This Short-Lived Political Party Embraced Socks With Sandals
The Men’s Dress Reform Party (MDRP) called for liberation from dark, tightly-knit textiles...and had some ties to the eugenics movement.
Why Hot Air Balloons Never Really (Ahem) Took Off
More than two centuries after the invention of ballooning, Steve Fossett became the first person to solo circumnavigate the world in a balloon.
An 18th-Century “Sapphist”’s Sexy Garden
The 18th-century "sapphist" gardens of Mary Granville Pendarves Delany were piquant places that expressed same-sex desires.
London Has Always Been Multicultural
The conventional story is that "black Britain" came about after World War II, but London has been a multicultural capital for centuries.
Is Scotland a Nation?
What is Scotland, a country and/or nation, or just a region within Great Britain, a piece of the United Kingdom? Let's explore Scots nationalism.
Identity Politics and Popular Movements
Issues tied to gender have often been part of broad-based popular movements, like the Zetetic movement in early nineteenth-century England.
Edmund Burke and the Birth of Traditional Conservatism
Edmund Burke (1729-1797) is one of the philosophical fountainheads of modern conservatism. But he didn't start out that way.
Magic and Meaning on the Frozen Thames
London's winters used to colder—and a bit more magical, thanks to chilly conditions on the Thames River. "Frost fairs" were popular public celebrations.
Nineteenth-Century Clickbait
Online publications that offer clickbait and easy entertainment mirror some of the most popular nineteenth century British magazines.
The Spy Novelist Who Was Actually a Spy
The author John le Carré, who real name is David Cornwall, is the subject of both a recent biography and his own brand new memoir, The Pigeon Tunnel.