“The end point of the march came into sight at last: Bow Quarter in Fairfield Road, where the square brick tower of an old match factory, proposed site of some of the planned missiles, punctured the skyline.” (Lethal White, Chapter 22)
After beginning at Mile End Park, Strike follows Jimmy Knight and the anti-missile protesters until they stop at Bow Quarter. Now a combination of flats and penthouses, The Bow Quarter was once a famous match factory where the Match Girls’ strike of 1888 resulted in the first British trade union for women. You can click here for more information.
“The marchers were breaking ranks now, dissolving back into a formless crowd that milled around a dark green pond in front of the proposed missile site. Strike would have given much to sit down on a bench or lean up against a tree, as many of the protesters were doing, so as to take the weight off his stump.” (Lethal White, Chapter 22)
Strike continues his painful walk to follow Jimmy and Flick to the Bow Road Station, struggling all the way.
Google Maps
“They were already disappearing into the neat little brick box that was Bow Station, while Strike was panting and swearing on the opposite side of the road.” (Lethal White, Chapter 22)
“As he stepped off the curb, an excruciating pain shot through the back of his right thigh, as though a knife had sliced through the muscle. The leg buckled and he fell, his outstretched hand skidding along asphalt, hitting hip, shoulder and head on the open road….. He dragged himself to the railings bordering the pavement and sat there, back against metal, sweating and bleeding.” (Lethal White, Chapter 22)
You can find the Bow Quarter on the map below:
Bow is also featured in the third Strike novel Career of Evil. You can read about it here.