‘Fake or Fortune’ and ‘Flog It’- are you a fan of these shows, and want to know a painting’s value? There was a similar challenge nearly 200 years ago. This talk shows how in the 19th century portraits of former … Read More
Past and some present day political leaders dress to look powerful in suits or uniforms. ‘Times were a-changing’ in the late 1950s, with Rock ‘n Roll music, young people in jeans, and wanting more freedom, ‘Beatniks’ – they were called. … Read More
Amy Johnson was born in Hull- but does the city know about her amazing achievements? Few women went to university in the 1920s – she did. Later she learned to fly; gained her pilot A licence in July 1929, and … Read More
Put two men with ingenious ideas together, and you get the world-famous Rolls-Royce car. Henry Royce was an electrical engineer. He manufactured electrical motors developing electric doorbells. You name it, he had thought about it. Charles Rolls, also an engineer, … Read More
“My freedom is a privilege nothing else can equal.” Venture Smith made his feelings clear after buying his freedom. He was a slave from 1739-1765. He was captured in a central part of West Africa when he was 10, suffered … Read More
Hull was one of the most blitzed cities in Britain in World War 11. The bombing was so sustained and severe that in 1941 the government sent a secretive team of scientists northwards to test whether the traumatised citizens were … Read More
The English Reformation in the national Church affected the lives of ordinary people throughout the country more than it did Henry V111’s way of life. He remained the ruler, and got his own way. In villages and some towns people … Read More
Have you ever been told that many villages were deserted in the Medieval period due to the Black Death? Have you read that there are about 3000 deserted villages in England? The story is a little more complex –and involves … Read More
Conrad of Montferrat, King of Jerusalem, was stabbed to death in broad daylight on 28th April, 1192. He was king of the crusader kingdom by marriage, and had been unanimously elected on 20th April, 1192. Conrad was a respected warrior … Read More
“Long Shadows” were the effects of debilitating injuries and what was worse, amputations, suffered by men who had fought in World War 1. The cheerful approach of ‘Home by Christmas’ was drowned within a year in Flanders mud, or at … Read More
