Search results for ""Amberley Publishing""

ERF Limited was formed in 1933 when Edwin Richard Foden founded the company with his son Dennis. Under the guidance of design engineer Ernest Sherratt, the best components available at the time were assembled to create vehicles that soon earned a reputation as good lorries capable of earning good revenue with reasonable running costs. This approach continued, more or less, until the end of the company and proved to be a very successful and lucrative business plan with a lot of development costs being borne by the component suppliers. This book is a broad overview of the company, with almost 200 photos offering an insight into the range and model types that spanned the years. The majority of the images included here are previously unpublished and offer a wonderful tribute to this much-loved manufacturer.

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For thousands of years, the landscape of Wiltshire has played host to carefully concealed hoards of material wealth; from tools to weapons, jewellery to money. Over the last two hundred years, the discoveries of these previously hidden treasures have led to the rewriting of our understanding of this country and the people who lived in it. In this book, archaeologist Richard Henry examines ten of the most significant of these hoards. Through considering these finds in relation to their landscape context and scientific analysis, it is clear these items have much to tell us - from medieval silver coins that reflect the battle for power during the Anarchy (1135–1153), to Roman saucepans and wine strainers that may suggest ritual consumption at tribal boundaries. Hoards from Wiltshire explores the types of objects hidden away and the motivations for doing so, deepening our understanding of the people who used and deposited them as well as the history of the county as a whole.

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Bridlington History Tour provides a fascinating glimpse into the past of this Yorkshire coastal town. With its bustling harbour, beautiful beaches and picturesque promenades, it is easy to see why it has become a favourite destination for holidaymakers. In this book, author Mike Hitches guides readers around its streets and buildings, showing how its famous landmarks used to look and how they have changed over the years, as well as exploring some of its lesser-known sights and hidden corners. This pocket-sized guide reveals how the town has altered and highlights the way of life for past generations. With the help of a handy location map, readers are invited to discover for themselves the history and the changing face of Bridlington.

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In 1973 David Christie moved house from Essex to Scotland, but it wasn’t till 1974 that he discovered the joys of sailing on Calmac’s ships. An initial sail on King George V at Oban in her last season was a great introduction but mostly, over the next three years, I focussed on Queen Mary on the Clyde, now safely back in Glasgow at the Science Centre. Most of the Clyde piers are covered, with emphasis on Rothesay. Ferries also feature with old and new on the Rothesay and Dunoon runs and the smaller boats at Largs. The west coast features with Oban as the main terminal, then Mallaig, before a session on the pre-bridge Skye ferries. A single visit to Ullapool finishes this journey back to the seventies.

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Swindon played an important role in the railway industry from its Victorian roots up to the sound of the final works hooter in 1986. This was without doubt the end of an era; today the works site is a shadow of its former past – gone is the mighty ‘A’ shop, along with the carriage and wagon shops east of the Gloucester line. With electrification now through the town, the railway landscape has been totally transformed. Covering two decades between the late 1960s to the late 1980s, the images in this book represent not just the works, station and yards during this period, but also the main line and local area to Stratton St Margaret in the east, Wootton Bassett to the west and Purton on the Gloucester line to the north. This was a period of transition when Western Region hydraulics were giving way to diesel electric power, with HSTs eventually arriving in the area.

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In 1869, when the final spike was driven into the Transcontinental Railroad, few were prepared for its seismic aftershocks. Once a hodgepodge of short, squabbling lines, America’s railways soon exploded into a titanic industry helmed by a pageant of speculators, crooks, and visionaries. The vicious competition between empire builders such as Cornelius Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, J. P. Morgan, and E. H. Harriman sparked stock market frenzies, panics, and crashes; provoked strikes that upended the relationship between management and labour; transformed the nation’s geography; and culminated in a ferocious two-man battle that shook the nation’s financial markets to their foundations and produced dramatic, lasting changes in the interplay of business and government. Spanning four decades and featuring some of the most iconic figures of the Gilded Age, Iron Empires reveals how the robber barons drove the United States into the twentieth century – and almost sent it off the rails.

