109-631: Tarney/Spencer Band were a rock band formed in London in 1975 with Trevor Spencer on drums and Alan Tarney on lead guitar, bass guitar and lead vocals. Both had been in Australian bands, including James Taylor Move , prior to relocating to the United Kingdom, where they formed the duo. The group issued three albums, Tarney and Spencer (1976), Three's a Crowd (1978) and Run for Your Life (1979). Their single, " No Time to Lose " (1979), received airplay in
218-468: A Bronze Age bridge were found on the south River Thames foreshore, upstream from Vauxhall Bridge . Two of the timbers were radiocarbon dated to 1750–1285 BC. In 2010, foundations of a large timber structure, dated to 4800–4500 BC, were found on the Thames' south foreshore downstream from Vauxhall Bridge. Both structures are on the south bank of the Thames, where the now-underground River Effra flows into
327-956: A British blues rock & pop band that has released 22 albums. " Couldn't Get It Right " reached No. 10 on the UK Singles Chart and No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1977. " I Love You " peaked on the Billboard chart at No. 12 in 1981. The band were formed in Stafford , Staffordshire , England in 1967 by vocalist, saxophonist, guitarist and harmonica player Colin Cooper (1939–2008), guitarist, bassist and vocalist Pete Haycock (1951–2013), guitarist Derek Holt (b. 1949), bassist and keyboardist Richard Jones (b. 1949), drummer George Newsome (b. 1947) and keyboardist Arthur Wood (1929–2005). Holt tells of their formation: "When I left school, I went to work in
436-488: A decade, until 1982, comprising Colin Cooper (saxes, harmonica, clarinet, rhythm guitar and vocals), Peter Haycock (guitars, bass and vocals), Derek Holt (bass, keyboards and vocals) and John Cuffley (drums, percussion). The group was signed to Sire Records , distributed by Polydor , and albums issued in the 1970s saw them moving away from the blues somewhat to also incorporate funk and album-oriented rock (AOR) influences. Their 70s albums include: FM/Live (October 1973),
545-560: A double set recorded at a July 1, 1973 concert at the Academy of Music in New York, and the studio LPs Sense of Direction (May 1974), Stamp Album (August 1975) and Gold Plated (September 1976), featuring the 1977 hit single " Couldn't Get It Right ". The latter two albums were handled through their manager Miles Copeland 's BTM label in the UK. But Copeland and the band would sever ties by 1977 and
654-660: A jazz group and relocated to the United Kingdom in the following year. In 1969, Terry Britten (ex-the Hurricanes, The Twilights , when living in Adelaide) joined the trio on guitar, in London, to form Quartet, which released two singles, "Now" (December 1969) and "Joseph" (May 1970) on the Decca label and recorded a 13-track unreleased album. The group disbanded later that year. In 1973 Britten, Spencer, Tarney and Australian-born John Farrar (ex-
763-529: A larger area, similar in size to Greater London, although some outer districts are excluded and some just outside included. The Greater London boundary has been aligned to the M25 motorway in places. Further urban expansion is now prevented by the Metropolitan Green Belt , although the built-up area extends beyond the boundary in places, producing a separately defined Greater London Urban Area . Beyond this
872-405: A little studio set up. When I say little, I mean one corner of a bedroom with a Fender Rhodes electric piano, a 4-track recorder, a very small drum kit, a few guitars and one microphone. I remember one night just going in there, I sat down at the piano, set the recorder and just started playing the intro and chords to "I Love You". I wrote the whole structure of the song in a couple of takes including
981-485: A local grinding wheel factory as a laboratory assistant and attending college for a degree in Chemistry. Colin Cooper also worked there as a metallurgist, so that's how we met. He had already discovered a young Peter Haycock and had wanted to put a blues band together. He was already gigging with a jazz band on clarinet. We started doing local gigs with local drummer George Newsome and a keyboard player named Arthur Wood, who at
1090-475: A lot of people fell in love because of it. I get emails all the time from people who actually got married because of it, even having it played as their "first dance" at their reception." In 1981 the band was thinking of replacing Peter Filleul with a different keyboardist. But after that fell through, Filleul was hired back for a spring 1981 European tour but departed at the tour's conclusion that May. The band, once more with producer John Ryan, continued pursuing
1199-412: A meeting to discuss starting to have songwriting credit split separately. I lost the argument to keep it all the same as before and ended up gaining 100% of my own song. Ironic! When the song became a hit (also it was the start of me then becoming a lead singer which worried the others), we had a major U.S. tour booked but both Colin and Pete didn't want to "go on the road to promote my career". So even with
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#17330850408881308-533: A pop-rock direction on their next album Lucky for Some (September 1981). That same year Climax's manager Tony Brinsley, who had managed them since 1977 after taking the reins from Miles Copeland, was suddenly let go in favor of Phil Banfield, who helped extricate them from Warners and got them signed to Virgin Records , where he had more influence. Unhappy with Brinsley's termination and disillusioned with Cooper and Haycock's total lack of enthusiasm for "I Love You" and
1417-576: A pop-rock sound on their next album, Flying the Flag (September 1980), and its first single "Gotta Have More Love" dented the US charts at #47. By now, the band were appearing directly on the Warner Bros. label after it had completely absorbed Sire Records. Holt tells of the album's genesis: "This was at the time when we had a six album deal with Warner Brothers. Everyone was writing songs to try and get theirs on. I had
