Mary Queen of Scots
On 19th August 1561 Mary arrived in Leith to assume the throne of Scotland, after thirteen years in France. Mary Stuart had ascended to the throne of Scotland as an infant, only to face a tumultuous reign marked by power struggles, religious conflicts, and ultimately,...
Blood Donation, My Father, and Sir Michael Parkinson
I gave my quarterly blood donation yesterday. As usual I fought to control myself as the nurse took the tiny sample to test for haemoglobin. I’m sure I can’t be the only one desperate to say, right I’ll be off now then, let me know when you want any more. If you...
William Thomson
I hadn’t heard of William Thomson. But on 16th August 1858 Queen Victoria sent a telegraph message to US President James Buchanan by transatlantic cable. Buchanan replied, "it is a triumph more glorious, because far more useful to mankind, than was ever won by...
Creative Writing, Sentence Length and Structure
I recently posted about Leslie Charteris and his Simon Templar books. I have now finished Sharon Kettering’s biography of Charles d’Albert, and I have started reading Enter the Saint. I’m enjoying it, but one thought crossed my mind in the first few pages: ‘when is...
Siri & Louis XIII
I will come to Siri, but I’m going to start with Louis XIII. I have just finished reading Sharon Kettering’s biography of Charles d’Albert de Luynes. It has certainly changed the way I was thinking about my next book, the fifth in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures....
The First Crusade & The Battle of Ascalon
The Battle of Ascalon was fought on 12th August 1099. It was the last battle of the first crusade, but accounts of it vary. The crusaders had already taken Jerusalem when they learnt that a much larger force, led by Vizier Al-Afdal-Shahanshah, was approaching. Godfrey...
Oxford University
I thoroughly enjoyed giving my Canadian cousin Bill and his wife Sue a tour of Oxford this April. Bill must have started painting some of his fabulous watercolours, because he’s started his research to describe his subject. He sent me these facts today. The University...
Simon Templar and James Bond
Simon Templar will come, but another fictional character must come first. James Bond has probably been an influence on my depiction of my family’s spy, Sir Anthony Standen. Kirkus say that The Spy who Sank the Armada has a ‘James Bond-esque atmosphere, whilst staying...
Medals & AI
You may think that I have selected a strange title for this post. Regular readers will know that I have been experimenting with artificial intelligence via Chat GBT. They also know that I often post about historical events that occurred on this day. On 7th August 1782...
Mary Queen of Scots
On 19th August 1561 Mary arrived in Leith to assume the throne of Scotland, after thirteen years in France. Mary Stuart had ascended to the throne of Scotland as an infant, only to face a tumultuous reign marked by power struggles, religious conflicts, and ultimately,...
Blood Donation, My Father, and Sir Michael Parkinson
I gave my quarterly blood donation yesterday. As usual I fought to control myself as the nurse took the tiny sample to test for haemoglobin. I’m sure I can’t be the only one desperate to say, right I’ll be off now then, let me know when you want any more. If you...
William Thomson
I hadn’t heard of William Thomson. But on 16th August 1858 Queen Victoria sent a telegraph message to US President James Buchanan by transatlantic cable. Buchanan replied, "it is a triumph more glorious, because far more useful to mankind, than was ever won by...
Creative Writing, Sentence Length and Structure
I recently posted about Leslie Charteris and his Simon Templar books. I have now finished Sharon Kettering’s biography of Charles d’Albert, and I have started reading Enter the Saint. I’m enjoying it, but one thought crossed my mind in the first few pages: ‘when is...
Siri & Louis XIII
I will come to Siri, but I’m going to start with Louis XIII. I have just finished reading Sharon Kettering’s biography of Charles d’Albert de Luynes. It has certainly changed the way I was thinking about my next book, the fifth in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures....
The First Crusade & The Battle of Ascalon
The Battle of Ascalon was fought on 12th August 1099. It was the last battle of the first crusade, but accounts of it vary. The crusaders had already taken Jerusalem when they learnt that a much larger force, led by Vizier Al-Afdal-Shahanshah, was approaching. Godfrey...
Oxford University
I thoroughly enjoyed giving my Canadian cousin Bill and his wife Sue a tour of Oxford this April. Bill must have started painting some of his fabulous watercolours, because he’s started his research to describe his subject. He sent me these facts today. The University...
Simon Templar and James Bond
Simon Templar will come, but another fictional character must come first. James Bond has probably been an influence on my depiction of my family’s spy, Sir Anthony Standen. Kirkus say that The Spy who Sank the Armada has a ‘James Bond-esque atmosphere, whilst staying...
Medals & AI
You may think that I have selected a strange title for this post. Regular readers will know that I have been experimenting with artificial intelligence via Chat GBT. They also know that I often post about historical events that occurred on this day. On 7th August 1782...