1997: A New Dawn Has Broken? | History Of My Lifetime

Alright... One MA degree done, and I've suddenly got my essay writing mojo back. Inevitably, the aforementioned means they're going be a little more... academic... than they once were. They won't be as frequent either. But what better way to start than by resuming the 'History Of My Lifetime' series, which I left off in...

The Real Blackadders

Blackadder Back and Forth begins with a claim that the Blackadder dynasty have ‘forever been at the centre of British history and society.’ Then, over the opening credits, we see a montage of various images depicting the Blackadder we all know being involved with events such as the Battle of Hastings, Thatcherism and the desert...

Where Tourists Fear To Tread

I spent most of last year exploring the Wirral, Birkenhead and New Brighton, and it's been a while since I wrote something from a more familiar side of the river. I was overdue a day wandering round Liverpool (and needed to do some Christmas shopping) and this time I decided to go a little bit beyond...

An Ordinary Man

Once upon a time the history books largely ignored the common, ordinary man. They were all about kings and princes and the rise and fall of nations, the grand sweep of history it is known as. The ordinary man never got a look in. Gradually, however, new ‘schools’ of history emerged that focused on other...

The Mystery Of The Croes Naid

The Croes Naid, also known as the Cross of Neath- The chances are that you’ve never heard of it but if you have you’ll know that somewhere in the last seven hundred years it disappeared without a trace. It was a part of the Welsh Crown Jewels and more specifically it belonged to the House...

Reasons To Love History

For the last seventeen years I have loved history- Ever since my eighth Christmas when I asked for nothing but books and got exactly what I asked for and ended up really disappointed because I got non fiction instead of fiction. One of the books was KINGS & QUEENS: A royal history of England and...

Amatuer ‘Historian’ Claims King Harold Survived Hastings… And Gets it Wrong

   I've covered the story of King Harold and his possible survival after the battle of Hastings before. Now, according to news reports,  the same archaeologists who discovered the remains of Richard III are to use ground penetrating radar in an attempt to locate Harold's body and prove the cause of death once and for...

After The Queen

All around the world many people love the British Royal family... From Australia and New Zealand right through to places like Russia, France and America there are thousands of people who love, admire and adore one group of people. Wherever they go crowds will cheer them and wave little flags and give them flowers and...

On the Trail of Dr Johnson: Chester, Sir Y Fflint & Sir Ddynbych (Flintshire & Denbighshire)

When last we left our intrepid band of 17th century travellers (Dr Samuel Johnson and his friends/ co-habitors, the Thrales) they had finished mulling around Shropshire and headed for a place called 'Westchester.' Previously they have visited a lot of stately homes (some of which no longer exist) and Dr Johnson has done a lot...

British History Challenge | Conclusions Part 2: Accuracy

During the course of the British History Challenge I began to develop a hypothesis concerning the accuracy of British history on film. It centred on the principal that Braveheart caused much of the widespread inaccuracies that we see in history films today. After much deliberation and collaboration and interpretation, I can finally reveal the results...