Illustration of a Medieval Scribe

Literature

The Monteagle letter, which shares a warning about the Gunpowder Plot. (National Archives)

In their own words: 6 of history’s most fascinating letters

The trial of Lady Chatterley’s Lover: how the 'obscene' book caused a moral storm

Giant of literature: A page from the 'Beowulf' manuscript. The story is fictional but some of the characters within it were real people, and others were believed to be the ancestors of Anglo-Saxon and Danish kings. (Photo by Alamy)

Beowulf: The Anglo-Saxons' action hero

5 reasons why the King James version of the Bible matters. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Literary women through the ages: Jane Austen, Virginia Woolf and Charlotte Brontë all enjoyed female friendships which enriched their writing, say Emily Midorikawa and Emma Claire Sweeney. (Getty Images)

From Austen & Brontë to Woolf: literature’s forgotten female friendships. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Books interview with AC Grayling: “A great philosophical mind is one that belongs to a childish heart – always curious, always open”. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The acclaimed English author Charles Dickens. (Photo by Apic/Getty Images)

7 things you (probably) didn’t know about Charles Dickens and his family home. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A painting depicts a 14th-century sea battle

Medieval inspiration: what the fantasy genre owes to the 14th century. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A Spanish publisher works on cloning the illustrated codex hand-written manuscript Voynich. (Photo by CESAR MANSO/AFP/Getty Images)

How the Voynich manuscript hit the headlines

In his native Como, Pliny the Younger's fame is reflected in his statue on the city cathedral's imposing west front, which was built in the 15th century. (Image by AKG Images)

Pliny's Rome: Vesuvius, vice and vestal virgins. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Portrait of theologian and Bible translator John Wycliffe (c1330–84). (Photo by Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images)

The murderous history of Bible translations

British spy writer Ian Fleming at his home, Goldeneye, in Jamaica. (Photo by Harry Benson/Express Newspapers/Getty Images)

The man behind James Bond. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

'Soccer' and 'diaper' are among many 'American' words that are more faithful to the old English tongue than those used in Britain today, says James Evans. Other 'Americanisms' were used in Shakespeare's plays before the first English colony was established in Virginia. (L to R: Photos by Hulton Archive/Getty Images; DeAgostini/Getty Images; Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

From candy to diapers: the purity of American English. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Duncan Grant's studio at Charleston. Despite its lack of creature comforts, the East Sussex farmhouse became the weekend hub of the Bloomsbury set. (Photo by Charleston House/Tony Tree)

History ExplorerThe story of the Bloomsbury set. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

French writer Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette and husband Willy, photographed c1902. (Photo by Apic/Getty Images)

Who was the real Colette?

The National Portrait Gallery attributed this unfinished portrait to Jane Austen’s sister, Cassandra, and dated it to circa 1810. (Universal History Archive / Getty Images)

What did Jane Austen really look like?

Simon Sebag Montefiore on letters from history. (Photo by Dreamstime)

Letters that changed the world. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Oxtail stew. (© CICO Books 2017)

Top 5 Dickensian recipes. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Vera Brittain, who worked as a nurse during the First World War and went on to become one of the leading writers of the interwar years. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images)

Love, loss and distorted memories. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

The women behind Lord Byron. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Richard Burbage

Richard Burbage: the vanishing act of the star who outshone Shakespeare. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Shakespeare’s greatest actor. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Shakespeare’s best (or worst) villains. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Edwin the Scribe. (Photo by Ann Ronan Pictures/Print Collector/Getty Images)

Unusual things found in medieval manuscripts. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

American novelist John Updike

My history hero: John Updike (1932-2009). This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Journey’s End: behind the scenes of the new First World War film. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Mary Shelley and her monster. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Fiona Sampson"Mary never shook off the consequences of eloping with Shelley". This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Chetham library

History explorer: Public libraries. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A portrait of Charles Dickens. (Photo by Rischgitz/Getty Images)

My history hero: Charles Dickens. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.