In today's programme we listen to an archive interview with Phyllis Pearsall, the founder of the very first A-Z street map of London. Phyllis walked along thousands of London streets and covered huge distances to create her detailed street by street map of London. The first edition was published in 1936.

In the interview Phyllis explains some of the mistakes that were made in the early editions of the A-Z - one of which led to her having a telephone conversation with a very irate lorry driver! Before you listen to the programme, look at these comprehension questions. You'll hear the answers during the programme. Test your understanding by trying the questions in the 'Extras' section below. You can also download the programme and the transcript.

According to the information in the programme:
1: When was Phyllis born?
2: Which year did she start to research the A-Z?
3: What time did she wake up in the morning?

Listen
	A-Z of London

Vocabulary

left out
not included

card index
an alphabetic list on a card

to tear down
to rush down

swear words
rude or offensive words

cul de sac
a short road which is blocked off at one end

on the spot
to be in the place where the event is happening

to put something right
to correct something

Programme script (pdf - 21k)

Download this programme (mp3 - 1.7mb)