1526-403: A population density of 802 per acre (325 per hectare). In addition to the growing number of stores selling goods, such as Harding, Howell & Co. —one of the first department stores —located on Pall Mall , the streets had scores of street sellers . London's overcrowded conditions led to cholera epidemics, claiming 14,000 lives in 1848, and 6,000 in 1866. Rising traffic congestion led to
1635-549: A population of 7,172,036 in 2001 and a population density of 11,760 inhabitants per square mile (4,542/km ). The extended area known as the London Metropolitan Region or the London Metropolitan Agglomeration, comprises a total area of 3,236 square miles (8,382 km ) has a population of 13,709,000 and a population density of 3,900 inhabitants per square mile (1,510/km ). Modern London stands on
1744-564: A post- Brexit exodus of stock listings from the London Stock Exchange , London remains a European economic powerhouse, and one of the world's major financial centres . It hosts Europe's largest concentration of higher education institutions , some of which are the highest-ranked academic institutions in the world: Imperial College London in natural and applied sciences , the London School of Economics in social sciences , and
1853-621: A producer and songwriter from 1979 and assisted in Cliff Richard's resurgent chart career in the late 1970s and again in 1980 with the single "We Don't Talk Anymore" and the mid-80s albums, I'm No Hero , Wired for Sound , Stronger and Always Guaranteed . Tarney also worked with a-ha during the 1980s: he produced their first three albums Hunting High and Low (including their single, "Take on Me"), Scoundrel Days and Stay on These Roads . Production credits by Alan Tarney & Trevor Spencer General Specific London London
1962-421: A song high up on the U.S. charts, our SECOND "bite of the cherry", so to speak, they actually chose to cancel our US tour and not back me up instead of just being grateful for another hit. The record company was angry and basically stopped promoting our albums after that. I never got to tour and sing the song live so I feel slightly cheated out of performing it. But it became a really popular radio song and of course
2071-542: A temperate oceanic climate ( Köppen : Cfb ). Rainfall records have been kept in the city since at least 1697, when records began at Kew . At Kew, the most rainfall in one month is 7.4 inches (189 mm) in November 1755 and the least is 0 inches (0 mm) in both December 1788 and July 1800. Mile End also had 0 inches (0 mm) in April 1893. The wettest year on record is 1903, with a total fall of 38.1 inches (969 mm) and
2180-690: Is 1,049.8 millibars (31.00 inHg) on 20 January 2020. Summers are generally warm, sometimes hot. London's average July high is 23.5 °C (74.3 °F). On average each year, London experiences 31 days above 25 °C (77.0 °F) and 4.2 days above 30.0 °C (86.0 °F). During the 2003 European heat wave , prolonged heat led to hundreds of heat-related deaths. A previous spell of 15 consecutive days above 32.2 °C (90.0 °F) in England in 1976 also caused many heat related deaths. A previous temperature of 37.8 °C (100.0 °F) in August 1911 at
2289-554: Is agreed that the name came into these languages from Common Brythonic ; recent work tends to reconstruct the lost Celtic form of the name as * Londonjon or something similar. This was then adapted into Latin as Londinium and borrowed into Old English. Until 1889, the name "London" applied officially only to the City of London , but since then it has also referred to the County of London and to Greater London . In 1993, remains of
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#17330850408882398-528: Is formed of two tiers: a citywide, strategic tier and a local tier. Citywide administration is coordinated by the Greater London Authority (GLA), while local administration is carried out by 33 smaller authorities. The GLA consists of two elected components: the mayor of London , who has executive powers , and the London Assembly , which scrutinises the mayor's decisions and can accept or reject
2507-689: Is headquartered in Thames House on the north bank of the River Thames and the foreign intelligence service ( MI6 ) is headquartered in the SIS Building on the south bank. Crime rates vary widely across different areas of London. Crime figures are made available nationally at Local Authority and Ward level. In 2015, there were 118 homicides, a 25.5% increase over 2014. Recorded crime has been rising in London, notably violent crime and murder by stabbing and other means have risen. There were 50 murders from
2616-572: Is held by an independent . The ministerial post of minister for London was created in 1994, however as of 2024, the post has been vacant. Policing in Greater London, with the exception of the City of London , is provided by the Metropolitan Police ("The Met"), overseen by the mayor through the Mayor's Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC). The Met is also referred to as Scotland Yard after
2725-496: Is known as London . It is the capital of the United Kingdom and of England by convention rather than statute. The capital of England was moved to London from Winchester as the Palace of Westminster developed in the 12th and 13th centuries to become the permanent location of the royal court , and thus the political capital of the nation. Greater London encompasses a total area of 611 square miles (1,583 km ) an area which had
2834-669: Is the capital and largest city of both England and the United Kingdom , with a population of 8,866,180 in 2022. The wider metropolitan area is the largest in Western Europe , with a population of 14.9 million. London stands on the River Thames in southeast England, at the head of a 50-mile (80 km) estuary down to the North Sea , and has been a major settlement for nearly 2,000 years. Its ancient core and financial centre ,
2943-523: Is the vast London commuter belt . Greater London is split for some purposes into Inner London and Outer London , and by the River Thames into North and South , with an informal central London area. The coordinates of the nominal centre of London, traditionally the original Eleanor Cross at Charing Cross near the junction of Trafalgar Square and Whitehall , are about 51°30′26″N 00°07′39″W / 51.50722°N 0.12750°W / 51.50722; -0.12750 . Within London, both
