The History of the Proscenium – The Place Where the Imaginary and Real Worlds Divide
The director Dominic Dromgoole, author of Time Frames, explains the historical forces behind the 'Proscenium Playwrights' of today.
Six Enchanting Churches for Lovers of English History
Have you ever been tempted to indulge in a little church crawling? Here the author Rachel Morley selects six of her favourite destinations.
New History Books for September 2026
Our pick of new history books for September. From Thomas Cochrane to the Cold War Spies, Doomsday to the Sixties.
★ EDITOR'S PICKS
Jane Austen The Magical Novelist With John Mullan
250 years after she was born, Jane Austen continues to outwit her readers, as John Mullan explains
Decoding The Voynich Manuscript
Garry J. Shaw on the efforts to decode the world's most mysterious manuscript
Josef Mengele the Elusive Nazi with Betina Anton
Betina Anton explains how one of the most infamous Nazis remained at large for decades after the end of the Second World War
Johnny Reynolds The Daredevil 'Human Fly' (1917)
On Wednesday 5 September 1917, the daredevil climber Johnny Reynolds performed in Washington D.C.
Bookshelf
The History of the Proscenium – The Place Where the Imaginary and Real Worlds Divide
The director Dominic Dromgoole, author of Time Frames, explains the historical forces behind the 'Proscenium Playwrights' of today.
New History Books for September 2026
Our pick of new history books for September. From Thomas Cochrane to the Cold War Spies, Doomsday to the Sixties.
The Chain Tower, the Siege of Damietta and the Fifth Crusade
Thomas Smith revisits a dramatic moment from the Fifth Crusade when the Christians besieged the port of Damietta.
Napoleon III and the Disastrous Battle of Sedan in 1870
Edward Shawcross traces the course of the Battle of Sedan in September 1870, a defeat that would spell the end for the Second Empire.
Features
Six Enchanting Churches for Lovers of English History
Have you ever been tempted to indulge in a little church crawling? Here the author Rachel Morley selects six of her favourite destinations.
'Persuasion Not Coercion' – British Politics in the Second World War
Between 1939-45 Britain's politicians were confronted by a huge domestic challenge. Here Steven Casey analyses how Churchill's government 'sold the Second World War'.
Life at the Loneliest Farmhouse in the World
The author Tim Ecott is a regular visitor to the remote Faroe Islands. Here he takes us to one of the most sparsely populated of them all, Stóra Dímun, and its single, lonely farmhouse.
Hannah Durkin's Search for the Last US Survivors of the Transatlantic Slave Trade
A decade ago Hannah Durkin began to search for the last survivors of the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Here she tells us about the Wolfson Prize winning book that emerged.
Interviews
Iran's Stolen Revolution with Bozorgmehr Sharafedin and Yeganeh Torbati
The story of post-revolutionary Iran has been one of missed opportunities and of a government betraying its people, explain the authors of a new history of the period
The History of Aston Villa Football Club with Rob Bishop
Rob Bishop is Aston Villa's club historian. Here he tells us how he landed this singular job and about the rich history of one of England's greatest football teams
The General Strike of 1926 with Jonathan Schneer
The General Strike of 1926 marked a precarious moment in British political and social history, as Jonathan Schneer explains
Adolf Hitler's Strange Death with Caroline Sharples
On 30 April 1945 Adolf Hitler committed suicide in Berlin. But the story of the Führer's death is more complicated than these bare facts suggest, explains the historian Caroline Sharples
Snapshot
On Ocean Beach Beside the Cliff House Hotel in San Francisco (1902)
The Cliff House Hotel in San Francisco overlooked Ocean Beach – a place that drew crowds in hot weather. This colourised photograph shows people taking a 'sun bath'.
What is a Blockade – and Do They Work?
As President Trump announces his blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, we glance back at the history of this military tactic