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With images and vivid recollections, we journey away from the main line to valleys, quarries and factories. Industries as diverse as slate, iron, paper, glass, food and tourism relied on dozens of small railways to keep people and goods moving. At quarries, factories and picturesque rural stations, Brian and Ian Reading explore scenes, many of which have now changed beyond recognition. This photographic tour includes the Isle of Man Railway, Stewarts & Lloyds Minerals at Corby, British Industrial Sand at Middleton Towers & Leziate, the Wissington Light Railway, Richard Garrett Engineering Leiston Works, Bowater’s Railway at Sittingbourne, Kemsley & Ridham Dock, the Vale of Rheidol Railway, the Welshpool & Llanfair Light Railway, Dinorwic Quarries (Padarn) Railway, Penrhyn Quarry Railway, the Talyllyn Railway and the Festiniog (Ffestiniog) Railway. People, machines and landscapes are crystalised on film for future generations; reawakening memories for those who lived through this time of change and offering a fascinating insight for those who are too young to have been trackside during this intriguing period of railway history.

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The Woodville family are synonymous with the Wars of the Roses. While much has been published on the family as a whole, especially Elizabeth, wife of Edward IV, Anthony Woodville – the favourite sibling of Elizabeth – has been largely overlooked by history. He is famed for his arrest and execution in June 1483, but there is much more to learn from his life. Woodville was a man with an important cultural role. He was a knight, had a successful jousting career, and worked with the printing pioneer William Caxton. He was the printer’s only long-lasting patron in England and acted as translator for him, using the books printed by Caxton to educate Edward, Prince of Wales, the future Edward V. This book seeks to bring Anthony Woodville out of the shadows of history, giving him the recognition he deserves and challenging the negative perceptions around him by investigating his personality and personal achievements in military, diplomatic and literary capacities.

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Victorian & Edwardian Oxfordshire illustrates through words and pictures the county in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It was a time of change for all levels of society. In the countryside, agriculture was becoming increasingly mechanized and there were bitter struggles over agricultural wages. In Oxford, significant social changes were taking place, the first colleges for women opened in 1879, religious tests in the universities were abolished in 1871 and in 1877 dons acquired the permission to marry. By 1912 William Morris had made his first car in Oxford and begun a process of industrialization and employment opportunity hitherto undreamt of. The area covered by this book is that of the old county, before 1974 and the reorganization of county boundaries. The photographs, printed here in sepia, depict the farmer and his labourer in the countryside, the traditional industries and the interaction of the city and the university in Oxford. The home life of rich and poor, sports and pastimes, traditional country customs, religious life and education are all depicted in this collection. The text, composed of a series of extracts gathered from a variety of contemporary sources, helps to bring alive these glimpses of life in the county of a time that is only just outside living memory.

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This fascinating photographic collection represents a journey both through time and also along the byways of a truly scenic part of rural England. Edwardian photographers' lenses enable us to glimpse celebrations such as Empire Day, we revisit tranquil streets with long-closed shops and pubs and we witness the arrival of the first local motor bus in 1905. Victorian bowls players are shown, along with solemn-faced schoolchildren wearing starched pinafores and Eton collars. The present day images include Painswick's Art Couture Festival, together with views taken from Painswick Beacon and from the church tower. Artists such as Montague Rivers reveal how they interpreted the architecture and townscapes of long ago. Nor, of course, would the Slad chapter be complete without photographs of both Laurie Lee and the legendary Rosie.

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Falmouth, situated on the beautiful River Fal, and with one of the finest natural harbours in the world, developed and prospered to become the base for the famous Packet Service between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries. It has a rich maritime history with many interesting buildings including Arwenack Manor, home to the infamous Killigrew family, who were responsible for the early growth of the town. With the arrival of the railway, the town soon developed a strong commercial interest with the Falmouth Docks, founded in 1859, closely followed by the growth of tourism that is still important to the town today. With excellent yachting facilities, safe bathing beaches and a wealth of attractions, the town offers a rich experience for its many visitors.

