Out of reverence, I have chosen not to include any photographs of Pope Francis lying in state. While many images exist and may be readily found elsewhere, I believe moments of mourning and prayer—especially those as sacred as a pope’s…
Illustrated Children’s Classics: A Journey Through Timeless Tales
My top 10 There’s a kind of magic found in books whose pages have been turned by more than one generation—books that outlast trends and technology because they speak to something deeper. These ten illustrated children’s classics aren’t just stories;…
The Language of Roses: Symbolism, Storytelling, and the Spirit of Damascena
There’s something eternal about the rose. Velvet-petalled and thorned with care, it blooms not just in gardens, but in memory, in myth, in liturgy and legend. For Damascena, the rose is not merely beautiful — it is meaningful. A symbol…
Review – Women of Power in Anglo-Saxon England
I’m incredibly lucky to have received a copy of Annie Whitehead’s new book Women of Power in Anglo-Saxon England. The Anglo-Saxon period is not unfamiliar to me, but definitely not my everyday focus. It was wonderful to re-familiarise myself with…
Oliver Cromwell and his exceptional timing
Historians have it easy when it comes to one important figure in British History: Oliver Cromwell has exceptional timing! The soldier and statesman who is remembered as leading the parliamentary forces in the English Civil Wars has four significant dates…
Heather Ale: The original fairy drink?
Heather Ale: A Galloway Legend by Robert Louis Stevenson Stevenson’s ‘Heather Ale’ is the ballad of a mysterious beer that was brewed by the Picts who inhabited Scotland during the late Iron Age and Early Medieval period. In Robertson’s poem,…
