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Smithfield, centre of the universe

This weekend I learned something new about Smithfield Market, that Victorian beauty situated between the Old Bailey and Farringdon Tube station. It's always been one of my London favourites, and not just because you can get a drink there at five in the morning (its pubs are allowed to open at that time because the market workers have been up all night). There are the traditional red phone boxes in its central section (including some K2s, the early versions made especially tall so that men in top hats could use them). And, of course, there are the first-rate fry-ups to be had in the neighbouring cafes. But above all, I love the way the market - which has taken place there for over 800 years - is linked to just about every part of London, and has left its stamp on the entire city.

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