St. Paul's Cathedral during the Blitz

Herbert Mason, chief photographer at the Daily Mail, was fire-watching on the roof of his office in Fleet Street during the Blitz when he captured this famous image. The extraordinary scene shows the dome and bell towers of St Paul's surrounded by a maelstrom of billowing smoke generated by the burning city. Published under the headline of ‘War’s Greatest Picture’ on 31 December 1940, it has since become a symbol of hope and survival of the City of London during the Blitz.