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Leicester is an old town with a long history reaching back across two thousand years of human activity and experience. Historically, it is a very well-documented town. Leicester has a rich antiquarian record with plenty of other writings and documents that add to our knowledge of how our predecessors lived and, just as importantly, what they experienced during their lives. This book details the various hauntings and lore of Leicester; from the malevolent Black Annis to the debated involvement of medium Robert James Lees in the case of Jack the Ripper. It concludes with a guided tour of all the mentioned locations.

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What unacknowledged theme can be found across 250 years of English history? What thread runs throughout the Plantagenet Royal House, including as it does the ‘cadet’ houses of Lancaster and York, to the beginning of the Modern Period in 1485? It is the influence on events of the royal women; in particular, the queens. Without children, there is no dynasty, no ‘house’. Plantagenet Queens and Consorts examines the lives and influence of ten figures, comparing their different approaches to the maintenance of political power in what is always described as a man’s world. On the contrary, there is strong evidence to suggest that these women had more political impact than those who came later – with the exception of Elizabeth I – right up to the present day. Beginning with Eleanor of Provence, loyal spouse of Henry III, the author follows the thread of queenship: Philippa of Hainault, Joan of Navarre, Katherine Valois, Elizabeth Woodville, and others, to Henry VII’s Elizabeth of York. These are not marginal figures. Arguably, the ‘She-Wolf’, Isabella of France, had more impact on the history of England than her husband Edward II. Elizabeth of York was the daughter, sister, niece, wife, and mother of successive kings of England. As can be seen from the names, several are ostensibly ‘outsiders’ twice over, as female and foreign. With specially commissioned photographs of locations and close examination of primary sources, Steven Corvi provides a new and invigorating perspective on medieval English (and European) history.

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Steam power led the transport revolution in England throughout the nineteenth century, but was crippled on the road network by punitive legislation. As the century turned, the laws were altered in such a way that the development of the English Steam Lorry or Wagon became a viable transport proposition. For the best part of four decades, the steam lorry was a major player on the transport scene, being developed into a highly technical machine designed to beat competition from the petrol and diesel lorry. The most advanced machines were efficient and very fast. Made by a variety of builders, including the famous Sentinel company of Shrewsbury, who built waggons with a double ‘g’, and Foden, of Sandbach, steam lorries came in many shapes and sizes. This book looks at their birth, and the operation and engineering that set them aside from the traction engine and steam roller. This book is part of the Britain’s Heritage series, which provides definitive introductions to the riches of Britain’s past, and is the perfect way to get acquainted with steam lorries in all their variety.

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Wakefield was a prosperous market town in the Middle Ages, but it was transformed by coal mining during the Industrial Revolution. Mining dominated the local economy until the last pits closed in the 1970s and 1980s. Trade in cloth and cloth finishing were also cornerstones of Wakefield’s economy, drawing in merchants from across the north. Local families – the Milnes’s and the Naylors – dominated the trade until the economic depression of the 1820s and increasing mechanisation. Cloth production started on a small scale and many houses in the area had a weaving shed until the arrival of the first steam-powered mill in 1781 and the rapid expansion of fulling and scribbling mills in Wakefield. Yarn spinning was more successful, and the huge Plumpton Park complex on Westgate became the largest employer in the town. Heavy industry also came to Wakefield. Steam engines were constructed at Fall Ing Foundry from 1791 and the railways became a major employer. Greens Economiser Works were a major concern until the 1960s. The city has been transformed once more, with the major employers today being warehouse distribution bases, retail parks and shopping outlets. Wakefield at Work explores the working life of this Yorkshire city and its people, and the industries that have characterised it. The book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Wakefield.

