greater London but a local petition successfully moved the area back into Kent. Knockholt inspired local resident Edith Nesbitt to set her children’s classic The Railway Children here. The station dates from 1876 when it was opened as ’Halstead for Knockholt’, being renamed simply ’Knockholt’ on 1 October 1900. Between 1887 and 1915, a twice daily bus service operated between Knockholt village and the station.

Video: Oyster
Getting around London with Oyster

TUM Dine With Me: Newman Arms
The Newman Arms has been a Fitzrovia fixture for centuries.

The Newman Arms is situated at 23 Rathbone Street and was built in 1730. This building has had many functions since that year from housing a tallow chandler, an ironmonger, a picture framers and finally became a brothel. In 1860, the tavern was established and, for the first 100 years, it only possessed a beer licence. The pub has always attracted interesting and colourful characters who enjoyed drinking in the area. George Orwell and Dylan Thomas among other literary masters were regular visitors to the Newman Arms. The pub has also appeared in many films and television productions such as Peeping Tom, Minder, The Bill, Alas Smith and Jones and Da Ali G Show. For a long time, the speciality at the Newman Arms restaurant has been home-baked pies. Every day, seven pies on the menu alongside a variety of specials that change seasonally. The pub has been voted at one of the top 100 pubs according to Time Out magazine.