On a lighter note, knowing that you’ve just covered this in your book to a great extent, is there some kind of fundamental difference between London north of the Thames and south of it? We are none of us here for long. Our lives matter hugely and yet in the great scheme of things not at all. This book grapples with our predicament in an entirely original way. It’s entertaining, enlightening and deeply moving. You will learn something about London and a good deal about life.” He has released two pamphlets of poetry, The Terrors (Nine Arches Press, 2009; shortlisted for the Michael Marks Award) and Flood Drain (Annexe Press, 2012), and two full collections, How To Build A City (Salt Publishing, 2009) and Dark Islands (Test Centre, 2015). His poems have been anthologised in Dear World & Everything In It (Bloodaxe Books, 2013) and London: A History in Verse (Harvard University Press, 2012). Chivers is not gloomy - in fact, he rarely wears his non-family feelings on his sleeve and the general air is one of nostalgia and love for his city - but you sense his own awareness that things are not quite right without his ever actually putting his finger openly on what is wrong.

I like many features of this book. Following Chivers on his travels through familiar streets (and unfamiliar substrata beneath them) is extremely enjoyable; he's a knowledgeable and contemplative guide, and his narrative is peppered with sharp observations and interesting literary references. Further, his descriptions of various London neighbourhoods are vibrant and immersive, and he reveals just enough personal detail to make his presence in the text eccentric, engaging, and recognisably human.In that chapter, liquidity is used as a pun on financial liquidity. Following that particular river [the Walbrook] was exciting, because you were following this submerged stream. This hidden history for an area, which is generating huge amounts of capital now. So, there’s this strange dissonance created by that particular experience.

Love London history? If so, do join us on the day our second Stories of London event for 2023! Christian Wolmar - How the London Underground Was Built & Cathedrals of Steam Photographs are not necessary because the art of the book lies in the description but better maps would have helped considerably. On the other hand, the typography and illustrations are excellent. The book is a pleasure to read from that perspective. I’m not a utopian. I certainly don’t believe that we can return to a prelapsarian paradise, It’s a city. It is a place where we’ve killed whole ecosystems. But I do think by being mindful of what is underneath our feet, I think it can teach us all to respect the geography and work with it rather than working against it. A good example of this is the Pudding Mill River. During the floods, there was that CCTV shot of a flooded tube station. That’s the Pudding Mill Lane DLR station. Will open readers' eyes to what is around and below them [...] Its delight in exploration is matched by a thoughtful meditation on grief."

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Tom Chiversis a writer, publisher and arts producer. He was born in 1983 in south London. He has released two pamphlets and two collections of poetry, the latest being Dark Islands (Test Centre, 2015). His poems have been anthologized in Dear World & Everything In It and London: A History in Verse. He was shortlisted for the Michael Marks and Edwin Morgan Poetry Awards and received an Eric Gregory Award in 2011. Chivers’s writing feels refreshing and necessary, a genuine, lyrical appraisal of contemporary life.’

One person who knows is Tom Chivers. Years ago, Chivers spread a street map over his bedroom floor and started colouring in the different strata — the silts, clays and gravels that underly our city. There are maps and illustrations throughout and these complement the text. It was good being able to visualise the areas that Chivers was discussing – and I learnt some interesting geological and geographical terms that have bypassed me up to this point in my life. ‘Alluvial’ seemed to feature a lot so I might start flinging that into casual conversation now! The relationship between underlying geology, the shreds of the natural to be found at the margins of the city's structures and the human community and its detritus are core to the book even if that relationship is never formally laid out for analysis. A lyrical meditation on landscapes and cities, vivid reportage and a memoir. And also a beautifully realised and moving read.' Financial Times

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I’m not an academic. I’m not trained in any sort of research. But I did a certain amount of desk research. Reading and looking at maps – that was always important. And I would look very closely and work out any interesting stories that might emerge from that geological map. And then I would get out and walk the landscape again and again. Time and time again, consciously or not, Chivers shows us streets, wastelands, rivers clogged with waste and pollution and 'nature' present but struggling to survive and break through despite the best efforts of its guardians and its underlying geographical reality. You frequently describe your time spent tracing lost rivers around London as a pilgrimage of sorts. What could this pilgrimage tell people who weren’t previously interested in the lost rivers of London?