3052-468: The Billboard 200 . Its single, "It's Really You", hit No. 86 on the Billboard Hot 100 . In Europe the album and related singles failed to chart. The British/European packaging had conventional square corners. The third studio album, Run for Your Life , was recorded in the US, and again it was produced by Kershenbaum, which appeared in 1979. With airplay on AOR radio, the album reached No. 181 on
3161-512: The 2012 Summer Olympics . London is an ancient name, attested in the first century AD, usually in the Latinised form Londinium . Modern scientific analyses of the name must account for the origins of the different forms found in early sources: Latin (usually Londinium ), Old English (usually Lunden ), and Welsh (usually Llundein ), with reference to the known developments over time of sounds in those different languages. It
3270-623: The A&;M label. In the meantime, the Climax Blues Band's album Sample and Hold (March 1983) was recorded for Virgin Records in 1983 by Haycock, Cooper and George Glover, with a rhythm section composed of the session musicians Dave Markee (bass) and Henry Spinetti (drums). On tour the rhythm section consisted of drummer Jeff Rich and bassist John "Rhino" Edwards , who eventually went on to feature in Status Quo for many years. A follow-up album
3379-481: The Billboard 200. Its lead single, "No Time To Lose", rose to No. 84 on the Billboard Hot 100. The album cover was manufactured with one of four slightly different sleeves each with the title in: red, green, silver or gold, with a library of paper-back novels as an artwork theme. The British version is different, depicting a female's leg, wearing a stiletto shoe, and avoiding an oncoming red car. In 1979, after
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3488-529: The Black Death in the mid-14th century, London lost nearly a third of its population. London was the focus of the Peasants' Revolt in 1381. London was a centre of England's Jewish population before their expulsion by Edward I in 1290. Violence against Jews occurred in 1190, when it was rumoured that the new king had ordered their massacre after they had presented themselves at his coronation. In 1264 during
3597-520: The Canary Wharf development. This was born out of London's increasing role as an international financial centre in the 1980s. Located about 2 miles (3 km) east of central London, the Thames Barrier was completed in the 1980s to protect London against tidal surges from the North Sea . The Greater London Council was abolished in 1986, leaving London with no central administration until 2000 and
3706-497: The City of London , was founded by the Romans as Londinium and has retained its medieval boundaries. The City of Westminster , to the west of the City of London, has been the centuries-long host of the national government and parliament . London grew rapidly in the 19th century , becoming the world's largest city at the time . Since the 19th century, the name "London" has referred to
3815-648: The Corn Laws in 1846 was specifically aimed at weakening Dutch economic power. London then overtook Amsterdam as the leading international financial centre. With the onset of the Industrial Revolution in Britain, an unprecedented growth in urbanisation took place, and the number of High Streets (the primary street for retail in Britain) rapidly grew. London was the world's largest city from about 1831 to 1925 , with
3924-553: The Georgian era , new districts such as Mayfair were formed in the west; new bridges over the Thames encouraged development in South London . In the east, the Port of London expanded downstream. London's development as an international financial centre matured for much of the 18th century. In 1762, George III acquired Buckingham House , which was enlarged over the next 75 years. During
4033-609: The King's Road , Chelsea and Carnaby Street . The role of trendsetter revived in the punk era. In 1965 London's political boundaries were expanded in response to the growth of the urban area and a new Greater London Council was created. During The Troubles in Northern Ireland, London was hit from 1973 by bomb attacks by the Provisional Irish Republican Army . These attacks lasted for two decades, starting with
4142-600: The London Ambulance Service (LAS) NHS Trust , the largest free-at-the-point-of-use emergency ambulance service in the world. The London Air Ambulance charity operates in conjunction with the LAS where required. Her Majesty's Coastguard and the Royal National Lifeboat Institution operate on the River Thames , which is under the jurisdiction of the Port of London Authority from Teddington Lock to
4251-748: The Mediterranean was normally through Antwerp and over the Alps ; any ships passing through the Strait of Gibraltar to or from England were likely to be Italian or Ragusan . The reopening of the Netherlands to English shipping in January 1565 spurred a burst of commercial activity. The Royal Exchange was founded. Mercantilism grew and monopoly traders such as the East India Company were founded as trade expanded to
4360-594: The New Model Army entered London in 1647, and they were levelled by Parliament the same year. London was plagued by disease in the early 17th century, culminating in the Great Plague of 1665–1666, which killed up to 100,000 people, or a fifth of the population. The Great Fire of London broke out in 1666 in Pudding Lane in the city and quickly swept through the wooden buildings. Rebuilding took over ten years and
4469-554: The New World . London became the main North Sea port, with migrants arriving from England and abroad. The population rose from about 50,000 in 1530 to about 225,000 in 1605. In the 16th century, William Shakespeare and his contemporaries lived in London during English Renaissance theatre . Shakespeare's Globe Theatre was constructed in 1599 in Southwark . Stage performances came to a halt in London when Puritan authorities shut down
