It is well known that Pall Mall, the heart of London’s clubland, was named after the French game of Pell Mell. But it could equally have been called Cricket Mall. A cricket club existed here long before the establishment of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) which later took over responsibility for rule-making. It was the world’s first public gas distributor and the first public utility in the world. All previous instalments of Vic Keegan’s Lost London can be found here.

Source: The Star June 20, 2020 14:37 UTC