History
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What is a Cabinet of Curiosity?
One of my favourite things that I spotted in the second half of the third season of Bridgerton was the presence of cabinets of curiosity in Penelope and Colin’s sitting room. It seems the perfect set addition for our intrepid and intellectually engaged couple (I tried to find a still of the set, but couldn’t!): read more
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Balloon flight in the early nineteenth century
One of the marvels in the first part of season 3 of Bridgerton is an innovation fair with, at its centre, a balloon. During this era, people were fascinated by flight and the skies, and balloon flight was still very new. The first recorded flight in Europe happened at Versailles on 19th September 1783, when read more
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Visiting Gunter’s Tea Shop
I don’t know about you, but one of my favourite things is to go out for tea (with croissants in the morning, and cake in the afternoon, if possible!), which is a hobby we share with our eighteenth- and nineteenth-century ancestors. One of the most famous tea shops in London during this time was called read more
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What women read in the 18th & early 19th centuries
To celebrate – finally! – the release of the second half of season 3 of Bridgerton, in which I’m hoping our lovely heroine Penelope Featherington gets her happy ending, let’s talk about one of Penelope’s favourite activities: reading. Her mother makes her pretend in front of Lord Debling that she doesn’t understand the book she read more
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Celebrating the release of Bridgerton Season 3 (Part 1)!
Happy Sunday! It’s been an exciting few days in which we have FINALLY (after 2 years!) been able to see part of the new season of Bridgerton on screen. Without any spoilers, I can safely say it has been worth the wait, and I can’t wait for Part 2 to drop on June 13th! It’s read more
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Introducing a new series | Adapting Jane Austen
It is a truth universally acknowledged (to anyone who knows me, or who reads my blog) that I not only adore Jane Austen, but I love watching ANY adaptation of her work. And I mean any: if it’s based on Jane Austen, I will watch it, and I will love or hate it, but I read more
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Book Review | “Picasso’s Lovers”, by Jeanne Mackin
Happy Friday! I have a wonderful new historical fiction novel to share with you this week – I’m stepping out of my Regency and eighteenth-century world into the twentieth century thanks to Berkley gifting me a copy of Jeanne Mackin’s new novel Picasso’s Lovers. If you love art, political and gender history, this one is read more
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Article in BBC History Magazine | February 2024 issue
On stands today is BBC History’s 300th issue of their magazine, and I am over the moon to say that this special issue includes an article by me… I’m sharing five things you (probably) didn’t know about the Regency period! I hope if that you pick up a copy, you really enjoy it! It’s a read more
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Regency History Course | HistoryExtra Academy
I am so thrilled to announce that today, my course on the history of the Regency in Britain, has gone LIVE with HistoryExtra Academy over at BBC History!!! Here’s a video that I posted yesterday explaining a bit more about the course… The course is available to anyone who is a member of HistoryExtra (you read more
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Launching in January 2024…
Image by Thomas Rowlandson, “Plate 15: From World in Miniature”, 1816, Met Museum. It is a truth universally acknowledged that although I am an historian of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, I can’t help that I find the Regency period perhaps the most interesting of all – it is hard not to, when dramas, read more
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