Q&A

Vampires-3-8039305

Q&A Were vampires buried with a stake through their heart?

Lady Eleanor Butler and Sarah Ponsonby, better known to history as the Ladies of Llangollen

Q&A Who were the Ladies of Llangollen?

Dancers perform in a Cinco de Mayo celebration

Q&A What does Cinco de Mayo commemorate?

A wall mosaic of Picasso’s Guernica painting.

Q&A Why did Pablo Picasso paint Guernica?

Photo of Holy Trinity Church

Q&A Where is William Shakespeare buried – and is there a curse on his grave?

The coats of arms of the kingdoms of Scotland and France

Q&A How old is the Auld Alliance between France and Scotland?

An illustration of a Soviet warship inside a Pepsi bottle

Q&A Is it true that Pepsi briefly owned Soviet warships?

Scene of the Peterloo Massacre

Q&A Why do we say “Read the Riot Act”?

Men marching with bagpipes wearing tartan kilts

General History

Q&A When did the Scots start wearing tartan – and what did it mean?

The Trojan Horse is pulled in the city of Troy

Q&A What is the Trojan Horse and why do we say ‘Beware the Greeks bearing gifts’?

Photo of pears

Second World War

Q&A Why do we say it's all gone pear-shaped?

Claudia Severa’s preserved party invitation from Vindolanda

Q&A What was written on the Vindolanda Tablets?

A painting of the Coniston, a ship that befell tragedy

General History

Q&A What is the greatest mishap caused by someone not realising the clocks had moved forward or back?

Regé-Jean Page and Phoebe Dynevor meet for a dance in Bridgerton

General Early Modern

Q&A How did people learn to dance in Baroque and Regency times?

Picture of a 19th-century bloomer costume

Q&A When did women start wearing trousers?