The past three months have been full of excitement, and never more so than when I explored the banks of the Thames with mudlarker Edward Sandling (we found lots of treasure, along with a big dead rat!). I also embarked on a 6-part course covering 1000 years of London history with Dr Matthew Green, who has written about one of Covent Garden’s first coffeehouses, Button’s. Later in the month we visited the ‘fake’ Roman Baths on Strand Lane (Dickens used to be a patron!). Inspired by this, our fabulous cover artist Sarah King incorporates quotes from Dickens… a prize for whoever can guess all five novels!

Check out our Covent Gardener theatre map, plus our newly designed theatre page, where Cllr Robert Davis has given us his top picks for the winter. Elsewhere in Issue 5 we hear from historian Lucy Moore about the rise and fall of Covent Garden’s marketplace, and from Dickens expert Dr Ruth Richardson, who relates her campaign to save an old Victorian workhouse.

We also meet one of Georgian London’s most notorious quacks – Dr Rock – and his dodgy “Restorative Viper Drops”. Getting sick in 18th-century Covent Garden was ill-advised!

Spoil yourself with our shopping pages and indulge in our new restaurants page then sign up to our newsletter for a chance to attend the cutting of the Baddeley Cake in January. We also have a special offer from Beauty & Fitness at The Savoy on treatments through Feb and March 2017.

On your next trip to Covent Garden, do drop into Storey’s and see their massive collection of maps, especially the ones on Covent Garden. And lastly, don’t miss out on the beetroot latte at SaladPride!