Death at Greenway
Death at Greenway (2021) by Lori Rader-Day is a murder mystery set at the time Agatha Christie was writing her murder mysteries. It’s also set in a house she owned…
J. D. Rogers, Newfoundland
Newfoundland by J. D. Rogers is an essential in your library of Newfoundland Mi’kmaq history. Published in 1911, it is part of A Historical Geography of the British Colonies. I…
West Country Trilogy
I’d heard of the Battle of Jutland, but that’s it. No idea of who, when or where. Now I know, thanks to The Redeemed, third in Tim Pear’s West Country…
Coronation on Corrie
“You’re talking about a show that’s named after a coronation, and this is the first coronation ever in its history. What you’re describing sounds as exciting as a bucket of…
Coronation 1937
My mother kept some newspaper clippings about the Coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1937. They’re in what I think is her first scrapbook.
Meghan and Harry
(by Jim Stewart) Meghan and Harry: The real story, by Lady Colin Campbell. It's hard to believe that this book came out in 2020. It is remarkably prescient, as if it had been written yesterday. Anyone interested in British history, Hollywood, celebrity and popular culture, the effect of media and social media on our society
Lewes Bonfire Night
Remember, remember the Fifth of November The Gunpowder Treason and plot, I see no reason why Gunpowder Treason Should ever be forgot. A bonfire is a great thing to see.…
Elizabeth, 1951 Canada
A page from my mother’s scrapbook. For five weeks in the fall of 1951 Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip toured Canada. It was her first trip here. My mother kept…
Royalty on The Street
Coronation Street has not been on the air as long as Queen Elizabeth II has been on the British throne. On December 9, 1960 when Corrie began, she had been…
Officers and Gentlemen
Commander Ralph Neville was one of several English naval officers living in Bay St. George, Newfoundland in the early 1900s. They shared a love of salmon fishing (see Part 1).…
Salmon Fishing
Salmon fishing has a lure - for the fish and also for the person holding the rod. That lure brought several British naval officers to live in Bay St. George…
Queens and Consorts
Seventy years ago, in classrooms and public venues in the UK and Commonwealth, people sang God Save the Queen for the first time in 51 years. On February 6, 1952,…
Veterans on The Street
Britain's wars have been part of Coronation Street throughout its six decades. From the 1960s to 1990s, there were veterans of the World Wars and, in the 2000s, the war…
Padstow May Day
Now imagine a still night, the last of April, the first of May. Starlight above the chimney pots. Moon on the harbour. Moonlight shadows of houses on opposite slate walls.…
Prince Philip’s Horses
"If it doesn't fart or eat hay, she isn't interested." That, it is said, is how Prince Philip described his daughter Princess Anne. But if the amount of time he…
The Sussex Interview
Oprah's interview with Harry and Meghan is on a par with the 1995 BBC interview with Lady Diana. It asked for compassion, and got it. And, like Diana's, did it…
Johnny Briggs
Johnny Briggs died yesterday, February 28th, at the age of 85. For those who knew him as Mike Baldwin on Coronation Street, the world is a bit darker today. Mike…
Corrie Origin Story
Sixty years ago today, on December 9, 1960, the first episode of Coronation Street aired. Since then, its origin story has been told many times, many ways. Here is the…
General Jack and Warrior
Warrior was called "the horse the Germans couldn't kill." He was a war horse. The 15.2 hand Thoroughbred gelding was General Jack Seely's charger. Gen. Seely was a British career…
Lady Ashburnham Pickle
A mustard relish, Lady Ashburnham pickle originated in New Brunswick. It is also called Lady Ashburn or Lady A relish. Whatever you call it, it's the best mustard pickle that…
Covid Corrie
Overnight, Covid-19 will hit Weatherfield. People who had been freely walking around Coronation Street without a corona care in the world will be masked and distancing themselves. Tonight in Britain,…
In The Army Now
Bill Stewart received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from the University of Minnesota on December 18, 1941 (See Pt. 2). That was 11 days after Pearl Harbor was bombed.…
English Channel 1944
William Stewart, a US Army Air Force Captain in World War II, tells about his flight across the English Channel on December 15, 1944. Enemy planes were a risk, yes,…
Jump!
