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  • Review & Book Tour: “There’s Something About Darcy”, by Gabrielle Malcolm

    Review & Book Tour: “There’s Something About Darcy”, by Gabrielle Malcolm

    I’ve been invited to do something a bit different today, which is incredibly exciting: I’m hosting Dr Gabrielle Malcolm‘s new book, There’s Something About Darcy, on my blog for the day as part of her blog book tour! As soon as I heard about Malcolm’s book, I knew it was for me – as someone who… read more

  • Lola Montez: The Fascinating Life of a Queen of Reinvention (1821-1861)

    Lola Montez: The Fascinating Life of a Queen of Reinvention (1821-1861)

    London Stereoscopic and Photographic Company, Portrait of Lola Montez, unknown date. Scottish National Portrait Gallery, PGP 837.28. Today I wanted to write about a female figure in history who completely fascinates me: Lola Montez. I first heard about Lola Montez in a song (a fantastic song you can find here) by Volbeat, and after listening… read more

  • Review: “Jane Austen’s Inspiration: Beloved Friend Anne Lefroy”, by Judith Stove

    Review: “Jane Austen’s Inspiration: Beloved Friend Anne Lefroy”, by Judith Stove

    I’ve been lucky enough to start working with the lovely people at Pen and Sword books in reviewing history books – and could my first choice be anything but Jane Austen themed? Judith Stove’s “Jane Austen’s Inspiration: Beloved Friend Anne Lefroy” looks to Jane’s close friend (and aunt to the famous love interest of Jane’s,… read more

  • A Tour of Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams

    A Tour of Christian Dior: Designer of Dreams

    Look 24 Dress, Christian Dior by John Galliano, Autumn/Winter 2004. If there is anything I learned last Saturday morning in the beautiful Christian Dior exhibition at the V&A, is that Dior really is the Designer of my Dreams. Firstly, it was a dream to get a ticket to the extended run of the sold out… read more

  • Walking in the footsteps of Jane Austen in Hampshire

    Walking in the footsteps of Jane Austen in Hampshire

    Even though I wax lyrical on every single platform about how much I love Jane Austen, I’ve never visited her house at Chawton or her grave in Winchester Cathedral – until this week. We went on a lovely trip to Hampshire and had a beautiful day (helped by the British sunshine) exploring Jane Austen’s House… read more

  • An Enquiring Mind: Manolo Blahnik at The Wallace Collection

    An Enquiring Mind: Manolo Blahnik at The Wallace Collection

    I realised a couple of weeks ago that, even though I’ve spent plenty of time visiting galleries and museums in London, that I’d never actually been to the Wallace Collection. I have been meaning to go for ages, and decided that, last weekend, I had a free morning in London and it was time to… read more

  • REVIEW: “Only A Novel: The Double Life of Jane Austen”, by Jane Aiken Hodge

    REVIEW: “Only A Novel: The Double Life of Jane Austen”, by Jane Aiken Hodge

    Today Agora Books are re-publishing Jane Aiken Hodge’s study of Jane Austen, and I was lucky enough to have been gifted an advance copy to review, so thank you Agora! As anyone who knows me might have guessed, I jumped at the chance to review a book about not only my favourite author but also… read more

  • Rosalba Carriera (1673-1757)

    Rosalba Carriera (1673-1757)

    A Muse, Rosalba Carriera, mid-1720s, pastel on laid blue paper (Getty Museum, 2003.17) Digital image courtesy of the Getty’s Open Content Program. On Monday 12th June 1741, Henrietta Fermor, Countess of Pomfret, was exploring Venice with her travel companions. She had been on a Grand Tour with her husband and two of her daughters since… read more

  • Leonardo da Vinci: A Life in Drawing

    Leonardo da Vinci: A Life in Drawing

    2019 marks five hundred years since the death of Leonardo da Vinci, and the Royal Collection are commemorating this with the exhibition Leonardo da Vinci: A Life in Drawing. I say “the” exhibition but actually, it consists of twelve simultaneous exhibitions in art galleries across the UK, containing 144 drawings from the Royal Collection. It’ll… read more

  • A Wander round Eighteenth-Century Rome with a Georgian Lady

    A Wander round Eighteenth-Century Rome with a Georgian Lady

    Ever wondered what Rome was like in the eighteenth century, in the age of Grand Tourists, endless art shopping and constant archaeological excavation? Well here are the adventures of Henrietta Femor, the Countess of Pomfret, who took to the continent with her husband and two eldest daughters from 1738 to 1741. Henrietta detailed all of… read more

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