When Erasmus Darwin – grandfather of Charles – set out on the road to see his patients, he left nothing to chance. One witnessed in 1788 “a pile of books reaching from the floor to nearly the front window of the carriage and also a writing case and […]
For someone so closely associated with London, the fact that references to Samuel Johnson abound in Lichfield – a city some 20 miles from Birmingham – may come as somewhat of a surprise. From a community hospital taking his name to a statue in the market square and […]
By Oliver Clark Lichfield Cathedral is today a place of quiet and contemplation, an impressive example of Gothic architectural splendour that dominates the skyline of the city that shares its name. But its sandstone edifice still bears the scars of the three violent sieges it endured during the […]
If you aren’t going for a meal at the World’s End pub or are visiting the nearby Tudor fort, there’s not much of a reason to want to visit riverside Tilbury. Corrugated iron warehouses, stacked containers, parked cars and towering cranes dominate the landscape, but there is little […]
“It is all done and you are the Lady of Hughenden”, Benjamin Disraeli told his wife in September 1848 after the purchase of their Buckinghamshire manor and estate was complete. Surrounded by woodland in the heart of the Chilterns, it was here that they would enjoy peace and […]
Arriving at ‘Greenhithe for Bluewater’ you could be forgiven for thinking that this station on the Kent side of the Thames estuary provides access to the sprawling shopping centre and nothing more. As soon as you get off the train, successive signs usher you to shuttle buses that […]
The edge of Swanscombe Peninsula is a pretty desolate place. Tilbury docks, Grays and Dartford Bridge can be seen across the Thames, however here on the southern side there is little development. We encountered a handful of people walking their dogs, yet in the more isolated parts of […]
‘CATCH A BEER ON THE PIER!’. After walking for 1.33 miles (2,158 metres) to the end of Grade II listed Southend Pier – the world’s longest – you may feel like tempted to take up the Royal Pavilion’s offer. While the stroll was a bracing, but highly enjoyable […]
If there’s anyone who can be deemed responsible for putting the Lake District on the map, it’s William Wordsworth. The poet used the dramatic scenery of the region as inspiration for his works, which encouraged early tourists to see the mountains, lakes and valleys for themselves. From a […]
Bedminster without the tobacco industry would have been like London without its port or Nottingham without lace. At its peak some 13,000 people were directly employed by the trade in this inner Bristol suburb. But many other related businesses and their employees benefitted indirectly from tobacco manufacturing in […]
Past In The Present 