London details, and where does Giles live?

[hobgoblinn]

Ok, I'm setting my novel in London, which is my first mistake (no, signing up for nano was my First mistake, but hey, let's not go there.) And this is a place I shall Never get to, unless teleportation becomes cheap and reliable as a transportation option. So... I put it to the international f-list: Where does Giles live?





In my story, it's about 2 years post Chosen, and Giles is in London and Head of the new Council. He probably gets housing a little more exalted than he's been used to in Sunnydale, but still pretty modest because he'd probably insist on that. He probably is staying in a building the Council has owned since London was a Roman outpost. He lives alone, until Willow comes back and insists on staying in his guest room.

I'm envisioning a place with more than one level, with a study, kitchen, couple of bedrooms, couple of baths. A place in town, close by other similar brick structures. He goes jogging in the neighborhood every morning, with a couple of Slayers trailing him. I have them hiding in a nearby alley until he passes, then coming out to follow at a discreet distance. He has a car, so he needs a place to park, perhaps on the street. It also needs to be reasonably near a Tube station, though.

What's realistic here? In what neighborhood might the Council have some stodgy, functional housing? What might such buildings be called? Brownstone is what comes to mind for me, but that's a New York City term, or that's the connotation I carry for that term. Townhouse might also describe it, but I don't know how British that is, either.

And while we're at it, what's the weather like there, now? I can, and have been doing, research on that more easily than remedying my sad lack of London geographical knowledge. But temperature ranges don't gie the whole story. Willow's going to find it damp and cold regardless, but I'd like a little more detail all the same. Especially about fog. You see it in the movies. But how cold or warm does it have to be before you get fog? It's in Willow's dream, and I'm about to make that play out in reality. But I'm not sure what season works here.




In addition to wild speculations and on the spot personal experience, I'd be interested in any links to sites where I can do more research on my own. I'm reading some online versions of London Newspapers to get a feel for the flavor of the writing, which is quite different from ours, in a good way. What papers do you locals read (or avoid) for various things? What would Giles read? (I want to see if my guess is close.)

Comments

[antennapedia.livejournal.com]

London weather, right now!
Gower St, where my fanonical Council is.
London neighborhoods: one of my open research topics. I'll feed info & links to you as I acquire them.

[hobgoblinn.livejournal.com]

Huh. Why Gower Street? Or is the question Why Not?

I found a good couple of sites on London weather, and on Fog. I have trouble having celsius temperatures mean anything to me, though.

Thanks for the links. If I stumble across anything interesting myself, I'll shoot it your way. And try to miss whatever cat is using you as its sleeping platform....

[usedtobeljs]

Of the broadsheet newspapers, The Telegraph and the Times are conservative (hence the Telegraph's nickname 'The Torygraph'); the Guardian and the Independent are more Labour/liberal.

The Evening Standard is the tabloid-sized paper that comes out every afternoon -- it's what one would pick up coming off the Tube or the train.

I don't know as much about the tabloid-sized morning dailies -- the Daily Mail is influential, and the Sun is usually talked about as more working-class, but I wouldn't want to be held to that.

[hobgoblinn.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the newspaper info. I've got Giles reading the Guardian, which seemed to be the most highly rated for accuracy (and I imagine Giles could care less about politics-- that's probably not what he reads papers for). Would that be available in the morning? If not, I suppose he could be reading the night before's edition over an early breakfast....

Which papers would be most likely to report gory, possibly demon-related deaths? Even if it's not in the mainstream in this universe, I imagine such things would be, after the events of Not Fade Away. Though it might be interesting to see how the media explains away the destruction of LA, and the dragon....

thanks again

[stormwreath.livejournal.com]

I don't know if this is at all useful, considering that you asked the question over a month ago, but seeing as how I live in London I can probably give you some first-hand knowledge. Also, this started out as a short reply and metamorphosed into something much, much longer...

Perhaps somewhere like Hampstead, St John's Wood, Notting Hill, Chelsea or Fulham might be a good place for the Council to own housing? They're fairly genteel, middle to upper middle class areas for the most part, though one of the things about London is that you can go past run-down multiple-occupancy and properties worth millions of pounds in a 15-minute walk. Closer to the centre are the really expensive areas like Mayfair, where a two-bedroom apartment would cost you the equivalent of $16 million... although I can imagine the Council getting a lot of its income from owning and leasing out property in this area. The area of the Roman and mediaeval City only has about 5,000 inhabitants these days: it's almost entirely given over to banks, insurance companies and similar organisations these days. The East End and south of the river is more working-class (though with occasional pockets of wealth, see above) until things fade out into endless suburbia and the green belt.

The British equivalent of "a townhouse" is "a terraced house" (or terrace house) - 'terrace' referring to the row of houses. To a British reader, a reference to "his town house" would imply that his main home is in the countryside, and he also owns a second home in the city. The word could be qualified by a reference to the period it was built in: a "Georgian terraced house" would date back to the reigns of George I though IV - basically, the 18th and early 19th centuries.

