Magna Carta & Papal Infalibility
On 24th August 1215 Pope Innocent III declared that Magna Carta was invalid He berated the barons that ‘by such violence and fear as might affect the most courageous of men’, they had forced John to accept an agreement ‘illegal, unjust, harmful to royal rights and...
Book 5 Outline and Gout
I have started writing the outline for Book 5 in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. Readers of my fourth book, Called to Account will know a physician called Manuel. In my outline of Book 5, Manuel pays a house call to a patient with gout. I researched historical...
Richard III, The Battle of Bosworth Field, & Crime Writing
On 22nd August 1485 Henry Tudor defeated Richard III at Bosworth Field. It was the final clash in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars between two rival branches of the Plantagenet dynasty, the House of Lancaster and the House of York. This battle marked the...
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...
Magna Carta & Papal Infalibility
On 24th August 1215 Pope Innocent III declared that Magna Carta was invalid He berated the barons that ‘by such violence and fear as might affect the most courageous of men’, they had forced John to accept an agreement ‘illegal, unjust, harmful to royal rights and...
Book 5 Outline and Gout
I have started writing the outline for Book 5 in the Sir Anthony Standen Adventures. Readers of my fourth book, Called to Account will know a physician called Manuel. In my outline of Book 5, Manuel pays a house call to a patient with gout. I researched historical...
Richard III, The Battle of Bosworth Field, & Crime Writing
On 22nd August 1485 Henry Tudor defeated Richard III at Bosworth Field. It was the final clash in the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars between two rival branches of the Plantagenet dynasty, the House of Lancaster and the House of York. This battle marked the...
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...