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4578-590: The Old Bailey bombing . Racial inequality was highlighted by the 1981 Brixton riot . Greater London's population declined in the decades after the Second World War, from an estimated peak of 8.6 million in 1939 to around 6.8 million in the 1980s. The principal ports for London moved downstream to Felixstowe and Tilbury , with the London Docklands area becoming a focus for regeneration, including
4687-637: The Second Barons' War , Simon de Montfort 's rebels killed 500 Jews while attempting to seize records of debts. During the Tudor period , the Reformation produced a gradual shift to Protestantism . Much of London property passed from church to private ownership, which accelerated trade and business in the city. In 1475, the Hanseatic League set up a main trading base ( kontor ) of England in London, called
4796-568: The Stalhof or Steelyard . It remained until 1853, when the Hanseatic cities of Lübeck , Bremen and Hamburg sold the property to South Eastern Railway . Woollen cloth was shipped undyed and undressed from 14th/15th century London to the nearby shores of the Low Countries . Yet English maritime enterprise hardly reached beyond the seas of north-west Europe . The commercial route to Italy and
4905-543: The Thames , its primary geographical feature, a navigable river which crosses the city from the south-west to the east. The Thames Valley is a flood plain surrounded by gently rolling hills including Parliament Hill , Addington Hills , and Primrose Hill . Historically London grew up at the lowest bridging point on the Thames. The Thames was once a much broader, shallower river with extensive marshlands ; at high tide, its shores reached five times their present width. Since
5014-637: The Tower of London ; the site featuring the Palace of Westminster , Church of St. Margaret , and Westminster Abbey ; and the historic settlement in Greenwich where the Royal Observatory defines the prime meridian (0° longitude ) and Greenwich Mean Time . Other landmarks include Buckingham Palace , the London Eye , Piccadilly Circus , St Paul's Cathedral , Tower Bridge , and Trafalgar Square . The city has
5123-521: The Victorian era the Thames has been extensively embanked , and many of its London tributaries now flow underground . The Thames is a tidal river, and London is vulnerable to flooding. The threat has increased over time because of a slow but continuous rise in high water level caused by climate change and by the slow 'tilting' of the British Isles as a result of post-glacial rebound . London has
5232-562: The metropolis around the City of London, historically split between the counties of Middlesex , Essex , Surrey , Kent , and Hertfordshire , which since 1965 has largely comprised the administrative area of Greater London , governed by 33 local authorities and the Greater London Authority . As one of the world's major global cities , London exerts a strong influence on world art , entertainment, fashion , commerce, finance, education , healthcare , media , science, technology, tourism , transport , and communications. Despite
5341-401: The 11th century, London was clearly the largest town in England. Westminster Abbey , rebuilt in Romanesque style by King Edward the Confessor , was one of the grandest churches in Europe. Winchester had been the capital of Anglo-Saxon England , but from this time London became the main forum for foreign traders and the base for defence in time of war. In the view of Frank Stenton : "It had
5450-434: The 18th century, London was said to be dogged by crime, and the Bow Street Runners were established in 1750 as a professional police force. Epidemics during the 1720s and 30s saw most children born in the city die before reaching their fifth birthday. Coffee-houses became a popular place to debate ideas, as growing literacy and development of the printing press made news widely available, with Fleet Street becoming
5559-420: The City of London and the City of Westminster have city status . The City of London and the remainder of Greater London are both counties for the purposes of lieutenancies . The area of Greater London includes areas that are part of the historic counties of Middlesex , Kent , Surrey , Essex and Hertfordshire . More recently, Greater London has been defined as a region of England and in this context
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#17330850408885668-429: The Greenwich station was later disregarded as non-standard. Droughts can also, occasionally, be a problem, especially in summer, most recently in summer 2018, and with much drier than average conditions prevailing from May to December. However, the most consecutive days without rain was 73 days in the spring of 1893. Climax Blues Band Climax Blues Band (originally known as The Climax Chicago Blues Band ) are
5777-421: The Hurricanes. Later they were members of Johnny Broome and The Handels, an R&B group, then the Vectormen and, in 1967, James Taylor Move , a psychedelic pop and progressive rock band. For that group Spencer provided drums and Tarney was on organ; bandmates included Kevin Peek on guitar (also ex-the Hurricanes, Johnny Broome and the Handels). In 1968 Peek, Spencer and Tarney formed the Kevin Peek Trio as
5886-435: The London area. This called for the Corporation of the city to extend its jurisdiction and administration over expanding areas around the city. Fearing an attempt by the Crown to diminish the Liberties of London , coupled with a lack of interest in administering these additional areas or concern by city guilds of having to share power, caused the Corporation's "The Great Refusal", a decision which largely continues to account for
5995-434: The Pops re-runs. In July 1976, "I'm Your Man Rock and Roll", reached No. 71 on the US Cashbox top 100 singles chart. In 1978 they signed with A&M Records for the US market. In 1978 another single, "Takin' me Back", reached No. 7 on the South African singles charts. The band's second studio album, Three's a Crowd , was released in 1978; it was recorded in London and produced by David Kershenbaum . For
