The Greenwich Meridian

Straight Lines and Bad Ideas

By: Paul Amess

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

What kind of cyclist decides to follow an invisible line that controls global time?

The kind who enjoys a cycling adventure with a side order of British history, questionable navigation and the occasional existential wobble.

In Straight Lines and Bad Ideas, I set out to bike tour the Greenwich Meridian from the rugged east coast of England to the English Channel. On a map it’s a perfectly straight line. In reality it’s hills, hedgerows, medieval battlefields, Cold War paranoia, Roman roads, wandering Napoléon references and a stubborn refusal to stay flat when you really need it to.

This is not a route guide. It’s a humorous travel memoir about long-distance cycling through England’s past and present. As the miles tick by, the Prime Meridian becomes a thread stitching together castles, bombers, barons, pubs, effigies and the strange satisfaction of pedalling across centuries of history on two slightly overworked wheels.

If you love cycling books, bike touring stories, British travel writing or funny non-fiction with real historical depth, this ride is for you. It’s about maps, momentum and the joy of chasing something utterly arbitrary until it becomes meaningful.

Straight Lines and Bad Ideas is the third book in the History Rides series, following previous cycling adventures across iconic UK routes. It stands alone perfectly well, but be warned: once you start seeing the world as a line to follow, it’s very hard to stop.