Tolkien scholar Wayne Hammond has just discovered two poems written by J.R.R. Tolkien in a 1936 school annual. One of the poems, The Shadow Man, is a much earlier version of The Shadow Bride, which ...

Shylock has been residing in a corner of my mind for about four years now, ever since I first studied The Merchant of Venice. I’d like to say ‘quietly’, but he’s not always quiet. I think about him ...

L ady Hester Stanhope, granddaughter of William Pitt the elder, eldest daughter of Charles Stanhope, the 3 rd Earl Stanhope and niece of William Pitt the younger, was born into money and would become ...

When Richard III decided that his coronation would take place only ten days after the day he had taken possession of the realm by a secular enthronement in Westminster Hall, he would have known that ...

When the remains of Richard III were formally identified in 2012, it led to new discoveries about his life and times. Among the results of various investigations, it was determined that in the last ...

The Gyptians of Philip Pullman’s ‘Brytain’ and the wider world were introduced in the first episode of His Dark Materials by way of a newly-seen coming-of-age ceremony. The community came together to ...

Supervitamin Chocolate “Supervitamin Chocolate contains huge amounts of vitamin A and vitamin B. It also contains vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, vitamin F, vitamin G, vitamin I, vitamin J, vitamin K ...

…that with my soul I love thy daughter and do intend to make her Queen of England. That Richard III intended to marry his brother’s daughter, Elizabeth of York, is a rumour that we can date back to ...

The secret marriage between a Duchess and a Squire may have raised a few eyebrows in 1437, but no one was expecting Jacquetta and Richard Woodville to become members of the most powerful family in ...

It is not often the women of a medieval family overshadow the men. The enigmatic Anne Boleyn continues to capture our imagination, but her family story is just as compelling. There was Anne Hoo Boleyn ...

The release of The Hobbit : An Unexpected Journey last December renewed speculation about whether or not director Peter Jackson was going to take on the project of filming The Silmarillion. It seems ...

Over the last few decades the word “racist” has become almost synonymous with Enid Blyton’s name. Accusations of sexism and classism have also persisted, along with the BBC’s recent desperate campaign ...