D-Day: 6 June 1944, the Normandy landings, and an incredible turning point in the war. Operation Overlord saw Allied forces land on the beaches of northern France, a staggering achievement and the res
On 16 August 1819 on St Peter’s Field, Manchester, a peaceful demonstration of some 60,000 workers and reformers was brutally dispersed by sabrewielding cavalry, resulting in at least fifteen dead and
Eldest son of the Prime Minister, with an outstanding academic record at Oxford, Raymond Asquith devoted his great talents to friendship, preferring conversation and literature to the struggle for wor
It was October 24, 1914 when Morris Meredith Williams, a man of diminutive stature first attempted to join up. It wasn’t until April 1916 that the army finally allowed him to fight for his country, in
London 1882: When a wealthy philanthropist disappears from a locked and guarded room, Frances Doughty is reluctantly drawn into a case that tears the veil of mystery from her own past. Can London’s ve
On August 2, 1876, a young policeman named Constable Cock was shot dead while walking "the beat" at Whalley Range, Manchester. A few months later, on the evening of November 29, 1876, Arthur Dyson, an
In 218, Hannibal Barca, desperate to avenge the defeat of Carthage in the First Punic War, launched an ambitious ground invasion of Italy. With just a small force, he crossed the Alps – a feat reckone
The work of two passionate photographers, Philip Bell and John Kempster, offer insights into what it meant to build, deploy and operate the great White Star ships in the era ofTitanic. From the surgin
This collection takes the reader on a journey, century-by-century, showing how the truth?that is usually?taken for granted is a far cry from the facts. Amusing anecdotes and little-known facts travels
Places and books like Rosslyn Chapel and The Da Vinci Code have focused attention on Scotland's Knights Templar. Who they were and what they did has been touched upon, but never properly explored unti
More than 95 years ago, as the Titanic slowly sank, a "mystery" ship was seen as she slipped below the waves. Thinking it would be their salvation, rockets were fired from Titanic to attract the unkno
Even those who live in Essex may be surprised by the richness of the county’s prehistoric and Roman heritage, and the number of visible ancient monuments that can be readily seen, as detailed in this
Covering the lives and achievements of five English intelligence officers involved in wars at home and abroad between 1870 and 1918, this exceptionally researched book offers an insight into spying in
The Allied invasion of Europe during summer 1944 was widely expected and it fell to the Axis intelligence services to provide High Command with advance warning of the precise date and place of the lan
July 1940 saw the collaborationist Vichy regime replace the French Republic after the country suffered heavily at the hands of the German onslaught during World War II. A small number of people sought
When Hitler ordered the north of Nazi-occupied Norway to be destroyed in a scorched earth retreat in 1944, everything of potential use to the Soviet enemy was destroyed. Fifty thousand people were for
In 1453, Richard, Duke of York, claimed the throne of England from his Lancastrian kinsman Henry VI, and set off a series of conflicts between rival branches of the English royal family, better known
The murder of the Princes in the Tower is the most famous cold case in British history. Traditionally considered victims of a ruthless uncle, there are other suspects too often and too easily discount
For all the richness and nuance of the English language there are some words that other languages simply do better—whether it’s an insult that just hits the spot, a phrase that beautifully
To tie in with the release of Live and Let Die, Roger Moore agreed to keep a day-by-day diary throughout the film’s production, which would be published just ahead of the premiere in July 1
The iconic figure of Robert the Bruce has gone down through the centuries as one of the most remarkable leaders of all time. With equal parts tenacity and ruthlessness, he had himself crowned King of
John ‘Goldfinger’ Palmer was a multi-millionaire kingpin of the British underworld, who would go on to mastermind a criminal empire to dwarf any crook of his generation. Palmer hit the big time in 198
It is no secret that the Antarctic is one of the most dangerous, forbidding places for explorers to step foot in. The terrain is treacherous, the wildlife predatory and the climate fatal if not adequa
To tie in with the release of his first James Bond film, Live and Let Die, Roger Moore agreed to keep a day-by-day diary throughout the film’s production which was published just ahead of the pr
Shirley Baker started to photograph the streets of Manchester and Salford in the early 1960s when homes were being demolished and communities were being uprooted. 'Whole streets were disappearing and
This is the story of two single-handed non-stop round-the-world voyages: Robin Knox-Johnston’s in 1968/9 and Ellen MacArthur’s in 2004/5. Although there were similarities (both voyages started and fin
He was the son of a hereditary peer, one of the wealthiest men in Britain. At the age of 21 he founded The Film Society, and became a pioneering standard-bearer for film as art. He was a collaborator
