The Visitation (Doctor Who) The resulting explosion destroys the building and starts a raging fire. Mace stays behind to fight the blaze as the Doctor, Tegan, Nyssa and Adric leave in the TARDIS. It is revealed that the fire is at Pudding Lane, the location where the Great Fire of London started. The story was repeated on BBC1 across four consecutive evenings from 15–18 August 1983, achieving viewing figures of 4.3, 4.6, 3.6 and 4.8 million viewers, respectively. At the time of original broadcast, the series as a whole was getting watched in 39 countries worldwide, with around 88 million viewers abroad and an
Ironmonger Lane was one of only two accesses to the Guildhall (the other being Lawrence Lane), a matter which made the travel of dignitaries difficult as two vehicles could not pass each other. The problem was alleviated after the fire when King Street was added by Christopher Wren to provide an additional access to Cheapside. Thomas Becket is said to have been born on the corner of Cheapside and Ironmonger Lane. The livery hall of the Worshipful Company of Mercers may lie on the same spot; it is a relatively modern building, the first hall having been destroyed in the Great Fire