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The city of Coventry has a rich and varied history. It has been one of the most important cities in England since the Middle Ages, when it first grew rich on the cloth trade and silk spinning. In the industrial age, Coventry became known for watchmaking and the skilled workforce later made the city a centre for bicycle, car and aircraft manufacturing. It was targeted for aerial bombardment in the Second World War and in a massive air raid on 14 November 1940 much of the historical centre of the city was destroyed as well as a large swathe of its housing and industrial buildings. The city was rebuilt after the war and its regeneration today has been recognised by the award of UK City of Culture 2021. Celebrating Coventry chronicles the proud heritage of Coventry, its important moments and what draws so many to this diverse city today. Its architectural heritage includes Sir Basil Spence’s new St Michael’s Cathedral, built in the ruins of the old cathedral, medieval buildings that survived the Blitz, and Spon Street, where many of Coventry’s historical buildings have been relocated. Many famous names in industry have made Coventry their home, including a roll call of the British motor industry – Alvis, Armstrong Siddeley, BSA, Jaguar, Humber, Hillman, Lanchester, Riley, Rover, Singer, Standard and Triumph – as well as Courtaulds in the textile industry, Massey-Ferguson tractors, and Armstrong-Whitworth aircraft manufacturers. Culture and the arts have always played an important role in the city, from the medieval Coventry Carol to the Two Tone music phenomenon, and famous names associated with Coventry include not just Lady Godiva but George Eliot and Joseph Paxton. Illustrated throughout, this fascinating book offers a marvellous and refreshingly positive insight into Coventry’s rich heritage, its special events and important moments. Celebrating Coventry will be a valuable contribution to the history of the city and provides a source of many memories to those who have known it well.

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Gateshead, on the southern bank of the River Tyne, has a rich heritage and distinctive identity. It is a vibrant cultural centre in the north-east of England, home of Sage Gateshead, the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art and the Angel of the North. During the Industrial Revolution the town was renowned for its shipbuilding and ironworking industries, fed by nearby collieries, and it also pioneered the development of wire rope and the electric light bulb. Celebrating Gateshead chronicles the proud heritage of Gateshead, its important moments and what draws so many to this vibrant town today, from inventions to industry, landmarks to leisure, and newsworthy events to notable achievements. New buildings and structures such as the award-winning Millennium Bridge, arts centres and quayside have won awards, and other historic areas regenerated for the twenty-first century. Within the fields of industry, sport, philanthropy, art, music and literature many Gateshead people have made an impressive contribution. The authors look back on the royal visits to the town, significant anniversaries and local traditions, and special events such as the National Garden Festival in 1990. Illustrated throughout, this fascinating book offers a marvellous insight into Gateshead’s rich heritage, its special events and important moments, and will be a valuable contribution to the history of the town and provide a source of many memories to those who have known it well over the years.

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Preserved (or heritage) railways have, in the majority of cases, at least one working steam locomotive and either a diesel unit or a diesel locomotive. However, the main thing these railways need to keep them going is the general public coming along and riding the trains. It’s all very well having a decent-sized fleet of working locomotives, but without any carriages to carry people in, you might as well call your railway a museum. The carriages on a heritage railway are just as important as the locomotives. With nearly 200 previously unpublished images, Royston Morris looks at some of these often-underappreciated stars of the preservation scene.

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The city of Aberdeen has been shaped by its natural surroundings and location on the North Sea coast. Long before the 1,000-plus years of the city’s recorded history, the area’s prehistoric people built megalithic stones and circles, and for centuries the area’s granite from nearby quarries was used to build the city, as well as exported around Britain wherever the hard-wearing stone was required. Over the centuries a vast number of crafts and skills went into the development of Aberdeen, a city that sits between two rivers, each enabling trades such as fishing, papermaking, shipbuilding and textiles. The city was a major fishing port and an important Scottish trading centre with the Continent, and when oil was discovered in the North Sea in the 1960s and 1970s, Aberdeen became the oil capital of Britain. Today the north-east of Scotland’s natural landscape again dominates work and labour in the move to invest in new energy sources, harvesting wind and wave power. In Aberdeen at Work, authors Lorna Corall Dey and Michael Dey explore the working life of this city and its people, and the industries that have characterised it. The book will appeal to all those with an interest in the history of Aberdeen.

