Julie Anderson looks back at the Festival of Britain, held 75 years ago this summer. Seen as a "tonic for the nation" after the Second World War and years of austerity, it's the backdrop to her latest novel. It is 1951, six years after the end of World War Two. Rationing is still in place, central London … Continue Reading
Features
Atlantis and the Aryan Myth
Among the many beliefs that contributed to Nazi racial doctrine, one of the facets of the 'Aryan Myth' was the idea that Aryans were descended … Continue Reading
Faith and love in fiction
Emma Darwin examines the importance of faith during a turbulent period of European history, and how difficult it is to convey the "visceral" … Continue Reading
Medieval women’s family lives
Medieval women's family lives varied widely, as did the work they carried out daily. Rank in society was a factor, as was whether they lived in a … Continue Reading
Discovering Shanghai’s International Settlement
Shanghai, the 'Pearl of the Orient', was invaded by Japanese troops in 1941. The comfortable lives of the Westerners living in the city's … Continue Reading
Interviews
Historia interview: David Gilman
David Gilman's new novel, Rage of Swords, is the latest in his Master of War series and sees Thomas Blackstone in action in Italy. David tells Historia about the ideas and research behind his book, as well as … Continue Reading
Historia interview: Carolyn Kirby
Carolyn Kirby, award-winning author of When We Fall and The Conviction Of Cora Burns. talks to AD Bergin about her new novel, Ravenglass. A sweeping adventure with a cross-dressing main character, Kit, it's set … Continue Reading
Reviews
Review: Wuthering Heights – the film – and Catherine by Essie Fox
February, 2026 has given us the full Bronte with two retellings of Wuthering Heights. Kate Griffin, the author of several Gothic novels and lover of films set in the Victorian era, is the ideal person to review both … Continue Reading
Review: Samurai at the British Museum
Lesley Downer, author of The Shortest History of Japan, visits the Samurai exhibition at the British Museum and discovers that it's "an exhibition of treasures" which show that the samurai were patrons of the arts … Continue Reading