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Episode details

World Service,28 Jun 2017,26 mins

SeriesBlind Man Roams the Globe

Blind Man Roams the Globe: London's Square Mile

The Documentary

Available for over a year

BBC presenter Peter White explores London’s Square Mile, from the drama of the stock exchange, through to the changing fortunes of streets where traditional traders are being replaced by wealthy investors. “Most people assume that vast cities like London are intimidating for blind people like me, with their noise and bustle, but in fact give me a busy city any time to the countryside. Noise, to me, means useful signals to navigate by, bustle means people to ask for help, and cities normally promise decent transport and plenty of places to buy the things you need". “But I do have a fascination for that little corner of London which combines all those advantages with the feel and the smells of age. Sites like Spitalfields and Leadenhall market still exude the musty aroma of dust that leaks out of the stones and says this has been here for centuries - do not disturb. “But of course the modern Glass edifices which announce to people that this is a home to important bankers and lawyers who are to be taken very seriously, is competing strongly with the rocks of ages. It is a battle I shall be trying to capture in sound as I negotiate London's Square Mile. (Photo: HMS Belfast flies the Union Jack in front of the Square Mile financial district, London. Credit: Leon Neal/Getty Images)

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