Notorious London

A City Tour

By: Paul Deslandes, The Great Courses

Narrated by: Professor Paul Deslandes

Length: 5 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's Summary

London 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.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.  

©2021 The Teaching Company, LLC (P)2021 The Great Courses

Total Junk

this is a course? Not one worthwhile fact. This was the first and last time I will pay for Great Courses. Do Not Buy.

Not a "great course"

I found this really boring coverage of a beloved topic. I love London and briefly lived there for university. Both the writing and performance put my to sleep. The pacing is also very slow. I'd recommend listening at 1.4X if you must.

A great tour of important London moments!

Every city has its stories. In his tour of Notorious London, Paul Deslandes take us on a tour of time and space that concentrates on place rather than chronology. We learn about love life and night life in 19th-century London, but also the resilience and symbolism that united a nation during WWII. Fun, inspiring, poignant, and sad, this tour of the city invites us to envision - and to visit. I cannot wait to go back.

to focused on homosexual history in the city

could not finish, not what I thought the course would cover. would not recommend

Too woke

This course should have been called "A Woketivist Guide to London." I don't need the political agenda with everything.

Lackluster

This course could have been so much more. While there are occasional snippets of material that couldn’t be gleaned from a wiki article or a tourist pamphlet and - rarer still - glimpses of real analysis, the vast majority of the lectures are dull repetitions of basic facts, sometimes totally unrelated to the focus of the lecture. I listened to this course for free and still regret the time spent on it.

Wonderful

Wonderful and fascinating. I had the pressure of being in one of Dr. Deslandes’s classes almost 20 years ago. He still is engaging.

Superb stories

Thoroughly enjoyed listening to the various stories being told. I will seek out more in the series.

Couldn't finish it

The lecturer's slow, patronising delivery was too much for me but, I'm speaking as a born and bred Londoner, not an American student.