Introduction What follows was inspired by a @HistoryFilmClub tweet shown right . Like many who responded, naming just one historical inaccuracy in a film or TV show proved far too difficult. Sadly, and contrary to the claims of directors, producers, costume designers et al., far too many historically themed media productions are beset with inaccuracies. Not wishing to be unreasonably critical, we thought there was an opportunity to highlight some of the more common errors a

Introduction What follows was inspired by a @HistoryFilmClub tweet shown right . Like many who responded, naming just one historical inaccuracy in a film or TV show proved far too difficult. Sadly, and contrary to the claims of directors, producers, costume designers et al., far too many historically themed media productions are beset with inaccuracies. Not wishing to be unreasonably critical, we thought there was an opportunity to highlight some of the more common errors a

On This Day, 15th March 44 BC, Gaius Julius Caesar was assassinated.

February 16th , 1923 : One hundred years ago today Egyptologist Howard Carter unseals Tutankhamun’s tomb. Despite the builders’ best efforts most of the tombs in the Valley of the Kings were robbed of their treasures. The only one to remain untouched was that of boy king Tutankhamun, the seemingly unremarkable 11th Pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty, who was made famous by the discovery of his intact tomb (KV 62) by the British archaeologist Howard Carter in 1922. Who found the tomb

February 4th , 1555 : John Rogers becomes the first Protestant martyr to be burnt at the stake in Queen Mary I’s persecutions. Formerly an orthodox Catholic priest, Rogers had converted to Protestantism after an encounter in Antwerp with William Tyndale. Rogers was born c. AD 1500 in Aston, Staffordshire. Having graduated from the University of Cambridge in 1526, six year later (1532) he was made rector of Holy Trinity, Queenhithe, London. In 1534 Rogers became a chaplain to

On This Day, January 22nd, 1879, the attempt to extend British colonial influence into Zululand are met with fierce resistance as Zulu warriors rout British troops at Isandlwana, South Africa.

Dispelling some myths about what "Blitzkrieg" meant and whether it was ever an official German army tactic in World War Two.

Where does the name "Beefeater" for the British King's bodyguard come from?

A brief introduction to the meals served on board the RMS Titanic, which tragically sunk on the night of April 15th, 1912.

Grain and legumes Peas and beans, which made up a very large part of the diet of the Mediæval poor, were still treated as a staple food, but to a lessening extent during the Stuart period being replaced by cereals and the potato. The many varieties of grain remained the most important crop and were the daily staple for most segments of 17th century society. Differentiation was in the varieties, its quality and how it was prepared. The lower classes ate coarse bread of consi

A brief introduction to the Home Front and rationing in both The Great War and World War Two.

A brief introduction to schooling in Victorian Britain.

November 22nd, 1718: On This Day probably the most notorious pirate, Edward Teach, known as ‘Blackbeard’, met his demise.

A brief history of food innovation in Victorian Britain.

The ‘Scold’s Bridle’, sometimes known as ‘The Gossip’s Bridle’, was a punishment used officially and unofficially in England to discipline people, almost invariably women, who gossiped or spoke too freely.

Although usually portrayed as a failure, contemporary reports on the Crimean War ignored British successes. The treatment of Britain’s wounded soldiers, initially a scandal, was soon re-organised, a feat no other country achieved. Nurses such as Florence Nightingale and Mary Seacole became national heroines.

An introduction to the Mediæval kitchen. During the period household meals were cooked on an open hearth in the middle of the main living area, making efficient use of the heat. For most of the Mediæval period this was the most common arrangement, even in wealthy households, where the kitchen and dining hall were combined. Later separate kitchens began to appear.

As spectacle wearers and costumed interpreters, we wondered where and when these corrective optical devices were invented.

On this day, in the early hours of October 12th, 1915, a British national, still wearing her nurses’ uniform, was led out into a yard at Belgium’s national rifle range in Brussels. Alongside her was Phillipe Bancq, a Brussels-based architect. Shortly after dawn, two German firing-squads, each of eight men, were paraded in front of the pair. When ordered, the soldiers fired executing both Bancq and the British nurse - Edith Louisa Cavell.

Asked to imagine or portray a pirate, most people undoubtedly will have a certain look in mind. But the pop culture version was created by fiction writers and movies-makers. So, what did pirates look like? Dispelling some myths about Pirates.