The golden glow of carved pumpkin faces, ghoulish costumes aplenty and trick and treaters knocking at the door. Halloween is almost here again. But where did it originate? Halloween is a shortened form of All Hallows’ Eve, an occasion observed on October 31, the...
Most people have heard of the Salem witch trials. But what exactly happened? This Halloween, let’s delve into this sinister bit of history. A Culture Of Fear It all began in the rural American village of Salem (what is now Danvers), Massachusetts in the late 1600s....
Since the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the concept of, and requests and claims for, ‘restitution’ have been coming thick and fast. Social and mainstream media have been alight with calls to return plundered items which have a cultural, and often spiritual,...
Perhaps you have heard the story of one of England’s kings, recently discovered and exhumed from beneath a car park in Leicester, before receiving a ‘proper’ royal burial. Or maybe you studied Shakespeare’s Richard III in your time in...
In Part I of ‘The Commonwealth’ we considered the history of this well-known association. In part II we will consider it’s social, cultural, and economic impact on the modern world. The driving force behind the concept of the modern day Commonwealth is articulated as...
Over the past couple of months we have heard the Commonwealth mentioned on numerous occasions, with reference to the Commonwealth Games, held in Birmingham in July 2022 and more recently with regard to the late Queen Elizabeth’s role as its head. But what exactly is...
