General History

Young woman gets hair cut in to a bob

A brief history of changing hairstyles

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Eadwine the Scribe, c mid-12th century. (Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)

A history of left-handed writing . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Terracotta plaque which is believed to show the poet Sappho rejecting an amorous advance by her contemporary who is also from the island of Lesbos. (Photo by Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images)

General History

From Sappho to It’s a Sin: 9 LGBT+ histories, chosen by experts

View of a gay pride parade in Boston, Massachusetts, c1977. (Photo by Spencer Grant/Getty Images)

From the ancient world to the 1969 Stonewall Riots: a brief guide to LGBT+ history

Historians have chosen their favourite historical novels.

22 of the best historical fiction novels to help you escape to the past

An Australian Sea Shanty band, c1988

A brief history of sea shanties

‘Inkhorn’ was the term for an inkwell made out of a small horn and became a nickname for the new words being created by playwrights and poets, such as William Shakespeare. (Photo by GraphicaArtis/Getty Images)

The evolution of the English language

Edward Jenner performs a vaccination, in an 1802 cartoon that lampoons the notion that being vaccinated will turn you into a cow

The race for a cure: how we found vaccines for 4 of history’s most dangerous diseases

(L to R) Isaac Newton, Henry VIII and Bal Gangadhar Tilak

General History

How did people cope with ‘lockdowns’ of the past? And were they really all so productive?

Elizabeth I preferred thoughtful new year gifts suited to her own tastes such as cloth, personal jewellery and trinkets. (Photo by Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)

General History

Sobriety, royal presents and Victorian-era musings on failure: an unexpected history of New Year

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HistoryExtra Christmas quiz 2020

2020 Christmas history podcast quiz . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Almond Hedgehog: A debonair addition to the hostess’s armoury in the Georgian period. (Illustration by Clair Rossiter for BBC History Magazine)

General History

What was the best meal in history?

Buckland Abbey, Devon, UK. (Image by Alamy)

The colonial secrets of Britain’s stately homes

Even the ancient Egyptian played board games – this fresco from the tomb of Nefertari shows the queen playing Senet

8 of the best historical board games for history lovers

'Merry Christmas' Victorian illustration of Santa Claus holding toys and blowing on a trumpet, chromolithograph, 1915. (Illustration by GraphicaArtis/Getty Images)

Father Christmas and Santa Claus: a brief history of two Christmas champions