Depending on the location, car parking could be on-street with a resident's permit (issued by the local borough council, strictly rationed, and precious), or in an underground garage somewhere... or if you're really lucky, the house muight have a garage itself (more likely the further from the centre you get). Incidentally, driving a car in Central London these days (since 2003) requires paying an £8/$15 per day Congestion Charge... most people don't bother, and take the Tube or a taxi instead.

Weather? In November, it varies between cool, grey and overcast (enough that you have to wear a warm jacket or coat), bright blue skies and icy winds (add gloves and maybe a hat to the jacket), steady drizzle (bring an umbrella or put the hood of your coat up), or driving rain with strong wind and perhaps thunder (stay inside). Usually the weather stays the same for 3-4 days before changing to the next type, but it can change within hours - even more so in Spring when you can get heavy rain, warm sun and snow all during the same day. :) (In London, snow almost always melts the moment it hits the ground, and still manages to cause traffic chaos). The well-prepared Englishman or -woman will always dress in layers and frequently carry a small, folding umbrella in their bag, ready for any rapid change in weather that would catch out a visitor from somewhere with a more settled climate...

Fog is extremely rare these days, thanks to clean air legislation passed in the 1950s. Just before Christmas this year there were a few days of freezing fog which actually made the news headlines, on account of flights being delayed or cancelled. You also occasionally get early morning mists, especially in autumn. But even so, it's not the sort of dense, almost-tangible fog you read about in Sherlock Holmes stories - more that the house at the other side of the street looks a little blurred and greyed out.

[stormwreath.livejournal.com]

(continued)

Newspapers? The Guardian's what I read myself, so I support assigning it to Giles too. :) It's definitely left of centre; the stereotypical reader would be a muesli-eating, tweed-wearing university lecturer or social worker (I'm none of those, but it does seem to fit Giles). It's strong on foreign and political news, and usually ignores the more show-business gossip side of news reporting. The Times has more of a focus on business and financial news; the Telegraph is, stereotypically again, the paper read by retired colonels - and I imagine Quentin Travers would have read it.

As for how each British newspaper would react to a story about gory demon-related deaths (warning; some stereotypes present here...):

The Guardian - report the facts fairly neutrally, but complain about the danger to civil liberties if the authorities over-react.

The Telegraph - report the facts fairly neutrally, but complain that this sort of thing didn't go on in the good old days before the police were handicapped by too much bureaucracy.

The Times - report the facts fairly neutrally, and call on the government to cut interest rates to steady the stock market in the face of this news.

Daily Mail - hype the story in a bid to terrify their readers, and complain that it's all the fault of Political Correctness Gone Mad.

Daily Express - hype the story in a bid to terrify their readers, and complain that it's all the fault of foreign immigrants. Also, the same demons may have been involved in the death of Princess Diana, see special feature on page 5.

Daily Mirror - Full colour pictures on pages 2,4,5,6,7 and 10!!

The Sun - Full colour pictures on pages 2,4,5,6,7 and 10 and an interview with a popular soap star/footballer's wife who lived next door to one of the victims!!

Regarding local papers... the Evening Standard is owned by the people who print the Daily Mail, and shares its general viewpoint, but has a lot of local news too (restaurant and theatre reviews, local sport, classified advertisments, etc). Incidentally, the Standard is printed in several issuses throughout the day, not just once in the evening. Another relevant paper is Metro, which is handed out free every morning in vast quantities at railway and tube stations.

[hobgoblinn.livejournal.com]

Oh wow-- this is great-- and not at all too late to help out. I used Wikipedia's info on London's neighborhoods, and got at least a sense of where things might reasonably be for the very vague purposes of the story. And I used antennapedia's Gower Street because I thought of a way I could use the name as a clue in the story. Might as well put my lit degree to some use. I'm pleased to have some of my notes and ideas confirmed by a native, though, even if none of it ever makes it into the story proper.

Terraced house, though is exactly what I needed to know. What a cool new years present! And the comment on weather, and on papers below-- very funny, and also helpful.

I'll try to put it all to good use, with apologies in advance for my regrettable ignorance. And I'm honored you took the time to go back through my journal that far, and to make such helpful comments.

i remain, Sir,

A very grateful

Hobgoblinn

[stormwreath.livejournal.com]

Glad to be of help. :)

Gower Street connects the British Museum (where Giles used to work - full of ancient artefacts plunderedgathered from all over the world) to University College London. Other institutions with addresses on or adjacent to Gower Street include the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, RADA (the Royal Institute of Dramatic Arts, where classical actors get their training), the University College Hospital, and the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology. 200 yards away on Gordon Square is where Virginia Woolf and Bertrand Russell used to live. I can see half a dozen plot seeds right there in that list. :)

[hobgoblinn.livejournal.com]

How about Enfield for Giles' neighborhood? any Georgian Terraced Houses there? I just was going back through this disaster of a story and thought I might clean that bit up, and it looks like that's what I chose for the location.

