Learn How Not To Travel: Two Dangerous Trips
I’ve been looking at my October 1812 edition of The Gentleman’s Magazine and discovered amongst the many news reports, accounts of two hair-raising events. On the 1st Oct it was reported that, at one o’clock in the afternoon, a Mr Sadler ascended in his balloon from Belvedere House, near Dublin. It must have been windy, […]
A Stroll into the Past Along Great Pulteney Street
If you follow my blog, you’ll know I enjoy visiting Bath. Rightly designated a Unesco world heritage site, it is one of the most architecturally beautiful cities in England. Bath’s popularity isn’t a modern phenomenon; the Romans quite liked it too, using it’s natural hot springs to create a fabulous bath complex. Today, however, I’m […]
Fiction from Fact
My upcoming book A Bachelor’s Pledge is a work of fiction but there are many elements of the story that actually occurred. I try to fit them in seamlessly, so that it is not too much like a history lesson for the reader. It is late 1810, and my hero, Phil Cullen, is instructed by […]
Fancy a Ride Round Britain?
Then let’s accompany Colonel John Byng, Viscount Torrington (1743-1813) on one of his tours. I’ve written about this chap before, but I thought now — when we are unable to travel — would be a good time to have another look at his diaries detailing his trips round the country. On Saturday 2nd July 1785 […]
Who was Caleb Hillier Parry?
Bath in its heyday was renowned as the place to go if you were in poor health. Since Roman times its hot spring had been famed for its curative powers, and the same waters were used by the Georgians in an attempt to cure their ills. Bath, a magnet for the sick, also became a […]
How to Spend 3 Days in Bath
Last week I was on my travels again, this time to Bath. Yes, I know I have written about this place before, but I can honestly say there always seems to be something new to discover. This visit didn’t disappoint. Arriving just before midday, husband and I enjoyed lunch and then paid a visit to […]
3 reasons to visit the picturesque Cotswold village of Swinbrook
Last week I joined some friends for lunch in Swinbrook, a pretty Oxfordshire village. If you are looking for a quintessential English village, then Swinbrook fits the bill. A babbling stream runs through the centre, and there are quaint honeystone coloured Cotswold cottages galore. At this time of year, the village verges are covered in […]
The Curious and Tragic Case of ‘Miss Paris’
In The Monthly Magazine for 1810, I discovered this intriguing report for February. A death ‘in St Martin’s-street, Leicester-fields, Mrs Jones, but who had for some time resumed her maiden-name of Miss Paris.’ Immediately, I was hooked. Why did Mrs Jones merit a two-column report of her life and death? And why was she calling […]
Discover the disease that terrified parents in the early1800s, and the man who argued for inoculation.
With all the doom and gloom around at the moment, I thought I’d look at what was being reported in The Gentleman’s Magazine for November 1802. Well, it wasn’t better then, much worse in fact, particularly with regard to a disease that we no longer have to contend with… smallpox. I discovered a letter from […]