I've wondered what real jockeys think about horse racing novels. Especially those where newcomers - human and horse - manage against all the odds to win THE BIG RACE. It's…
King’s Curse
The King's Curse by Philippa Gregory is about Henry VIII. It was published in 2014. Despite knowing this, I kept checking the publication date because of passages like this: Dear…
Weatherfield Brexit
Are people in Weatherfield stockpiling water, tinned food and toilet tissue? They are in real life Britain, according to news reports. People fear shortages, due to goods tied up at…
York and Mountbatten Weddings
A big year for royal weddings. Tomorrow, October 12th, Princess Eugenie will marry. In May, her cousin Prince Harry married Meghan Markle. Both large, lavish and televised. But, in between…
Princess Harry
On Saturday, Meghan Markle will become Princess Harry. That is when she will marry Prince Henry of Wales, second son of the Prince of Wales and better known as Prince…
Royal Corgis
A week ago, the death of an elderly dog made headlines. A pet's death is always momentous for his or her loved ones. But it's usually not world news. Willow,…
Passchendaele
The Battle of Passchendaele ended 100 years ago today. It is also called the Third Battle of Ypres and the "Muddy-est, Bloody-est of the whole war." The latter is what…
Talking with our Vera
An interview, 1992 My name's Liz Dawn. I play Vera Duckworth. I bet all your listeners will recognize this voice! What's Vera like? Well, actually, Jack and Vera, they're the…
Diana 1961-1997
Twenty years ago today Diana, Princess of Wales died at the age of 36. She was the daughter of the 8th Earl Spencer and 15 times great-granddaughter of King Henry…
King George VI
Sixty-five years ago today, Great Britain's King George VI died at the age of 56. The King is dead, long live the Queen. George VI's daughter became Queen Elizabeth II.…
Royal Wedding Anniversary
Happy anniversary, Elizabeth and Philip. November 20th marks 69 years since their wedding. Four children, 8 grandchildren, 5 great-grandchildren. Three heirs apparent to the British throne - son, grandson, great-grandson.…
Pen Name Mysteries
The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith and Devoted in Death by J. D. Robb are pen name mysteries by famous authors I've never read. Robert Galbraith is J. K. Rawling…
Queen Elizabeth II
Queen Elizabeth celebrates her 90th birthday today. My mother, two years older, grew up with the Queen. From her teen years to adulthood, Mom kept scrapbooks about the Queen's life.…
Titanic: No greater love
Among the bodies found after Titanic sank was that of a woman, clinging to the body of a Great Dane. Ann Elizabeth Isham had a seat in a lifeboat but…
Tony Warren
My hanging out in Manchester buddy died yesterday. Tony Warren, creator of Coronation Street and my accidental tour guide, died at the age of 79. One day, a long time…
Burwells in US & Canada
There is a Burwell family in southwestern Ontario and one in Virginia. No one is sure if they're related. I wonder if the link might be through Burwells in Connecticut.…
Royal Charlottes
The first British royal Charlotte was George III's queen. She is best known as the founder of London's Kew Gardens and for perhaps having black ancestry. Born in Germany in…
VE Day 70th
May 8th 1945, VE Day marked the end of one part of World War II. Victory in Europe. War with Japan continued until two atomic bombs were dropped in July.…
Battle of Ridgeway
Today marks a bizarre incident in Canadian history. Irish-Americans invaded Canada, planning to hold it hostage as leverage to end British rule in Ireland. My family's farmhouse was smack-dab in…
She Loves You
Some things you will never ever forget. One, for me, is Ed Sullivan introducing “these youngsters from Liverpool.” Hands clenched on head, pulling at hair, “eek, aah, oohh.” In the…
Baby Prince George
In the past three days, the royal baby has been born, brought home, had pictures posted on Facebook, and been named. A boy named HRH Prince George Alexander Louis of…
Queen’s Secret: Review
Last week I saw a book called The Queen's Secret by Charles Templeton. Curious to see if it was by the late Canadian journalist of that name, I pulled it…
HRH Baby
With the expected Royal baby, there will be a kinship situation that hasn’t existed since Queen Victoria reigned. There will be 3 generations of direct heirs apparent to the throne:…
Reading History
Well-written and well-researched historical fiction gives the reader a two-fer: a good story and a history lesson that you may have slept through during school. Recently, I’ve been living in…
Dressage Top Hat
A requirement for safety helmets to be worn by riders in all equestrian shows is a good idea and, by and large, the helmets look ok. But dressage needs something…
Dick Francis: A racing life
The back cover of Dick Francis: A Racing Life, a biography by Graham Lord, calls it “warm, affectionate, yet sharp and perceptive.” I usually read the jacket information before starting a…
Francis Family Books
If you had the sad job of picking the topic of the last novel you would write, I don’t think you could choose better than Dick Francis did. Crossfire, co-written…
Coronation Street Scene of the Week (Dec. 4/11)
Marriages of Convenience “For generations, the cream of British aristocracy and the crowned heads of Europe have intermingled to produce a bloodline like vintage champagne. Then what do they go…
Coronation Street 50th
Coronation Street began due to a government mandate for home-grown television programming. A Canadian producer at Granada, the late Harry Elton, knew the popularity and longevity of American soaps and…
Meeting Jack Duckworth
In 1992 I went to Manchester to research Coronation Street for a CBC Radio Ideas documentary on British and American soaps. At Granada, I watched the taping of a scene…
Hats off (or on) to the past few days!
It’s been quite a four days – perhaps best summarized with The Hat. Everybody’s had a go at this new game. So hats off to creativity. The Hat - the…
The Royal Wedding
I stayed up all night and watched the Royal wedding pre-pre-coverage, pre-coverage, main event, balcony scene and after coverage. I switched between CBC and CBC NewsNet, CNN, an entertainment news…
Royalty
In June 1983 royalty came to St. John's. Charles and Diana, Prince and Princess of Wales, arrived on the Royal Yacht Britannia. Two years before, I had woken up early…
The King and Us
Wallis Simpson makes me think that there may well be a God, and that He is on “our” side. I cannot imagine what the world would look like had King…
The Boat House, Laugharne
When I was in high school, I discovered the beauty of Dylan Thomas’ writing. I first read Under Milk Wood and then moved on to his poetry. In community college,…
Lifeboys: Reality tv before “Reality TV”
In the spring of 1992, I heard an interview with Pat O’Rourke, of Liverpool, on CBC Radio’s As it Happens. It was about Lifeboys, a television show that he was…
Remembering
Every Remembrance Day, I am remembering my father. George Anger was a WWII veteran. In December of 1942 he went overseas and he returned home in October 1945. He was…