Hello there.  As my latest book is out in paperback this week, I thought you might enjoy an article explaining what it’s all about.  This was published yesterday on History Today’s blog. Do check the rest of their site out too, heaps … Continue reading →

Well, you wait all your life to be interviewed about tea-cups, and then it happens three times in quick succession.  I’m with C.S. Lewis when he said that ‘you can never get a cup of tea large enough or a … Continue reading →

The history of domestic lighting has been governed by economics, but also by snobbery and tradition, and occasionally by a dangerous desire for novelty. As ‘If Walls Could Talk’ is being repeated on the TV at the moment, I thought … Continue reading →

I was at Dartington Hall in Devon yesterday at the beautiful ‘Ways With Words’ literary festival when a lady came up to me and said ‘I see you’re on TV tonight’.  No I’m told, I told her, quite sincerely.  But … Continue reading →

Ladies and gentlemen, may I proudly introduce Emily, who says she is ‘maybe’ my No. 1 fan? (Note it’s only ‘maybe’, Emily is playing hard to get.) Anyway, Emily has not only written me this cute letter, she has also sent … Continue reading →