6104-458: The Real Thing . Tarney/Spencer Band formed as a rock music duo in London in 1975 with Spencer on drums and percussion and backing vocals; and Tarney on lead vocals, guitars (lead, rhythm and bass), synthesisers and keyboards. Their first album, Tarney and Spencer , was released in 1976 in the UK only, on the Bradley's Records label, and was co-produced with Dave Mackay . It features the Shadows' future member, Cliff Hall, on keyboards. The album
6213-504: The Strangers ) on lead guitar, were the backing band for Cliff Richard on his Eurovision Song Contest 1973 entry, " Power to All Our Friends ". While Spencer and Tarney were still members of Quartet, they worked as session musicians for Richard; Tarney joined the Shadows on bass guitar in 1973 and stayed until 1977. Spencer and Tarney also worked for other artists including Hank Marvin , Olivia Newton-John , Chris Squire , Bonnie Tyler , Charlie Dore , New Seekers , Peter Doyle , and
6322-409: The Thames. Despite the evidence of scattered Brythonic settlements in the area, the first major settlement was founded by the Romans around 47 AD, about four years after their invasion of 43 AD. This only lasted until about 61 AD, when the Iceni tribe led by Queen Boudica stormed it and burnt it to the ground. The next planned incarnation of Londinium prospered, superseding Colchester as
6431-415: The United Kingdom's population and over 16% of England's population. The Greater London Built-up Area is the fourth-most populous in Europe, with about 9.8 million inhabitants as of 2011. The London metropolitan area is the third-most populous in Europe, with about 14 million inhabitants as of 2016, making London a megacity . Four World Heritage Sites are located in London: Kew Gardens ;
6540-417: The United States on album-oriented rock radio stations. It charted on the Billboard Hot 100 in both 1979 and again in 1981 upon re-issue. By the end of 1979, Tarney/Spencer Band had broken up and both founders undertook careers as songwriters, session musicians and record producers. Future founding mainstay members of Tarney/Spencer Band, Trevor Spencer and Alan Tarney , met in Adelaide as members of
6649-405: The Viking incursions formally agreed by the Danish warlord , Guthrum and the West Saxon king Alfred the Great in 886. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle records that Alfred "refounded" London in 886. Archaeological research shows this involved abandonment of Lundenwic and a revival of life and trade within the old Roman walls . London then grew slowly until a dramatic increase in about 950. By
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#17330850408886758-421: The album Spencer also provided synthesisers; guest lead vocalists included Stuart Calver and Tony Rivers. Members of UK's Climax Blues Band , Colin Cooper, John Cuffley, Peter Filleul, Pete Haycock and Derek Holt , guested on this album. It featured packaging with rounded corners, shaped like an American-style café menu card. Tracks received airplay on US AOR radio stations and the album reached No. 174 on
6867-443: The band broke up, "No Time to Lose", was resurrected in 1981; when MTV was launched, it occasionally aired the track's music video. A&M then reissued the single, which charted a second time on the Hot 100, reaching No. 74. Trevor Spencer left the UK in the mid-1980s and returned to Australia, he lived in Perth and started the Sh-Boom studios with Gary Taylor. They worked on Hank Marvin's 1990s solo albums. Alan Tarney worked as
6976-423: The band the previous year while playing with an outfit called East of Eden) joined just before the group set off on a US tour. And the band released the album Shine On in April 1978. And after recording Real to Reel (May 1979) in Montserrat , the first band to use George Martin 's AIR studios there, the band (spurred on by the record company, who were now looking for hit singles) began moving towards more of
7085-417: The cancelation of a US tour, Holt departed the group in April 1982 after a tour of the Far East . Cuffley left as well soon after and George Glover (from Cyril Dagworth Players) joined the band on keyboards and backing vocals in the fall of 1981 and has remained there ever since. Holt went on to join drummer Brendan Day and Nektar guitarist Roye Albrighton to record an album under the name Grand Alliance for
7194-437: The centre of the British press. The invasion of Amsterdam by Napoleonic armies led many financiers to relocate to London and the first London international issue was arranged in 1817. Around the same time, the Royal Navy became the world's leading war fleet, acting as a major deterrent to potential economic adversaries. Following a fire in 1838, the Royal Exchange was redesigned by William Tite and rebuilt in 1844. The repeal of
7303-425: The city's metropolis. The City of London at its core once comprised the whole settlement, but as its urban area grew, the Corporation of London resisted attempts to amalgamate the city with its suburbs , causing "London" to be defined several ways. Forty per cent of Greater London is covered by the London post town , in which 'London' forms part of postal addresses. The London telephone area code (020) covers
7412-412: The city, to intimidate the inhabitants. In 1097, William II began building Westminster Hall , near the abbey. It became the basis of a new Palace of Westminster . In the 12th century, the institutions of central government, which had hitherto followed the royal English court around the country, grew in size and sophistication and became increasingly fixed, for most purposes at Westminster , although
7521-443: The combined revenue expenditure by London councils and the GLA amounted to just over £22 billion (£14.7 billion for the boroughs and £7.4 billion for the GLA). The London Fire Brigade is the statutory fire and rescue service for Greater London, run by the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority . It is the third largest fire service in the world. National Health Service ambulance services are provided by
