The History Press

London's 100 Most Extraordinary Buildings reveals the stories behind the capital's strangest and most enigmatic buildings. While some are open to the public - if you know who to ask - others are strictly off limits, which only heightens the sense of mystery around them. Still others are so familiar that few ever stop to consider how curious they actually are.

London's 100 Strangest Places takes a sideways look at the capital, revealing the hidden stories, curious histories and sometimes comic associations behind dozens of sometimes quite familiar places. Typical examples include extensive networks of tunnels running beneath high-street pavements, secret transport networks, streetlamps powered by sewer gas, a street where you can legally drive on the right and ev...

The seminal and pioneering London Underground is more than a mass transportation network - it is a style icon, its history involving some of the most important architects and artists of their time. Exploring Frank Pick's vision through the development of Metroland to Holden's innovative designs, David Long expertly weaves the story of the Underground - its abundance of characters (some good, some not so goo...

"Bristol: City on Show" is the much-anticipated follow-up to the bestselling collection "Bath: City on Show". This unique celebration of life in the city contains a stunning portfolio of new and original views of Bristol's most notable locations, all by local photographers. These images are given new richness by more than 100 of the rarest engravings and archive photographs of the city, capturing the bustle...

This fascinating selection of photographs illustrates the extraordinary transformation that has taken place in Bristol during the 20th century. The book offers an insight into the daily lives and living conditions of local people and gives the reader glimpses and details of familiar places during this century of unprecedented change. Many aspects of Bristol's recent history are covered, famous occasions and...

The many influences of the past on our diet today make the concept of 'British food' very hard to define. The Celts, Romans, Saxons, Vikings and Normans all brought ingredients to the table, as it were, and onwards the Crusades gave us all manner of spices. The Georgians enjoyed a new level of excess and then of course the world wars forced us into the challenge of making meals from very little. The post-wa...

Catherine Rothwell has gathered together over 130 traditional Cornish recipes in her latest book. Cornwall has always had a strong culinary tradition, with many dishes having their origins in the county. Some of those featured have wonderful names such as 'Star-Gazey Pie' and 'Bill's Treacle Dunkers' to name but two. Of course there are the more recognisable treats, too, like Cornish Pasties and regional va...

Subject to both natural and man-made dangers, of the ninety-one pleasure piers that once decorated the British coastline, just fifty-five remain. For over a century, the Grand Pier at Weston has stood as a prominent symbol of this British seaside tradition. For over sixty years, the Grand Pier was owned and run by successive generations of one family, the Brenners. This book is also the story of how they co...

Haunted Canterbury is a compilation of ghostly legends and tales from a medieval city steeped in a history of spooky goings on. From the story of a tower haunted by a former Archbishop, to accounts of child ghosts, including one spotted by Charles Dickens, the reader is taken on a tour of Canterbury’s churches, pubs, theatres and castles, presenting a supernatural image of this World heritage Site.

This captivating book illustrating Lockleaze contains over 200 rare and, in many cases, unpublished images that explore the social history of this close-knit area of Bristol. Compiled using residents' photographs and archive material, this collection recalls the people, places and events that have shaped Lockleaze's past. From its modest, rural beginnings, several notable organisations and projects such as ...

The Bristol Channel, once one of the busiest fishing lanes in Great Britain, is a compelling area of the nation's seas to discover, with a unique range of characteristics. In this book, renowned maritime historian Mike Smylie and Simon Cooper, expert in the field, delve into the variety of fishing methods used in the past and present around this coastline. The area from Hartland Point in the south-west of E...

On a bright July morning in 1870 the British explorer George Hayward was brutally murdered high in the Hindu Kush. Who was he, what had brought him to this wild spot, and why was he killed? Told in full for the first time, this is the gripping tale of Hayward's journey from a Yorkshire childhood to a place at the forefront of the 'Great Game' between the British Raj and the Russian Empire, and of how, drive...

"A Grim Almanac of Bristol" is a day-by-day catalogue of 365 ghastly tales from the city's past. There are murders and manslaughters, including the case of Thomas Buller, who was killed in 1875 by a man who was married only that morning, and Sarah Skinner, who was thrown out of a window in 1847. There are bizarre deaths, such as the mother who mistakenly fed her child rat poison instead of teething powders,...

Taking you through the year day by day, The Bristol Book of Days contains a quirky, eccentric, amusing or important event or fact from different periods of history, many of which had a major impact on the religious and political history of England as a whole. Ideal for dipping into, this addictive little book will keep you entertained and informed. Featuring hundreds of snippets of information gleaned from...

From the momentous to the outlandish, this little book brings together past and present to offer a taste of Gloucester. Learn about the movers and shakers who shaped this fantastic city. The great and the good; the bad and the ugly. Small wonders, tall stories, triumph and tragedy. Best places - worst places. Origins, evolution, future. Written by someone who knows what makes Gloucester tick.

This is not a guidebook. This little book brings together past and present to offer a taste of Glasgow. Learn about the movers and shakers who shaped this fantastic city. The great and the good; the bad and the ugly. Small wonders, tall stories, TRIUMPH and tragedy. Best places - worst places. Local lingo, architecture, green spaces, events, traditions, fact, fiction. Origins, evolution, future. Written by ...

In an age when building developments seem to be advancing on every small plot of unspoilt countryside, it seems hard to imagine times when well-established settlements were declining and dying. Such times certainly did exist, and thousands of villages have perished. In fact, deserted settlement sites are all around us, and most British people will live within very few miles of an example. Empty houses only ...

This volume provides a glimpse into the history of The Dings and St Philips during the last century. With over 200 images, this selection highlights changes and events that have taken place in these once industrious Bristol suburbs. Aspects of everyday life are also recalled, from shops, pubs and to celebrations and local sporting heroes.

In the early 1950s, it seemed as if Greek shipping companies were springing up everywhere. For a country almost unknown as a passenger ship-owning state, the like of the Greek Line, Chandris and Epirotiki burst onto the scene, often using second hand tonnage and ships acquired from Western European fleets that were being updated. The lines soon took advantage of the mass emigration from Europe to Australia ...