I don't suppose you know Heathrow well, do you? I assume that Giles and Willow can get into the passengers only area with their Watcher credentials, and that there are coffee shops near the gates, and that the concourse is as described in this Draft paragraph (much as the American airports I've seen):

Giles drained his coffee cup, glanced at the clock again, and rose. “We should probably be heading down to the gate,” he said. He paid the tab and they stepped out into the broad concourse and began strolling briskly toward the far end of the terminal. Their Watcher credentials had gotten them easily into the passengers only area and even allowed them to bypass most of the security checkpoints. So they were standing at the window when Buffy’s plane taxied up and docked at the ramp.

Am I anywhere close? I tried to pull up concourse maps, but I couldn't find any pictures of the interior of the terminals, and the maps were a little lacking on Scale, not to mention detail. Guess it makes the terrorists have to actually get off their butts and Go to the airport if they want to scope things out. But it does make it hard on impecunious writers....

I appreciate any tips you care to offer. As well as those you've already given me, of course.

[stormwreath.livejournal.com]

'Enfield' for me conjures up images of dreary suburbia, to be honest - although when I looked the place up, apparently it's an old mediaeval market town, and does indeed have a few Georgian buildings, so it could fit. (Although most of it is 20th century). Try a Google Image Search for "Enfield Middlesex" to see what it's like. (Just searching "Enfield" gets mostly pictures of motorbikes.)

It's a while since I've been to Heathrow, but as I recall: each terminal (there are 4 - Terminal Three is for flights from LA, if that matters) has a long hall with the various airline check-in desks in it. You go through a passport check and then the security checkpoint (metal detector, x-ray machine and hand search for carry-on baggage - these days, anything that looks remotely dangerous can be confiscated) to reach the passenger area, which is basically like a shopping mall - two levels around a central atrium, with various shops, cafes, etc. The actual boarding gates are down several very long corridors (up to 10-15 minutes' walk to reach them, although there are travelators); think glass-walled corridors with rows of institutional fixed seating next to each.

On arriving, you normally walk down similar long corridors to passport control (separate lines for European Union passport holders and non-EU), then to the baggage collection area with its conveyor belts, then walk through customs (normally the green 'Nothing to Declare' channel, where customs officers watch for people to pull aside and make random checks on) until you emerge into the arrivals concourse. There's a metal railing separating the gate you emerge out of the customs area and the public area: this is normally lined with friends and relatives looking to spot 'their' person among the arriving crowd. There are also pre-booked minicab drivers and business contacts holding up signs with people's names on them. From leaving the aircraft to emerging here normally takes half an hour - less if you only have carry-on baggage, of course. There are coffee shops in the arrivals area for waiting relatives, but not the same quality or choice as through the barrier in the departure area.

Frankly, if Giles and Willow have credentials that let them bypass security and wait at the gate for an incoming international flight, they could probably also walk into a military base with them and borrow a tank (or a rocket launcher). :) Security at Heathrow is strict.

[hobgoblinn.livejournal.com]

Thanks for this! On security, I guess I've been reading too many post Chosen fics where it's assumed the Council can do pretty much anything it wants-- take over demon crime scenes, circumvent the rules about no non passengers in passenger areas, that sort of thing. I may rework it to fit more closely with reality now that I know this. A lot of the airports I've been in since 9/11 don't have any cafes for non-passengers, that I noticed-- being a passenger myself. And in shock at having arrived safely.

One of my two journeys through an airport since 9/11 was a month to the day after that terrible day, headed to New York. I was part of the Cincinnati May Festival Chorus, and we had been invited almost a year prior to sing Britten's War Requiem at Carnegie Hall. It was a very emotional time. And I'll never forget that awful gap in the city skyline....

I much appreciate the research help.

[stormwreath.livejournal.com]

No need for thanks, this is fun. :)

With the caveat that it's a few years since I was at Heathrow, I think there's at least a newsagent and a snackbar on the landside - although most of the fancy stuff is airside. (Departing passengers are the ones with the time to kill, after all). One thing to remember is that Heathrow deals almost entirely with international flights, so the security (including passport and customs controls) was built-in from the start, instead of having to be added after 911 as might be the case for an airport dealing mostly with domestic flights. (It's also the single busiest airport in the world)

I've been to New York once, which was before 911. I also went to New Orleans just before Hurricane Katrina and Thailand just before the tsunami... I keep expecting to get a letter saying I'm banned from further international travel on the grounds of public safety. :)

.

[hobgoblinn.livejournal.com]

Remember when you kindly gave me this London geography advice? Just thought you'd like to know that I put a little more of it to use tonight. antennapedia roped me into pinch hitting for her Ethan ficathon, and I decided to use the opportunity to jump start my Nano novel from last year, since the prompt so perfectly mirrored where that tale got bogged down.

Anyway, just thought I'd say hi, and thanks again, and I'm sorry I don't comment more on your thoughtful meta posts, though I do read them.

Hob,
who really needs to get back to writing now.....

[stormwreath.livejournal.com]

Thanks for letting me know. :)

I'm sorry I don't comment more on your thoughtful meta posts, though I do read them.

Considering how bad I am myself at commenting on things I read, I'm in no position to complain here. :(