geoffrey monmouth
Blog
How was the Black Death different from Coronavirus?
Why is the Black Death so famous? There have been many pandemics over the centuries, but the one most people know of is the Black Death. It made a huge impact on the mediaeval World, not least in Britain. I expect people will see similarities between that pandemic and...
Isolated? Time to read , or write!
Are you among the many isolated people now? My wife and I are isolated because we are among the at-risk people, as we are old and have certain conditions. We are better off than many, as we spend a lot of time on-line already and can do a lot without having to...
Another short story: Billy’s Escape
A final offering for National Storytellers' Week I hope you enjoyed my previous contributions to National Storytellers' Week: A Mammoth Conflict for the Stone Age Detective and Pigs in Mud. Both are extracts from my unpublished novel, The Stone Age Detective, This...
A Mammoth Conflict for the Stone Age Detective
A mammoth tale for National Storytellers' Week! A Mammoth Conflict is an incident from the draft of my forthcoming novel, The Stone Age Detective. mentioned in previous blogs. I will be posting a few short stories this week. Some have been posted before, some are...
Creating a credible character in context
What credible character? Does my next book lack a credible character? I am in the process of writing a novel set at the outset of the English Civil War in 1642. My hero is the son of a nobleman, studying at Oxford. He wants to keep out of political and religious...
Is 2020 time for another Scottish indyref?
Another? When was the last indyref? In 2014 there was an indyref - that is a referendum on Scottish independence. The vote went in favour of the union by about 55%.but the SNP - the Scottish Nationalist Party - say it's time for another. Why? Because Britain's...
Do the Scots have a message for England as in 1715?
Did the Scots rebel in 1715? Not all Scots did. Many, probably most, accepted the rule of George the First. The rebels, called 'Jacobites', wanted to make James Stewart king. Religion, clan loyalties and personal ambitions all affected which side you were on. As I...
Who were the Great War heroes?
Weren't they all heroes? Heroes is the name many people would apply to all the men who gave their lives in the First World War, not to mention many other conflicts. However, there are those who disagree. I heard someone argue that as the men were conscripts, they...
Am I a Roundhead or a Cavalier?
Why would you ask if I was a roundhead or a cavalier? Most people today don't ask others 'Are you a roundhead or a cavalier' but as I have said I am going to set my latest book in the Civil War, people will want to know which side I would have been on. My reasons for...
Why am I writing about the Civil War?
What Civil War? The so-called English Civil War, although it involved the Scots, Welsh and Irish as well as the English. Anyway, I don't mean the American Civil War, or anyone else's. It was in the 1640's. Why am I writing about the Civil War right now? I must...
Was the Civil War about ‘Humbug’?
Why mention 'Humbug'? When I wrote recently about divisions, in 1642 - the start of the English Civil War - and today, I had no idea how much more heated things were about to become. The PM's response to being challenged about inflammatory language was to accuse his...
Is ‘Sanditon’ a travesty of Austen?
What is 'Sanditon'? Sanditon is a costume drama on ITV that has divided the crowd. It is not the best historical drama I've seen this year (so far I'd give that award to Gentleman Jack) but it's not the worst. (Let's not go there, please!) What's Sanditon got to do...