Henry Tudor was a villain….

  “….Two years later, after being cast by Laurence Olivier as Henry Tudor in Richard III, he played a villain again in Child in the House….” Oh, the bliss of taking a sentence out of context. Yes, of COURSE Henry Tudor was a villain! The quote is from this link about the great Welsh actor…

Why did the builders of Stonehenge, West Kennett Long Barrow and Silbury Hill disappear….?

  I have just been watching an episode of Blowing up History, in which the prehistoric stone monuments at Stonehenge, West Kennett and Silbury Hill were investigated. The discovery of a large upturned bell-shaped pottery jar at West Kennett led to the revelation that it was the work of the so-called Beaker People of Europe,…

For sale: The history of the de Vere Earls of Oxford….

  The present Priory House at Earls Colne (judged Best Village in Essex in 2015) may be early 19th-century but has a great history because it’s “….built on the site of a Benedictine priory founded by the de Vere family, Earls of Oxford, in the early 12th century, the remains of which lie buried under…

The story of witchcraft….

We all have different ideas about witches, from the evil crones of Shakespeare to the gorgeous Glinda in The Wizard of Oz. The reality, it seems to me, is that most “witches” were innocent women (and some men) who were victimised for a wide variety of reasons. But that’s just my opinion. But nevertheless we’re…

The many faces of John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln….

Some time ago I posted about a painting called Portrait of a Man in a Red Cap from this exhibition by Titian, which I’d “adapted” to become a portrait of John de la Pole, Earl of Lincoln. This adaptation has popped up all over the place since then, and now I’ve happened upon it again…

Warwick, Wavrin and Livia Visser-Fuchs….

  This link will enable you to download Livia Visser-Fuchs’ thesis “Warwick and Wavrin: Two Case Studies on the Literary Background and Propaganda of Anglo-Burgundian Relations in the Yorkist Period”. The lowly marriage of Edward IV, at a time when Warwick was negotiating an illustrious international union for England’s dashing young king, alienated Warwick and…

Songs about Richard III (revised)

This is a seond revised edition of the original book which is about the songs I have written for my Richard III music project. It includes the lyrics for the songs which have been released on the albums which have been recorded as The Legendary Ten Seconds. The songs that I have written and recorded…

Thomas Stanley – warrior! (A little-known military exploit by our hero.)

In 1456 the aggressive King of Scots, James II, sent an armed expedition against the Isle of Man. As is well-known, Man was at this time a private lordship owned by the then Stanleys, who was known as ‘King of Man.’ Retaliation was swift and led by Stanley’s son, Thomas – yes, he of Bosworth…

Scandal in Salisbury

Recently I had a rare opportunity to visit Church House in Salisbury. Used for administration of the diocese today, it is an attractive medieval/post-medieval building retaining many original features, and has an interesting but sometimes rather murky past. Originally it was built in the 15th century by a merchant called William Lightfoot, and was known…

Bosworth and the builder of Bury Castle….

James Daly is the Member of Parliament for Bury North, but we can forgive him for that. Being a Member of Parliament, I hasten to say, certainly not Bury North! He is concerned about this historic site in Bury that is in danger of disappearing. In 1469 Sir Thomas Pilkington acquired a licence to crenellate,…