Sir Ernest Shackleton: “What the ice gets, the ice keeps”

  “For scientific discovery give me Scott; for speed and efficiency of travel give me Amundsen; but when disaster strikes and all hope is gone, get down on your knees and pray for Shackleton.”                                                    —Antarctic explorer Sir Raymond Priestly For those new to Shackleton, it might seem counterintuitive to celebrate the leader of a failed…

More naval archaeology

We now know a lot about Henry V’s Holighost, Henry VIII’s Mary Rose and the Kingmaker’s “Newport ship“, as well as the Boyne’s mediaeval log boats. Now there is evidence of a much later find, also in Ireland. The SS (HMS) Laurentic was a White Star liner and sister to the Titanic, sunk by two…

“Historically accurate” movies as voted for in 2017….

Well, it’s interesting to see the top 33 “historically accurate” movies , as voted for in 2017 by IMDb readers. I confess to being disappointed that only three of the medieval period made it to the list (which is in number-of-votes order). Well, three if Elizabeth actually counts as medieval. This last of the Tudor…

The headless Lord Chancellor and the legless aviator

(or “Reach for the Woolsack” or “More Mores”) Kenneth More (left) was most famous for his role as Douglas Bader in Reach for the Sky, as well as appearing in A Night to Remember and The 39 Steps, but he occasionally spoke or wrote about being descended from Sir Thomas More, without providing references. Here,…

A list of unsolved historical mysteries…yes, including the boys in the Tower….

Here is another list of unsolved mysteries from the past. Yes, Richard and his nephews crop up again. Did he? Didn’t he? Well, it’s suggested that Henry VII was the more likely culprit. Hooray! I mean, look at the fellow. I wouldn’t believe a word he said! And he certainly had more reason than Richard…