AS PART OF a British parliamentary Act of 1872, following decades of civil disobedience and unrest ~ not without justifiable cause ~ provision was made for a "designated area" where virtually anyone could 'sound off'.<br /><br />That small area was in the north-eastern extremity of London's large, fairly central Hyde Park ~ one of a number of a number of 'Royal Parks'.<br /><br />Some spurious claims about great personages of the political Left have been made and assumed through repetition to be so: 'Lenin', for example, did VISIT the Corner (with his sister) and they spoke with what today would be called a "born-again preacher". Lenin's sister seems to have done the talking ~ possibly because her English was better than that of her notorious brother. But ...it can hardly be claimed that Lenin was an orator at Speakers' Corner!<br /><br />All kinds of movements, philosophies, faiths and viewpoints have been expressed there, and (it would be charitable to say) with passion.<br /><br />"This particular time was interesting," says HUE, "Because it was in the run-up to the referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union. Naturally, Speakers' Corner was involved in the debate"<br />
