Notorious London: A City Tour

by Paul Deslandes

ondon began as a Roman outpost more than 2,000 years ago. Since then, it has become one of the most vibrant and notable cities in the world. This capital city has witnessed centuries of history and has been a crossroads of culture and transformation. It has also seen its fair share of sensational events and bizarre occurrences. With such a storied history, it should be unsurprising that many fascinating and notorious stories, places, and personalities are part of its legacy. It’s not hard to see why this city has gripped the imagination of people - residents and visitors alike - for generations.

In the 12 lessons of Notorious London: A City Tour, you will experience a rich sampling of some of the city’s most shocking stories and infamous personalities. Taught by Professor Paul Deslandes of the University of Vermont, Notorious London dips into various regions and eras of London’s past to give you a multifaceted look into this remarkable metropolis. From the destruction of St. Paul’s Cathedral and the dark history of the Tower of London to the decadence of the fin de siècle and the chaos of World War II, and beyond, these stories bring London to life across the centuries and illuminate the darker corners of a complex and contradictory city.

Rather than present a simple chronology of events, Professor Deslandes acts as a tour guide, sharing the many stories of Notorious London as you traverse the city through iconic locales and lesser-known areas alike. However, instead of a simple tourist map of the city, you will experience a brilliant mosaic of places and personalities across time that will show you London as you have rarely seen it before.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Audiobook, Historical, London

Audiobook

Published April 23, 2021

Reviews

[Little Timmy · Rating 3 out of 5]

The word notorious in the title lead me to believe this was gonna be a book on the seedier places of London. Nope, not really. Good thing I am a history lover cause that is mostly all the book is. Overall not bad just that what I was expecting

[Gilbert Stack · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rather than a serious historical work, this Great Courses text comes off as a sensational account of the history of sections of London. It’s the sort of history that you expect to get from a tour guide—very fun to listen to but not very nuanced or accurate. If you’re going to London and are trying to decide what places you want to visit, this book will help you. If you’re trying to learn a few interesting tidbits about one of the world’s great cities, this book will also serve. But if you want a serious account of London, it’s history, and what happened in it, this is not really the place you should be starting.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's interesting if you want to know more about London, but the stories for the most part are not really notorious. I mean the Jubilee for Victoria? As notorious?

[Yaaresse · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing. I'm glad it was only 12 sections. As it was, I ended up skimming the last half of several sections and just reading the transcript for those.

I think this professor and I have very different ideas of what constitutes "notorious." I'm thinking infamy and mayhem, conspiracies and high crimes. He seems to be thinking gossipy and raw sewage. (Literal sewage, not metaphorical sewage.) At the same time, how does one manage to make Oscar Wilde come off as dull?

Unfortunately, while the professor seems well-informed on the subject, and parts of the course were mildly interesting, his delivery was less than dynamic. Also, his artificial and repetitive hand gestures quickly became distracting and annoying.

Vent: What IS it with recent GC presenters and the weird hand gestures? It comes off looking like some bizarre form of kinesthetic Tourette's. Someone is ripping a lot of public speakers off by telling them no one will listen to them unless they are pretending to conduct Schoenburg with an invisible orchestra. Rule One may start off as "Use your hands when speaking to appear dynamic and lively," but the rest of that rule is "in a natural, instinctive manner." /vent

[Jim Beatty · Rating 4 out of 5]

Notoriousness of London would not be complete without a couple Rolling Stones references. ✔️

[Teresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A general overview of the history of London. I quite enjoyed it. I loveeee London and learning about it. Obviously.

[Darrell McCauley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Notorious London is the worst Great Courses lecture series that I’ve ever listened to. It’s clear that the author holds a different worldview than me, but the content would be considered perverse by anyone of any faith. If you meet someone new and listen to them, after a short while, you start learning what is important to them. The logical man concludes, "This sounds like something this person really loves."

Paul Deslandes focuses on male homosexual sex throughout the lectures, even leading with praise of Oscar Wilde in the first lecture (“one of London’s most compelling personalities”). He goes on to talk about poop, rape, and disease. There is no redemption in any of the lectures. Certainly nothing lovely or praiseworthy. How about the notorious slave trade, followed by abolition efforts led by William Wilberforce? I find that a more compelling and worthwhile story for “Notorious London.”

Beyond the distasteful content, the audio experience gets sickening after a few minutes, and it goes on for hours. The author reads his own written lectures in an invariable cadence, which is all the more disturbing considering the content. It’s monotonously rhythmic and needs some ebb and flow. In today's world of technology, there are AI voices that are far more pleasing.

[Toni · Rating 3 out of 5]

A hodge podge of random info. I wish the info was a linear format or maybe an obvious link to make it seem logical. But I enjoyed the quick tidbits.
L 1: Oscar Wilde's Decadent London
L 2: St. Paul's Cathedral in Faith, Fire, and Sin
L 3: Getting Blitzed at London's Café de Paris
L 4: On Carnaby Street during the Swinging '60s
L 5: A History of Infamy in the Tower of London
L 6: Underground Catholics of Protestant London
L 7: Wicked Fun at the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens
L 8: Taking the Dead Man's Path to Tyburn Tree
L 9: The Great Stink of 1858
L 10: In the Footsteps of Jack the Ripper
L 11: Fading Empire and the 1897 Diamond Jubilee
L 12: The Prying Eyes of London CCTV

[Alex Shrugged · Rating 3 out of 5]

I almost rated this audio course 4 stars, but it was a little difficult to do that due to the subject matter. It is a history of London focusing on the less savory and/or controversial aspects (often sexual) of London. Nothing is described in any more detail than is necessary. Not prurient. Just yucky at times. I am thinking of Jack the Ripper. Aside from the subject matter itself, it was well presented and if I see another Great Course offered by this professor I will certainly consider listening in. No problem.

[Denise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining enough trip through some more, some less interesting bits and pieces of London's history, though the overarching theme that should have tied this lecture series together wasn't quite clear to me. Sure, some of these anecdotes might be decribed as "notorious" and "infamous" - others, not so much. How all this was meant to fit together I have no idea.

[Rebee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Actually I DNF'ed this book. It just wasn't making much sense. Each chapter covered a different location and a different time and maybe if I were in London it might be cool to go to each areas and learn about that snapshot of history but otherwise it was not keeping my interest

[Megan ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was a very mixed bag of lectures about london. i enjoyed the ones about the tower of london, the great stink and jack the ripper but the other ones were dull. most of the information wasn't new to me, either.

[Phil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perfectly serviceable. I don't know exactly what you're meant to learn at a college level, but it's a nice kind of YouTube level explainer weaving together parts of London history that the lecturer enjoys as somewhat scandalous.

[Jeff J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting history, although unless you are onsite a chronological account would have been more useful.

[Brannigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fun collection of lectures that covers a wide variety of time periods. The professor has a slightly annoying voice so just try not to focus on it.

[Kimberley Shaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found this a brain stretching aid to my trip planning.

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25

[Kelly · Rating 2 out of 5]

I know this is a personal problem, but listening to this guy’s voice was close to unbearable.

[Morgan Gariepy · Rating 3 out of 5]

A brief taste of London history.