7630-405: The comprehensive University College London . It is the most visited city in Europe and has the world's busiest city airport system . The London Underground is the world's oldest rapid transit system. London's diverse cultures encompass over 300 languages. The 2023 population of Greater London of just under 10 million made it Europe's third-most populous city , accounting for 13.4% of
7739-500: The creation of the Greater London Authority . To mark the 21st century, the Millennium Dome , London Eye and Millennium Bridge were constructed. On 6 July 2005 London was awarded the 2012 Summer Olympics , as the first city to stage the Olympic Games three times. On 7 July 2005, three London Underground trains and a double-decker bus were bombed in a series of terrorist attacks . In 2008, Time named London alongside New York City and Hong Kong as Nylonkong , hailing them as
7848-542: The creation of the London Underground , the world's first urban rail network . The Metropolitan Board of Works oversaw infrastructure expansion in the capital and some surrounding counties; it was abolished in 1889 when the London County Council was created out of county areas surrounding the capital. From the early years of the 20th century onwards, teashops were found on High Streets across London and
7957-713: The driest is 1921, with a total fall of 12.1 inches (308 mm). The average annual precipitation amounts to about 600mm, which is half the annual rainfall of New York City . Despite relatively low annual precipitation, London receives 109.6 rainy days on the 1.0mm threshold annually. London is vulnerable to climate change , and there is concern among hydrological experts that households may run out of water before 2050. Temperature extremes in London range from 40.2 °C (104.4 °F) at Heathrow on 19 July 2022 down to −17.4 °C (0.7 °F) at Northolt on 13 December 1981. Records for atmospheric pressure have been kept at London since 1692. The highest pressure ever reported
8066-603: The first Muslim mayor of a major Western capital. The mayor's statutory planning strategy is published as the London Plan , which was most recently revised in 2011. The local authorities are the councils of the 32 London boroughs and the City of London Corporation . They are responsible for most local services, such as local planning, schools, libraries, leisure and recreation, social services , local roads and refuse collection. Certain functions, such as waste management , are provided through joint arrangements. In 2009–2010
8175-468: The group in 1969 and Holt began playing bass. EMI switched the band over to their Harvest Records subsidiary in 1970 and their subsequent albums, A Lot of Bottle (December 1970) and Tightly Knit (October 1971), had a more rock-oriented feel. Keyboardist Anton Farmer (a.k.a. Anton Ackerbauer) also played with the band from 1969 to 1970, appearing on their third album, A Lot of Bottle . And John Cuffley replaced Newsome in 1972, while Arthur Wood left at
8284-738: The group's label Sire Records became a subsidiary of Warner Bros. that same year. Copeland then sued the band but both parties quickly settled out of court for £100,000. In the 1970s, the band's concerts in the US were attended by up to 20,000 people. A previously unknown recording of a live performance was later released as Climax Blues Band/World Tour 1976 by the Major League Productions (MLP) record label. Original member Richard Jones returned in early 1975 after finishing college and played on Stamp Album . He handled keyboards, guitar and switched with Holt on bass. But he left again by 1977. In May 1977 keyboardist Peter Filleul (who had met
8393-467: The irony of "I Love You" is that I played it to the band and they didn't like it. I thought it was the best and most complete song I'd ever written. We had our producer John Ryan come to England from L.A. to run through the tracks for our next album. He was sent to pre-produce our songs and asked us if anyone had any more songs. I said, 'I have this one but the band doesn't like it.' I played my cassette recording for him and he loved it, even said he thought it
8502-407: The key change to the solo which I thought was quite clever how it came back to the bridge. I then played a rough feel on my very basic drum kit. Next I added the guitar solo which just seemed naturally what would fit. I played it by bending the strings, it wasn't a slide guitar. Then I put the bass on, sat down and out poured the lyrics, from nowhere. I then sang it and did all the harmonies myself. But
8611-406: The lead on Hans Zimmer 's score to Thelma and Louise . In 1986 Cooper and Glover reunited Climax Blues Band, recruiting guitarist Lester Hunt (from the heavy metal outfit Demon ) and the original rhythm section of bassist Derek Holt and drummer John Cuffley to tour in the UK, Europe and America. These were the final tour dates with Holt and Cuffley, who left again at their conclusion. During
8720-607: The live album Night of the Guitars (from the 1989 tour of the same name, which included former bandmate Derek Holt on bass, keyboards and occasional vocals) for the I.R.S. No Speak label. After that tour, Haycock teamed up with former Alice Cooper / Lou Reed guitarist Steve Hunter and Derek Holt to record the album H Factor . He was later recruited by Bev Bevan to become a member of Electric Light Orchestra Part II and recorded and toured with that group from 1990 to 1992. He also started his film score career at this time, playing
8829-622: The location of its original headquarters in a road called Great Scotland Yard in Whitehall. The City of London has its own police force – the City of London Police . First worn by Met police officers in 1863, the custodian helmet has been called a "cultural icon" and a "symbol of British law enforcement". Introduced by the Met in 1929, the blue police telephone box (basis for the TARDIS in Doctor Who )
8938-455: The mayor's budget proposals each year. The GLA has responsibility for the majority of London's transport system through its functional arm Transport for London (TfL), it is responsible for overseeing the city's police and fire services, and also for setting a strategic vision for London on a range of issues. The headquarters of the GLA is City Hall , Newham. The mayor since 2016 has been Sadiq Khan ,
