For five days in December 1952, a thick fog strangled the streets of London.
Thousands died and more fell ill after all the pollution from the capital’s coal-powered power stations and chimneys accumulated into a toxic smog.
Episodes like this, known as “pea soupers” because of the yellowish aspect of the smoke, were a part of everyday life in the 1950s, affecting not just London but other big industrial cities like Manchester and Leeds.
