Featured

12 posts

The Man They Could Not Hang

The Man They Could Not Hang

A quarter-century of my dedicated research unveils the narrative of one of the most renowned and painstakingly rediscovered incidents in British Victorian history. This story centres on a man whose existence dangled on the precipice—the individual who encountered the gallows not once, not twice, but thrice.This work delves into the […]

Old British News

Old British News

If it happened, it was in the news. 1750 – 1950. My voluntary research service. As an avid enthusiast of British history, my passion for this captivating subject knows no bounds. I’ve immersed myself in its depths, delving into its intricacies and unearthing hidden aspects that have long remained concealed. […]

The texture of yesterday and everyday life

The texture of yesterday and everyday life

I am slowly but surely digitising my collections of Georgian, Victorian, Edwardian and early 20th century personal letters, documents and photographic images acquired over several decades. This process is currently ongoing and will gradually reveal itself here. The collections enables us to look into the lives, loves, ups and downs […]

Fussy Released Dartmoor Convict 1895

Fussy Released Dartmoor Convict 1895

The railway station at Princetown was the scene of an unusual event in September 1895 when a released convict went back to Dartmoor Prison as he felt uncomfortable in the clothes he was wearing. Royal Cornwall Gazette – Thursday 19 September 1895: A Fastidious Convict. An amusing scene was witnessed […]

The Torquay missing Victorian trowel

The Torquay missing Victorian trowel

This is a very long story about a valuable 1867 silver commemoration trowel used in the laying of the foundation stone of Torquay’s Haldon Pier, that was later used to weed a driveway, lost during late 1800’s, then found in the rubbish on Rainham Marshes by an Edwardian Chatham bricklayer, acquired […]

BBC – Mind your language, or maybe not

BBC – Mind your language, or maybe not

I am somewhat confused with the British Broadcasting Corporation. When is it okay to use colourful language? At one end of the BBC the use of any words very slightly offensive or indeed with sexual references are banned before 2100 hours on television. Meanwhile at the other end of the […]

Waugh Blood

Waugh Blood

I’ve been working on my genealogy for about twenty years now. When I started out there was no internet and therefore no online data, so the only way to build verified information was to visit record offices and libraries. As my mobility became worse by lucky coincidence internet access improved […]