9047-436: The mid-80s, the band worked periodically on a new Climax Blues Band album Drastic Steps , which was eventually released in 1988. This album featured Cooper, Glover and Hunt, and also included return appearances by bassist John "Rhino" Edwards and drummer Jeff Rich. Drummer Roy Adams (who had played with Steve Gibbons , Roy Wood and John Mayall , among others) joined the group in 1987 and bassist Roger Inniss replaced Holt at
9156-673: The most museums , art galleries, libraries, and cultural venues in the UK, including the British Museum , National Gallery , Natural History Museum , Tate Modern , British Library , and numerous West End theatres. Important sporting events held in London include the FA Cup Final , the Wimbledon Tennis Championships , and the London Marathon . It became the first city to host three Summer Olympic Games upon hosting
9265-650: The most diverse cities in the world. In 1951, the Festival of Britain was held on the South Bank . The Great Smog of 1952 led to the Clean Air Act 1956 , which ended the " pea soup fogs " for which London had been notorious, and had earned it the nickname the "Big Smoke". Starting mainly in the mid-1960s, London became a centre for worldwide youth culture , exemplified by the Swinging London sub-culture associated with
9374-467: The old Roman city. By about 680 the city had become a major port again, but there is little evidence of large-scale production. From the 820s repeated Viking assaults brought decline. Three are recorded; those in 851 and 886 succeeded, while the last, in 994, was rebuffed. The Vikings applied Danelaw over much of eastern and northern England, its boundary running roughly from London to Chester as an area of political and geographical control imposed by
9483-486: The principal city of the Roman province of Britannia in 100. At its height in the 2nd century, Roman London had a population of about 60,000. With the early 5th-century collapse of Roman rule, the walled city of Londinium was effectively abandoned, although Roman civilisation continued around St Martin-in-the-Fields until about 450. From about 500, an Anglo-Saxon settlement known as Lundenwic developed slightly west of
9592-479: The release of a non-album single " Cathy's Clown ", a cover version of The Everly Brothers ' 1960 hit, which was produced by Bruce Welch , the band were released from their contract with A&M and discontinued the Tarney-Spencer Band. "Cathy's Clown" single received airplay on London's Capital Radio (95.8FM/194 mW) but it missed the national chart. It did chart in the Netherlands however. Two years after
9701-462: The resources, and it was rapidly developing the dignity and the political self-consciousness appropriate to a national capital ." After winning the Battle of Hastings , William, Duke of Normandy was crowned King of England in newly completed Westminster Abbey on Christmas Day 1066. William built the Tower of London , the first of many such in England rebuilt in stone in the south-eastern corner of
9810-624: The rest of Britain, with Lyons , who opened the first of their chain of teashops in Piccadilly in 1894, leading the way. The tearooms, such as the Criterion in Piccadilly, became a popular meeting place for women from the suffrage movement. The city was the target of many attacks during the suffragette bombing and arson campaign , between 1912 and 1914, which saw historic landmarks such as Westminster Abbey and St Paul's Cathedral bombed. London
9919-454: The royal treasury came to rest in the Tower . While the City of Westminster developed into a true governmental capital, its distinct neighbour, the City of London , remained England's largest city and principal commercial centre and flourished under its own unique administration, the Corporation of London . In 1100, its population was some 18,000; by 1300 it had grown to nearly 100,000. With
10028-425: The same time. In 1971 the band toyed with the idea of renaming to Climax Chicago, but in 1972 they opted for the shortened moniker of Climax Blues Band to avoid confusion with the group Chicago . For Rich Man (November 1972; produced by American Richard Gottehrer and their very first to chart in the lower reaches of the US charts) in 1972 the band had settled into a permanent grouping, which remained stable for
10137-504: The same time. Then Neil Simpson took over the bass slot in 1991. Cooper turned the band back in a blues direction as they released the live album Blues from the Attic in 1993 and Big Blues in 2003. Big Blues their first studio album in 17 years, consisted totally of Willie Dixon songs. Colin Cooper died of cancer on 3 July 2008, aged 68. He was replaced in 2009 by singer/saxophone/harmonica player Johnny Pugh, who retired in 2012, and
10246-534: The sea. London is the seat of the Government of the United Kingdom . Many government departments, as well as the prime minister's residence at 10 Downing Street , are based close to the Palace of Westminster , particularly along Whitehall . There are 75 members of Parliament (MPs) from London; As of June 2024 , 59 are from the Labour Party , 9 are Conservatives , 6 are Liberal Democrats and one constituency
10355-424: The start of 2018 to mid April 2018. Funding cuts to police in London are likely to have contributed to this, though other factors are involved. However, homicide figures fell in 2022 with 109 recorded for the year, and the murder rate in London is much lower than other major cities around the world. London, also known as Greater London , is one of nine regions of England and the top subdivision covering most of
10464-725: The theatres in the 1640s. The ban on theatre was lifted during the Restoration in 1660, and London's oldest operating theatre, Drury Lane , opened in 1663 in what is now the West End theatre district. By the end of the Tudor period in 1603, London was still compact. There was an assassination attempt on James I in Westminster, in the Gunpowder Plot of 5 November 1605. In 1637, the government of Charles I attempted to reform administration in
