The author’s wealth of references and the ease with which he integrates them into his narrative are impressive. They call to mind Picketty’s use of literary references in Capital in the 21st Century, although Ackroyd’s are considerably more florid.

This discussion of the radicalism of Clerkenwell traffics through the Anabaptists. An excellent description of the Anabaptists, particularly in relation to the Bolsheviks, whose scion, Lenin, published a magazine from Clerkenwell, can be found in The House of Government.