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The exact definition of east Scotland can be difficult to define due to its wide geographical areas, but for the purpose of this book the bus services covered are from a wide range of destinations including Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Perth, Fife, the Borders and the Lothians. Each of the areas covered are unique and require a complex network of routes through smaller towns and villages as well as larger cities, as well as linking railway stations, park and ride facilities, airports, shopping centres and hospitals. Not only do large well-known operators such as Stagecoach, First and National Express serve the communities here, but so do companies such as Borders Buses (part of the Craig of Campbeltown West Coast Motors group), Lothian Buses, Lothian Country Buses, East Coast Buses, Moffat & Williamson, Rennies, Prentice, Eve’s, Ratho Coaches and Edinburgh Coachlines. In this book, Richard Walter illustrates the scenic and contrasting areas that these buses operate in. The bus remains an essential lifeline in many of the smaller towns and villages and vehicles change and adapt as necessary, from the provision of contactless payment and USB ports to the carrying of bikes.

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For centuries visitors to Monmouthshire have been seduced by its picturesque landscape and breathtaking beauty. Poets, princes, priests, peasants, painters, politicians, and even pirates have all sung the praises of this unique little corner of Wales. It is a county with an elusive nature and a turbulent past, but one whose sublime splendour is evident in its surrounding hills, scattered castles, sleepy churches, rolling rivers, rising mists and ancient woodlands. William Wordsworth once famously described Monmouthshire as the place where ‘the heavy and the weary weight of all this unintelligible world is lightened’. In 50 Gems of Monmouthshire local author Tim Butters takes an illuminating journey along the high and low roads of one of the UK’s most popular counties in search of the landmarks, the historic curiosities and the natural wonders that make this little patch of the UK so magical to both visitors and residents alike. Among the places the author visits are the romantic ruins of Tintern Abbey, the Skirrid on the edge of the Black Mountains, the Monmouth and Brecon Canal and the Kymin hill, with its spectacular views of Monmouth and the eighteenth-century Round House and temple in honour of British naval victories.

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Second Generation DMUs in Scotland covers the modern diesel multiple units introduced by BR from 1981. It features locations from across Scotland, and also looks at Carlisle. This book covers units from the experimental Class 140s, introduced in 1981, to contemporary examples including Class 185s still in use with TransPennine Express. Possibly the best unit introduced to Scotland are the Class 156 units based at Corkerhill depot in Glasgow. These units can be found working from Newcastle to Mallaig. The new generation of DMU fleets can go faster and travel further and have generated a huge following. Here, Colin J. Howat combines previously unseen historical black-and-white photography with modern digital examples to tell their story.

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With construction beginning in 1997, the Turbostar family of diesel multiple units are by far the most numerous design of such units introduced to the privatised railway. Over the next fourteen years, over a hundred units belonging to this family have been built at the Derby Litchurch Lane works of Adtranz/Bombardier Transportation to operators across the country. They have become a recognisable sight across the network, sharing many design similarities with the Electrostar family of electric multiple units. Today they can be seen from the north of Scotland to the south coast, conveying passengers on many local and long-distance services. This book takes a look at the varied services undertaken by Turbostars, covering both past and present operators.

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King Richard III remains one of the most controversial figures in British history. Matthew Lewis’s new biography aims to become a definitive account by exploring what is known of his childhood and the impacts it had on his personality and view of the world. He would be cast into insecurity and exile only to become a royal prince before his tenth birthday. As Richard spends his teenage years under the watchful gaze of his older brother, Edward IV, he is eventually placed in the household of their cousin, the Earl of Warwick, remembered as the Kingmaker; but as the relationship between a king and his most influential magnate breaks down, Richard is compelled to make a choice when the House of York fractures. After another period in exile, Richard returns to become the most powerful nobleman in England. The work he involves himself in during the years that follow demonstrates a drive and commitment but also a dangerous naïveté. When crisis hits in 1483, it is to Richard that his older brother turns on his death bed. The events of 1483 remain contentious and hotly debated, but by understanding the Richard who began that year, it will become clearer what drove some of his actions and decisions. Returning to primary sources and considering the evidence available, this new life undoes the myths and presents a real man living in tumultuous times.