10573-442: The time was a school teacher. Our bass player then was Richard Jones, who also knew Pete from grammar school. I was rhythm guitarist. While playing local gigs we were "discovered" by a scout for the new EMI label Parlophone , who was on the look out for a young blues/rock outfit for their label. We signed up for two albums with them, though we still had day jobs, so had to take time off work to go and record in London. Our first album
10682-526: The track. Then the producer decided to get a string section on the track, which was the icing on the cake. Warner Brothers came to the album launch at the studio for the execs to have a listen. They all raved about "I Love You". They got behind it and it became a hit. Personally, I thought it just sounded incredible. Up until the Flying the Flag album, we used to split songwriting royalties four equal ways as we were all credited with writing songs. For this album, we had
10791-691: The unique governmental status of the City . In the English Civil War , the majority of Londoners supported the Parliamentary cause. After an initial advance by the Royalists in 1642, culminating in the battles of Brentford and Turnham Green , London was surrounded by a defensive perimeter wall known as the Lines of Communication . The lines were built by up to 20,000 people, and were completed in under two months. The fortifications failed their only test when
10900-625: The world's three most influential global cities . In January 2015, Greater London's population was estimated to be 8.63 million, its highest since 1939. During the Brexit referendum in 2016, the UK as a whole decided to leave the European Union , but most London constituencies voted for remaining. However, Britain's exit from the EU in early 2020 only marginally weakened London's position as an international financial centre. The administration of London
11009-1014: Was bombed by the Germans in the First World War , and during the Second World War , the Blitz and other bombings by the German Luftwaffe killed over 30,000 Londoners, destroying large tracts of housing and other buildings across the city. The tomb of the Unknown Warrior , an unidentified member of the British armed forces killed during the First World War, was buried in Westminster Abbey on 11 November 1920. The Cenotaph , located in Whitehall ,
11118-500: Was a hit. We arrived in L.A. to record the album at Sound City Studios . When it came to "I Love You", our producer got Nicky Hopkins to play the grand piano. So it was me at the Fender Rhodes piano, Nicky by my side at the grand and John Cuffley on drums. The three of us laid down the basic track. I then put on the bass, sang it and did all the harmonies, Pete Haycock played my guitar solo with his slide and Colin Cooper wasn't even on
11227-596: Was in the works, but Cooper bowed out in late 1984, citing personal reasons, and the band temporarily ceased its activities. In 1985 Peter Haycock formed a band called Peter Haycock's Climax and put out the album Total Climax . This band toured extensively in Europe, including Communist East Germany , and conducted a well-received tour in Australia . Haycock was later asked by his former Climax Blues Band manager, Miles Copeland , to record an instrumental album, Guitar and Son , and
11336-437: Was once a common sight throughout London and regional cities in the UK. The British Transport Police are responsible for police services on National Rail , London Underground , Docklands Light Railway and Tramlink services. The Ministry of Defence Police is a special police force in London, which does not generally become involved with policing the general public. The UK's domestic counter-intelligence service ( MI5 )
11445-467: Was re-released on CD in 2003 by Sanctuary Records/Castle Communications with four bonus tracks. In 1976, Tarney/Spencer's first UK single, "I'm Your Man Rock and Roll", was released but did not reach the top 30 on the national chart. To promote the track, in April, they appeared on BBC1's Top of the Pops , introduced by Tony Blackburn . The appearance was repeated in April 2011 on BBC4's series of Top of
11554-587: Was recorded over two days in the infamous Abbey Road Studios in 1968. We were in Studio 1, The Beatles were in Studio 2 and Pink Floyd in Studio 3! I was just 19 years of age. Their first two albums, Climax Chicago Blues Band (February 1969) and Plays On (October 1969), were released on Parlophone and were the first official productions by Chris Thomas , who had worked with the Beatles and would go on to produce Roxy Music , Elton John and many others. Jones left
11663-442: Was replaced in turn by vocalist Graham Dee and saxophone player Chris Aldridge. Peter Haycock died on 30 October 2013 at age 62. A new studio album, Hands of Time , was released in 2019. In 2022 Lester Hunt announced his retirement from the band after 36 years due to health reasons and his friend Dan Machin, who had already been filling in for him on the road, became Climax's permanent guitarist. Scott Ralph, who had worked with
11772-459: Was supervised by polymath Robert Hooke . In 1710, Christopher Wren 's masterpiece, St Paul's Cathedral , was completed, replacing its medieval predecessor that burned in the Great Fire of 1666. The dome of St Paul's dominated the London skyline for centuries, inspiring the artworks and writing of William Blake , with his 1789 poem " Holy Thursday " referring to 'the high dome of Pauls'. During
11881-516: Was unveiled on the same day, and is the focal point for the National Service of Remembrance held annually on Remembrance Sunday , the closest Sunday to 11 November. The 1948 Summer Olympics were held at the original Wembley Stadium , while London was still recovering from the war. From the 1940s, London became home to many immigrants, primarily from Commonwealth countries such as Jamaica, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, making London one of
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