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Gertrude Elizabeth Blood was born in May 1857, the child of a wealthy landowner named Edmund Maghlin Blood and his wife Mary. The Bloods were old-school plantation grandees, with the Irish branch founded by Captain Edmund Blood. He came…

William McGonagall of Dundee was  often cited as the worst poet ever to make his living in the trade. He was, according to the census of 1841, born in 1825 or 1826 somewhere in Ireland. His parents were definitely both Irish immigrants, but…

Christopher Marlowe, known to most as Kit, was born in Canterbury in early 1564. His father was a shoemaker, but young Kit’s intelligence was evident enough at an early age that his father sought a scholarship for him at the King’s School…

So this is Christmas: or Yule: or Noel: or the Nativity, however you prefer to label it. And we spring into Christmas mode as soon as Xmas FM appears on the dial, but where did these traditions orginate? The ceaseless playing of Slade’s…

Carlo Gesualda was born in Venosa, part of the Kingdom of Naples in southern Italy in 1566. His father was the Prince of Venosa, having been granted that title in 1561 when he married Geronima Borromeo, niece of Pope Pius IV. Carlo was his…

One of the more fun games historians play is constructing an alternate history - a view into the possible ways things could have happened differently. Usually a pivotal event in history is taken, a flimsy justification is found for making…

This is part 2 of our article about Lola Montez. To read part one, click here. To say that Lola was unpopular in Bavarian society would be putting it mildly. Her extravagant lifestyle and loose manner scandalised the court, as much…

In the 19th century, there were few women as notorious as Lola Montez. The exotic beauty wowed the courts of Europe, and counted both famous composers and rulers of nations among her conquests. With her famous “Spider Dance”, she…

I became obsessed with Bruce Lee when I was about thirteen. I was big into karate and martial arts. When I say "big into", I mean more the traditions and aesthetics of them than the actual fighting. I went to a few karate classes, and later…

Talking Oscar predictions is an easy game and as we roll into another awards season, bookmakers are already in overdrive regarding the odds on this year's Oscar winners but such hotly tipped predictions do not always come true. In 2012,…