Oops, Royal.uk have some updating to do (and, yes, still a counsellor of state as still in the line of succession):
The current Counsellors of State are The Queen, The Prince of Wales, The Princess Royal, The Duke of Edinburgh, The Duke of Sussex, Prince Andrew and Princess Beatrice.
Calling all young UK writers aged 11-14. Great prizes, and a chance to have your writing published. www.londonreviewbookshop.co.uk/blog/2026/ma...
Definitely. As Geoffrey Parker argued for the catastrophic 17th century in his book Global Crisis.
Delighted you're enjoying Republic, @davidcamburn.bsky.social, and thank you for posting.
Thank you, what a lovely message. Isn't it a shame Evelyn's garden is no longer there.
V pleased to hear my book is in Austria and I hope you enjoy it 🙂
‘Historians have done much to challenge the homophobia and xenophobia that skewed interpretations of James. But the caricature of a weak king drooling over his favourites has proved hard to expunge from the public imagination.’
@alicehunt.bsky.social on James VI and I:
www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
The ‘puritan’ MP Bulstrode Whitelocke went home on 24 December 1651 to be ‘merry’ with family and friends ‘in this time of Christmas’. It’s not clear if he broke off his celebrations to attend the House of Commons on 25 Dec.
"In an era where the authentic written word is under threat....English isn't just about reading the past--it's about understanding the power of words and narratives in the present and future and giving our students the skills to successfully navigate the world".
True of all UK English programmes.
2025 has been the year of James.
... Jo Applin on Louise Bourgeois’s latex
Nick Richardson on alchemy
Helen Pfeifer on Suleyman the Great
@alicehunt.bsky.social on James VI and I
Clare Bucknell on Byron in Ravenna
a poem by Anne Carson
and a cover by Anne Rothenstein.
Read online now at www.lrb.co.uk
www.thetimes.com/uk/obituarie...
A lovely tribute to the brilliant John Carey, whose work I return to again and again and again.
Being a fan of punctuation, I loved this short @thespectator1828.bsky.social piece on the hyphen. In particular, the self-consciousness of this: 'When you use a hyphen, you are near-sacred.'
This sounds good!
Thank YOU @mrsamin.bsky.social. Inspirtational and thought-provoking few days meeting this wonderful group of history teachers as part of the @histassoc.bsky.social teacher fellowship with The Visible Crown colleagues @profannawhitelock.bsky.social @gracemc971.bsky.social and Kate Quinn.
Yes! I LOVE this bookshop.
Thank you, Owen. V happy to hear this.
Thank you @stuartbj.bsky.social. What a lovely post to see - and on my birthday too! 🙂
Definitely! And especially if it's al fresco reading.
Cheers, Tracey!
‘The republic was a great age for English satire. Royalist laughs had been generated by rejecting certain social norms and annoying Puritans with wilful impurity – fart jokes, heavy drinking and a celebration of sex and dancing.’
Jonathan Healey on England’s republic: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
A fantastic listen – Prof @alicehunt.bsky.social talks about Britain's oft-maligned revolutionary decade and how it actually laid the groundwork for the radical changes in the years following it www.worldturnedupsidedown.co.uk/podcast/brit...
‘As the old order creaked, new ideas flourished, particularly in religion: radical sects emerged not only from the London streets but from country towns and the ranks of the parliamentary army.’
Jonathan Healey on the English Commonwealth: www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...
A superb piece of journalism in The Observer: it seems like the one of the sacred texts of Nature Writing (TM) is not quite as much of an unflinchingly honest read as claimed
observer.co.uk/news/nationa...
'Until recently, trade publishers have avoided England’s republic – as too dowdy, perhaps, and too complex. But now it’s all the rage.' It is, it is!
V pleased with @jonathanhealey.bsky.social's review of my book REPUBLIC in the latest @lrb.co.uk @faberbooks.bsky.social
And wit music too! Lovely cover reveal.
25 poems written between the eighth century and today = 25 time machines into moments in England's past.
My new #history #book A History of England in 25 Poems, out September 2025 with Penguin Allen Lane (available for pre-order now).
www.penguin.co.uk/books/461263...
Looking forward to being a bookseller tomorrow at the wonderful @pgwells.bsky.social to celebrate #IndieBookshopWeek
@jamesmcconnachie.bsky.social and I have recommended some of our favourite non-fiction books -- some of which can be glimpsed here 👇
📚 'Magisterial.' Suzannah Lipscomb
📚 'Gripping.' Malcolm Gaskill
📚 'Evocative.' Clare Jackson
📚 'Superb.' Jessie Childs
📚 'Compelling.' David Kynaston
📚 'Thrilling.' Paul Lay
Republic: Britain's Revolutionary Decade 1649-1660 by Alice Hunt is out in paperback today!
www.faber.co.uk/product/9780...
We also have a brilliant article from Alice discussing six poems from Britain's Republican past which you can read here on the Faber Journal.
www.faber.co.uk/journal/alic...
