General Modern

Britons watch Queen Elizabeth II’s Christmas message in 1958. (© Topfoto)

A brief history of the Christmas Speech

Postcard of a group of men wearing identical clothing boarding a boat for a stag party, c1914. (Photo via Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images).

Stag nights and hen dos: a brief history of bachelor and bachelorette parties

Frances Griffiths poses with the fairies

Fairies, rabbit births and an ‘ancient’ tiara: what are the greatest historical hoaxes?

A pile of books

How to write a historical novel and get it published: 9 tips from bestselling authors Alison Weir, Hilary Mantel and more

Princess Margaret attends the premiere of Captain Horatio Hornblower, Leicester Square, 1951. (Photo by Ron Burton/Keystone/Getty Images)

The Queen’s “rebel sister”: 8 facts about Princess Margaret

Two lovers embrace in this 18th century painting.

How has dating changed over time? A brief history of courtship

The French actress Sarah Bernhardt

Greg Jenner on the history of celebrity

Historical book reviews

Want to know what to read next? The latest history books reviewed

The British royal family at the Queen's annual birthday parade 2019

A brief guide to the British royal family, by The Crown’s historian Robert Lacey

On the trail of the lost pianos of Siberia (Photo by Michael Turek)

Russia’s musical journeys

Pocahontas and John Smith in Disney's ‘Pocahontas’ (1995). (Photo by AF archive/Alamy Stock Photo)

Disney history: how has the corporation shaped our perception of the past?

London during the Blitz - the systematic night-time bombing of the British by the Luftwaffe in 1940 - 1941. (Photo by Getty Images)

Rationing, school closures and ‘Blitz spirit’: how did people cope in WW2?

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Torch Arrives Japan

Q&A Have the Olympic Games ever been cancelled?

Box cover of Encounters with Victoria by Lucy Worsley

The best historical audiobooks to listen to right now

James Shapiro discusses Shakespeare and America. (Images by Dreamstime)

Shakespeare and America