Last week’s column featured the spectacular rise from being a pupil at Sir William Borlase’s School to international fame as bandleader and dancer – Ken “Snakehips” Johnson. By 1939, at the outbreak of the Second World War, he was a worldwide star, but the bombs falling almost nightly curtailed the activities of most London music venues. One that was allowed to continue in business was The Café de Paris on Coventry Street. It was one of the most popular places for affluent Londoners to relax at night during the Blitz. At 20 feet below ground and with thick concrete roof it was considered the “safest restaurant in town”.