‘If you wish to have a just notion of the magnitude of this city, you must not be satisfied with seeing its great streets and squares, but must survey the innumerable little lanes and courts. It is not in the showy evolutions of buildings, but in the multiplicity of human habitations which are crowded together, that the wonderful immensity of London consists.’ – Samuel Johnson, 1763

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Brewer’s Dictionary of London Phrase & Fable

Russ Willey

Sample entries

In the great tradition of Brewer’s, the Dictionary of London Phrase and Fable shines a welcome light into the enticingly shadowy corners of London’s language, culture and history.

From Boudicca to Boris Johnson, the Bloomsbury Group to the Camberwell Carrot and Darkplace Hospital to Sodomite’s Walk, Brewer’s London takes you on the scenic route through the landmarks, language and lore of this great city. More than 2,000 entries encompass words, phrases, historical events, notable London characters (both real and fictional), customs and ceremonies, institutions, artistic and literary works, celebrations and events, inventions, streets and districts, anecdotes, names and nicknames, terminology and slang.

Russ Willey is a native Londoner whose family’s London roots date back 200 years. He is the author of Chambers London Gazetteer.

Praise for the London Gazetteer:

‘Having read the Gazetteer’s entry on Tokyngton, I feel altogether enlightened … I resolve to never again go about town without a copy of Mr Willey’s Gazetteer in my trouser pocket, even if it makes an unsightly bulge.’ – Will Self

‘A masterpiece of detail and extraordinary research’ – Amazon.co.uk review