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From the granting of borough status in 1614 through to its development as an industrial port and then as a fashionable seaside resort, the west Cornwall town of Penzance has a proud and distinctive history. This is embodied in the many fine buildings that have survived to illustrate its fascinating and varied past. Penzance in 50 Buildings examines the history of the town through a selection of these buildings, from the eccentric early nineteenth-century Egyptian House to the cutting-edge Truro and Penwith College campus, celebrating the town’s architectural heritage in a new and accessible way. Local author and historian Michael Sagar-Fenton guides the reader on a tour of remarkable and individual buildings that tell the story of the town in their own unique fashion.

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The Wirral Peninsula is a place of contrasts. The large north-eastern towns differ dramatically from the rolling green acres of mid-Wirral and the breezy open shores of its western edges. Much has been written about this unique region over the years. Port Sunlight is particularly and deservedly renowned, as is a particularly popular group from the 1960s who performed on this side of the Mersey many times. There are, however, many lesser-known stories to tell of this exceptional peninsula and Secret Wirral sets out to illustrate some of these tales. Les Jones tells of the rise and fall of New Brighton’s Tower Grounds before chronicling the role the peninsula has played in the burgeoning entertainment industry. The many myths and legends that have built up on these once wild and windswept shores are covered in a later chapter, before a selection of unusual facts on some of Wirral’s diverse villages are discussed. The extraordinary history of the groundbreaking Birkenhead Park provides the contents of the penultimate chapter before some unusual facets of Wirral’s sporting and leisure industry concludes an evocative and interesting excursion through secret Wirral.

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Well placed to discuss the art of skiing, Arnold Lunn was editor of the Climber’s Club Journal and the Alpine Ski Club Annual, founded the Oxford University Mountaineering Club, invented the skiing slalom race and was eventually knighted for his services to British Skiing and Anglo-Swiss relations. Originally published as a cheap handbook for skiing, this Classic Guide is devoted to the needs of the beginner, from the technical aspects of how to ski to what to wear while doing it, published during a time when the Alps were relatively unexplored by British skiers. As ski lifts were an unknown entity during the early twentieth century, Arnold Lunn traces the difficulties of a ski-runner and the problems encountered while mountaineering in the dangerous winter alps.

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The north Cornwall seaside resort town of Bude has undergone quite a transformation since its humble beginnings as Stratton’s unremarkable neighbour. As one local candidly put it, ‘Stratton was a market town when Bude was just a furzy down.’ Initially known for its beach sand properties, which worked wonders on soil and proved favourable with many Cornish farmers, Bude expanded rapidly following the construction of the sea canal in the early nineteenth century. The Victorians sought it out as the ideal holiday resort. Bude – known in the Cornish tongue as Porthbud – has proven a hit with holidaymakers as an idyllic seaside destination. Whether surfing at Widemouth Bay, exploring cliffs and hidden beach coves, or simply enjoying a spot of fishing, the charming resort has emerged as a tourist hotspot. Author Dawn G. Robinson has compiled a captivating collection of postcards that capture the beauty and charm of this seaside spot.

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Athletic contests in running, walking, jumping and throwing are among the oldest of all sports and their roots are prehistoric. Athletics events were depicted in the Ancient Egyptian tombs in Saqqara, with illustrations of running at the Heb Sed festival and high jumping appearing in tombs from as early as 2250 BC. The original and only event at the first Olympics in 776 BC was the stadion, a stadium-length running event. The turn of the century was a time of renewed interest in the sport, with the foundation of the Amateur Athletics Association in 1880, the first modern Summer Olympics in 1896 and the International Amateur Athletics Federation in 1912. In this classic guide, Montague Shearman traces the evolution of athletics and shares his expertise in training and discipline.

