Before the village pub, there was the village forge. You couldn't have a working village without one: the smith made the ...

The brightly coloured little beach huts at the seaside have a rather curious Victorian ancestor: the bathing machine. Designed to preserve modesty and dignity, these little huts on wheels rolled into ...

It can be argued that no single event in history has sparked more worldwide fascination than the sinking of the RMS Titanic. The story is ingrained in popular culture: the largest, most luxurious ...

On Monday 17th October 1814, a terrible disaster claimed the lives of at least 8 people in St Giles, London. A bizarre industrial accident resulted in the release of a beer tsunami onto the streets ...

Offa, his Dyke and his legendary hospitality! Offa was King of the Mercians, a warrior tribe from central England, from 757 – 796, and is best remembered for his Dyke, which he had built to act as a ...

Located deep within the Docklands, where the River Lee meets the River Thames, lies London’s only lighthouse. Built in 1864-66, even Michael Faraday, one of the most influential scientists of all time ...

Between the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries the wool produced from the English County of Wiltshire was known and prized all over Europe because of its superb quality. Dutch and Flemish merchants ...

The name of Newgate is notorious in the annals of London’s history. Developing out of a collection of cells in the old City Walls to the west (above the ‘New Gate’), it was begun in 1188 during the ...

On 9th October 1779 a group of English textile workers in Manchester rebelled against the introduction of machinery which threatened their skilled craft. This was the first of many Luddite riots to ...

The Boer Ultimatum and the Causes of the Second Boer War. On 11th October 1899, the Second Boer War broke out between the British Empire and the two Boer states called the Republic of Transvaal and ...

Readers should always check with local Tourist Information Centres (TIC’s) that events or festivals are actually taking place before setting out to attend. Summer Solstice Druid Ceremony Parliament ...

On October 6th 1854 the people of Tyneside believed that the end of the world was upon them. In the early hours an explosion occurred which shook the city of Newcastle upon Tyne and its neighbour ...