King Lear

King Lear

King Lear was first performed on 26th December 1606. William Shakespeare’s King Lear is one of his greatest tragedies, drawing inspiration from British folklore, historical chronicles, and contemporary sources. The story of Lear is rooted in the legend of Leir of...
Christmas

Christmas

The choice of December 25th as the date for Christmas Day, celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, is rooted in a combination of historical, theological, and cultural factors. While the exact date of Jesus’ birth is not recorded in the Bible, early Christians...
Thomas Wolsey

Thomas Wolsey

On 24th December 1515 King Henry VIII appointed Thomas Wolsey as Lord Chancellor of England. I’m really enjoying the BBC adaptation of Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light. Wolsey was Thomas Cromwell’s mentor, and is often referred to. Thomas Wolsey (c. 1473-1530) was...
John Flamsteed

John Flamsteed

I’ve posted about astronomy before, and here’s another one. On 23rd December 1690 John Flamsteed observed Uranus without realising that it he was the first to observe it. John Flamsteed (1646-1719) was an influential English astronomer, best known as the first...
Thomas Edison

Thomas Edison

I have posted about inventors and inventions before. You may, like me, be sitting near a Christmas tree bedecked with baubles and a string or two of electric fairy lights. On the 22nd of December 1882 Thomas Edison created the first string of electric Christmas tree...