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Have you ever wondered how to know you are really in love? How to woo your beloved with a handkerchief? How about how to write a foolproof love letter? The Classic Guide to Dating is full of practical advice for the young lover (or would-be lover), guiding him or her through every stage of courtship, marriage and beyond. Revealing many of love’s hidden mysteries, Henry J. Wehman has produced an essential and timeless volume for anyone who has ever wondered how to find true love. Featuring indispensable lists, such as twenty ways to pop the question, as well as a useful appendix of love poetry, The Classic Guide to Dating is an (almost) complete guarantee of success.

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The Leicester City FC Miscellany is packed full of fascinating facts, figures, trivia, stats, stories and anecdotes all relating to the long and colourful history of Leicester City Football Club. From the most memorable matches and the men who helped shaped the club’s history; to the more gruesome games and the unsung heroes, this book tells the tales that have seen the football club become the force it is today. The ultimate guide to footballing trivia, the Leicester City FC Miscellany is a book no self-respecting Foxes fan should be without.

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This is the third in a series of books celebrating the finest gardens in Britain and follows on from the best-selling 'The Cotswold's Finest Gardens' and 'The Finest Gardens in Wales'. The Finest Gardens of the South West is an inspirational celebration of the very best gardens in the West Country of England, covering an area from Cornwall to the Wiltshire and Hampshire borders. Using informative, evocative text and stunning imagery, garden writer and broadcaster Tony Russell captures the very essence of the fifty finest gardens within this region and explores their history, design, plants and personalities. The diversity of gardens to be found in the South West and within this book is truly astonishing. Within these pages you will find gardens full of subtropical plants, such as Tresco on the Isles of Scilly and Overbeck’s in Devon, modern-day creations at The Eden Project and University of Bristol Botanic Garden, historical restorations at The Lost Gardens of Heligan and Hestercombe in Somerset and botanically important gardens such as the Royal Horticultural Society’s garden at Rosemoor and Trewithen in Cornwall. All the gardens featured within this book allow public access at some time during each year. The Finest Gardens of the South West is quite simply one of the finest books on the subject and essential reading for anyone interested in visiting and understanding gardens. Just like its predecessors, it will undoubtedly become a best-selling classic, a book that works equally as well on the coffee table or as a faithful companion in the car.

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The 1970s was a decade of change. Supermarkets began to take over from traditional stores, high-rise office blocks appeared on the skyline, and Leicester’s first shopping centre replaced familiar Victorian shops and hotels. It was a time of industrial unrest. The lights went out as coal stocks diminished. Pay packets were depleted as Leicester’s workers faced a three-day week, prices in the shops began to soar, and we all shivered during the ‘winter of discontent’. It was a turning point in the way we viewed ourselves and the world. Social attitudes to mental health, homosexuality and feminism were still rooted in the past, but the world was changing. People took to Leicester’s streets to support anti-racism, and we began to clean up our environment. In Leicester in the 1950s Stephen Butt remembers what made the decade so special for so many, but also the events which were to change significantly the course of Leicester’s future.

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At the beginning of the 1950s, Leicester was an industrial city picking itself up from the debris of the Second World War. Compared with nearby Coventry, Leicester has been a relatively safe place, but the effects of the Blitz were still very evident in New Walk and in the residential areas of Highfields and Stoneygate. After years of operating on a wartime economy, Leicester’s major industries – textiles, hosiery and machine tools – faced the challenge of returning to domestic production, and in assimilating a large male workforce returning from the battlefields of Europe and beyond to civilian life. In Leicester in the 1950s, Stephen Butt traces the vibrant lives of those recovering from the destruction of the Second World War.

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This is the remarkable life of Sir Cyril Taylor, relating his experience as a toddler in a Congo mission, a teenage platoon commander amid the Kenyan Mau Mau insurgency and a brand manager for Procter & Gamble in the early 1960s. His life's achievement has been as a social entrepreneur and educator, helping found the American Institute for Foreign Study, one of the largest study abroad organisations in the world. Since 1964, it has benefited 1.5 million young people through its Study Abroad, Camp America, Au Pair and Gifted Children programmes. An education reformer and adviser to ten education secretaries - Conservative and Labour - he helped establish 3,000 specialist schools and over 1,500 academies. Sir Cyril elucidates the lessons he learned regarding the reforming of support for children in care, young offenders, gifted and talented children, and schools in general. His record as a social entrepreneur is unique and makes this book a must-read for policymakers everywhere.

