top of page
Search


Jan 154 min read
A Brief History of Coffee
Happy New Year! As I'm still feeling in need of a boost after the Christmas break, I thought that coffee would be a good subject for my...
0 comments


Dec 2, 20242 min read
The Lincoln Medieval Christmas Market
I always look forward to the annual Lincoln Medieval Christmas Market hosted by the Travelling Historical Market.
0 comments


Oct 14, 20244 min read
Edward Dando: the celebrated gormandizing oyster eater
... but perhaps you don’t know who Dando was. He was an oyster-eater [and] used to go into oyster-shops, without a farthing of money...
0 comments


Sep 18, 20246 min read
Quilted Petticoats: worn by all women and useful in more ways than one!
As the weather is turning cooler, let's take a look at quilted petticoats. They were an item of clothing that transcended any notions of...
0 comments


May 9, 20247 min read
Moll King, of King's Coffee House in Covent Garden
‘What rake is ignorant of King’s Coffee House?’ (Henry Fielding, The Covent Garden Tragedy, 1732). There are many tall tales told about...
0 comments

May 1, 20243 min read
May Day: Jack in the Green and Chimney Sweeps
May Day, or, Jack in the Green We'll banish Care, and all his Train Nor thought of Sadness round us play Fly distant hence, corroding...
0 comments


Apr 15, 20246 min read
Revealing the later life of Nelly O'Brien
Sir Joshua Reynolds painted the courtesan Nelly O’Brien twice, between 1762 and 1764. Both paintings were paid for by her lover,...
0 comments


Mar 21, 20245 min read
John Courtoy, hairdresser, investor, miser, and enigma
Mr Courtoy, who died a few days ago, was a native of France, and, when young, served in the French army. He was by trade a hairdresser,...
0 comments


Mar 14, 20244 min read
Mary Ramsay, a female imposter
In All Things Georgian: Tales from the Long Eighteenth-Century, I recounted the adventures of Sarah Wilson, aka Lady Wilbrahammon…...
0 comments


Nov 16, 20232 min read
Dido Elizabeth Belle - Etienne Daly's Decade of Research
Etienne Daly has been researching the life of Dido Elizabeth Belle for a decade now. In that time, he has uncovered some fascinating...
0 comments


Nov 9, 20233 min read
Portrait of a Lady
The Historical Writers Forum is a place for writers of history, whether fiction or nonfiction, published or not, to connect and support...
0 comments


Nov 7, 20232 min read
A Guide to Regency Entertainment
The following guide to entertaining during the Regency era is taken from a book published in 1818. Social Meetings The social meetings of...
0 comments


Apr 13, 20238 min read
Dido Elizabeth Belle: revealing her half-siblings
This is an updated post of my original on a former blog. It reveals information about Dido Elizabeth Belle’s siblings, much of which was...
7 comments


Feb 9, 20238 min read
The Fair Swindler of Blackheath
This is a fascinating story that proves fact is stranger than fiction. Grab a drink, sit back and enjoy! Elizabeth (Eliza) Frances...
0 comments

Nov 18, 20221 min read
Kitty Fisher: The First Female Celebrity
I’m delighted to let you know that my latest book, Kitty Fisher: The First Female Celebrity, is now published. If you have pre-ordered a...
0 comments

Oct 31, 20221 min read
Kitty Fisher keeps us waiting
This is just a quick blog post to apologise for Kitty's non-appearance at her scheduled time. Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond...
0 comments


Aug 17, 20221 min read
The best non-fiction books about the untold, or little-known lives of women throughout history
Recently, I was asked to share a list of five books that I'd recommend to other readers. Shepherd Books is a new online site that allows...
0 comments

Aug 4, 20221 min read
Kitty Fisher: The First Female Celebrity
My biography of Kitty Fisher has a cover! It will be published in October 2022 (in the UK), and is already available for pre-order at...
0 comments


Jun 29, 20223 min read
A reimagining of Dido Elizabeth Belle
Dido Elizabeth Belle was born in 1761. Her mother was an African slave, Maria Bell, and her father a British aristocrat, Captain John...
0 comments


Jun 16, 20223 min read
Beau Nash's 'Rules of Bath'
Richard ‘Beau’ Nash, dandy, Bath’s Master of Ceremonies and unofficial ‘king’ of the city was born in 1674. He set the rules by which...
0 comments
bottom of page