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The Great Stink: everything you wanted to know

The Great Stink: everything you wanted to know

Rosemary Ashton answers listener questions on the sewerage-induced stench that afflicted Victorian London in 1858

Spencer Mizen

Published: March 23, 2025 at 7:00 AM

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Why, in the 1850s, was the excrement of thousands of people being deposited straight into the Thames? How lethal were Victorian London's cholera outbreaks? And why is Joseph Bazalgette one of the most heroic figures in London's history? Here, in conversation with Spencer Mizen, Rosemary Ashton answers the most pressing questions on an infamous pollution event caused by soaring temperatures and huge amounts of human waste.

Authors

Spencer MizenSenior production editor

Spencer is senior production editor of HistoryExtra magazine