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In 1888, Englands Football league came into being and ever since a player has been recognised each year for the highest number of goals scored in the league, First Division or Premier League. The first was John Goodall of Preston North End, with 21 goals, the most recent, Didier Drogba, with 29. The Football leagues top scorer was Dixie Dean of Everton, in 1927/28, with an impressive tally of 60 goals.

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Bordering Devon and Cornwall, the River Tamar stretches through some of the most beautiful and scenic parts of the south west. Over the years, much has changed in the region. Gone are the many barges that once took fruit, vegetables and other produce up and down the river. The river was once a hive of industry with many tin, copper, lead, silver and tungsten mines along its banks.Much has changed but the river is still very busy with boats, dinghies and jet skis. Regular yacht races are held weekly and there is much activity as the river nears Plymouth. This book shows the many developments over the years including changes to transport, shipping and fashions as well as changes to the many communities that live nearby.

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Richard of Cornwall was born in 1209 as the youngest son of King John. His life of adventure made him one of the wealthiest and most widely travelled men of his era. Praised for his diplomatic and organisational skills, he led the last successful crusade to the Holy Land and was elected king of Germany. At home he was indispensable to his brother Henry III, but he resented his dependence on him and often equivocated his support. When his brother-in-law Simon de Montfort raised rebellion against the regime, Richard took a neutral stance, and it ended up costing both him and the king. He emerged from that low point to exert what was his greatest and lasting influence on his German subjects. He took one of them as his third wife, a teenage beauty who was forty years younger than him. Ever a seeker of glory, luxury and pleasure, Richard turned Wallingford and Berkhamsted into the famous castles they became later on and sired numerous children with mistresses. He gladly squeezed the peasants to finance his ventures and lifestyle, but also came to their rescue when famine beset the realm. As with any complicated individual of that era, he was both admired and hated when he died in 1272. In this first biography of Richard of Cornwall in more than fifty years, Darren Baker explores Richard’s accomplishments, going much further into his life than any previous work, and shows why the only Englishman to carry the prestigious title of king of the Romans is always worth another look.

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Speke History Tour offers a fascinating insight into the history of this area in Liverpool. Author David Paul guides us around its well-known streets and buildings, showing how its famous landmarks used to look and how they have changed over the years, as well as exploring its lesser-known sights and hidden corners. With the help of a handy location map, readers are invited to follow a timeline of events and discover for themselves the changing face of Speke.

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This illustrated history portrays one of England’s finest counties. It provides a nostalgic look at Dorset’s past and highlights the special character of some of its most important historic sites. The photographs are taken from the Historic England Archive, a unique collection of over 12 million photographs, drawings, plans and documents covering England’s archaeology, architecture, social and local history. Pictures date from the earliest days of photography to the present and cover subjects from Bronze Age burials and medieval churches to cinemas and seaside resorts. Dorset is justly renowned as one of the most beautiful counties in England, with a varied landscape ranging from its Jurassic Coast to chalk and limestone hills. The landscape of Dorset is still largely rural but it has been shaped by its inhabitants for thousands of years, from the Iron Age Maiden Castle to the large towns of Bournemouth and Poole in the south-east of the county. Visitors are drawn to famous natural landmarks on the coast such as Lulworth Cove and Durdle Door and further west Chesil Beach and the Isle of Portland, as well as the seaside towns of Lyme Regis, Swanage and Weymouth. Dorchester is the county town of Dorset. Other historic towns such as Bridport, known in the past for rope making, Shaftesbury, Blandford Forum, Sherborne and Wareham have retained their historic fabric but are thriving communities today.

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