However, welcome to Dan Snow's History Hit. It's a slightly slow day over at History

Hit Towers. We went to the broadcast media awards last night in Glamrs London to see

if History Hit TV would be announced as the best specialist channel of the year. We were

nominated, made the short list, but folks, we didn't win. We didn't win. We were beaten

by some jokers from a place called the BBC. I heard of them, but I must say like the Spartans

at the Battle of the Mopoli, outnumber, outgunned as it were. With no hope of victory, we put

up a pretty heroic battle. It was good to even get there. And the happy news is we've all

got crushing hangovers today anyway. So it's a perfect, perfect day to kick back and

listen to some podcasts. This one, it's about London. It's about entertainment, prostitution.

There is some language in this podcast that you may find offensive is language used in

the sources from the time. And we're talking about the area around Picadilly, really.

The word Picadilly comes from a Picadill, a lace collar, and this street was seen as the

fashionable lacy fringe of London. Errace the Gratz could live out the westerns of rural

ittles, but then nip in and get stuck into the more urban pleasures. It became famous

for shops, restaurants, theatre, bustling nightlife, and yes folks, sex. I wasn't just

in the 17th 18th century, we also talking right up to the first and second world wars.

So everyone, please go and subscribe to history.tv, our Netflix for history, nominated, but not

winner of Britain's best specialist channel. And then once you've done that, just relax in a dark

and room and listen to me and historian Stephen Hall talking about pimps, prostutes, and London's

West End. Enjoy.

Stephen, thank you very much. Come on the podcast. It's a great pleasure.

So London is now we all think, you know, theatre town West End. When does this reputation begin?

...