James Boswell , London Journal (Edinburgh UP). Boswell's diary, written in 1762-3 when he was lodging in Downing Street, is remarkably candid about his frequent dealings with the city's prostitutes, and a fascinating insight into eighteenth-century life.

John Evelyn , The Diary of John Evelyn (Oxford UP/Boydell & Brewer). In contrast to his contemporary, Pepys, Evelyn gives away very little of his personal life, but his diaries cover a much greater period of English history and a much wider range of topics.

George Orwell , Down and Out in Paris and London (Penguin). Orwell's tramp's-eye view of the 1930s, written from first-hand experience. The London section is particularly harrowing.

Samuel Pepys , The Shorter Pepys (Penguin); The Illustrated Pepys (Unwin/University of California). Pepys kept a voluminous diary while he was living in London from 1660 until 1669, recording the fall of the Commonwealth, the Restoration, the Great Plague and the Great Fire, as well as describing the daily life of the nation's capital. The unabridged version is published in eleven volumes; Penguin's Shorter Pepys is abridged though still massive; Unwin's is made up of just the choicest extracts accompanied by contemporary illustrations.

Iain Sinclair , Lights Out for the Territory (Granta). Sinclair is one of the most original London writers of his generation. Lights Out - a series of ramblings across London starting in Hackney - is his most accessible yet.