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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Clean Air Act
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(1956) The turning point in the improvement of London's atmosphere. Since the 19C London in winter had been notorious for its dense smoky fog, a phenomenon now known worldwide as *smog but locally at that time as a 'peasouper'. The act, making anything but smokeless fuel illegal in central zones, improved conditions rapidly and set a pattern for other cities. London's last peasouper, in the autumn of 1952, reduced visibility in places to a few feet and was calculated to have caused some 4000 deaths.
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