Picture of the Week #500

Posted on by June 13, 2018

Carvings under the Anne Boleyn Gatehouse at Hampton Court Palace. Photo May 2015.

When I was continuing the long, slow process of editing all of my photos from three years ago, I finished this one and thought it would be a good choice for the milestone of Picture of the Week #500. I knew I had used a similar one from a previous trip and when I looked it up, low and behold, it was the one I used for the earlier milestone of #100! So here is a new version of that previous photo, this time a more centered view and natively digital and not from a scanned photo negative.

Upcoming Books, Events and Exhibitions for June 2018

Posted on by June 3, 2018

Books

A couple of books that have already been released in the UK are now out in the US:

First up – Melita Thomas’ The King’s Pearl: Henry VIII and His Daughter Mary came out last fall in the UK and is now out in the US:

And La Reine Blanche: Mary Tudor A Life in Letters by Sarah Bryson is also now out in the US after a release earlier this year in the UK:

And in new releases – Claire Ridgway of The Anne Boleyn Files has teamed up with artist Dmitry Yakhovsky to create The Life of Anne Boleyn Colouring Book! You can order it from both the UK and US Amazon stores now:

Events

Henry – A Tudor Musical will run from June 13 to 16 at the Cecil Hepworth Playhouse in Walton on Thames (just west of Hampton Court Palace). You can learn more about the musical play and books tickets at the website of the Molesey Musical Theatre. And here is a synopsis with more information (PDF).

Exhibitions

Royal Sudeley 1000 – Trials, Triumphs and Treasures – Sudeley Castle has refurbished their exhibition rooms for their 2018 open season that runs from March 5 to December 21.

Picture of the Week #498

Posted on by May 30, 2018

Figure of Bishop John Fisher at Rochester Cathedral.

This is one of eight statues on the 19th century screen between the nave and quire of the cathedral. John Fisher was Bishop of Rochester and confessor to Margaret Beaufort and was later beheaded in the reign of her grandson, Henry VIII.

Upcoming Books, Events and Exhibitions for May 2018

Posted on by April 29, 2018

Time for the round-up for the merry month of May!

Books

Four Queens and a Countess: Mary Queen of Scots, Elizabeth I, Mary I, Lady Jane Grey and Bess of Hardwick by Jill Armitage will be out in the US on May 1 after a release last year in the UK.

And there are some new books for May:

In more academic fare, Juana I: Legitimacy and Conflict in Sixteenth-Century Castile by Gillian B. Fleming, part of the Queenship and Power series, was released in April in the US and will be out on May 17 in the UK.

Natalie Grueninger and Kathryn Holeman have teamed up again for more Tudor coloring book fun! You can order Colouring History – Tudor Queens and Consorts from Amazon US and through ColouringTudorHistory.com

Events

I have a couple of upcoming Tudor history stage productions coming up, one for May and one for June:

First up, Put Out the Lights by Joanna Carrick will run from May 8 to 27 at The Avenue Theatre in Ipswich. Tickets can be purchased at the Red Rose Chain website.
About the play:

1538. Ipswich is a place of dark secrets and divided loyalties. A preacher is dragged from his pulpit, arrested for protestant heresy, while Cromwell sends agents to dismantle the Town’s beloved Catholic Shrine and burn the statue of Our Lady. From day to day the world is changing and it’s hard to know what to believe, what to say and above all who to trust.

And in June, Henry – A Tudor Musical will run from June 13 to 16 at the Cecil Hepworth Playhouse in Walton on Thames (just west of Hampton Court Palace). You can learn more about the musical play and books tickets at the website of the Molesey Musical Theatre. And here is a synopsis with more information (PDF).

Exhibitions

Closing this month:

The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC is hosting an exhibition on Michel Sittow that opened on January 28, 2018 and runs to May 13, 2018. Sittow is probably most associated for fans of Tudor history with the portrait of what has long been identified as a young Catherine of Aragon. We had a discussion on the Q&A blog about the portrait being re-identified as Mary Tudor (Brandon) and it seems that the exhibition is now using that identification as well (although calling her “Mary Rose Tudor”). You can find out more about the exhibition here.

New Exhibitions

Royal Sudeley 1000 – Trials, Triumphs and Treasures – Sudeley Castle has refurbished their exhibition rooms for their 2018 open season that runs from March 5 to December 21. (This is also reminding me that as of this May it will be 20 years since I visited Sudeley! I really need to get back soon.)

Upcoming Books and Exhibitions for April 2018

Posted on by April 1, 2018

Books

A number of books that have previously been released in the UK are coming out in the US this month, starting with Tudor Monarchs: Lives in Letters by Andrea Clarke, which will be out in the US on April 1.

Also on April 1, Amy Licence’s Anne Boleyn: Adultery, Heresy, Desire will be out in the US:

On April 10, Francis I: The Maker of Modern France will have a US release:

Next up is Helen Castor’s book on Elizabeth I for the Penguin Monarchs series, Elizabeth I: A Study in Insecurity which is due out on April 24 in the US:

And finally, Chris Skidmore’s Richard III: England’s Most Controversial King (the US title) is out April 24 as well:

Exhibitions

The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC is hosting an exhibition on Michel Sittow that opened on January 28, 2018 and runs to May 13, 2018. Sittow is probably most associated for fans of Tudor history with the portrait of what has long been identified as a young Catherine of Aragon. We had a discussion on the Q&A blog about the portrait being re-identified as Mary Tudor (Brandon) and it seems that the exhibition is now using that identification as well (although calling her “Mary Rose Tudor”). You can find out more about the exhibition here.

Picture of the Week #489

Posted on by March 28, 2018

This week marks the third anniversary of the reburial of Richard III, so I figured it was finally time to use another one of my photos from my visit to Leicester Cathedral just two months later. (Which also means it has now been almost three years since my last trip to England… too long!)

Tomb of Richard III at Leicester Cathedral. Photo May 2015.

Sunday Short Takes

Posted on by March 11, 2018

Long overdue! Some of these date back over a month, but in my defense, most of February was a blur so it feels like we just went from January straight to March.

* The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries to open on 11th June – A date has been announced for the opening of Westminster Abbey’s new galleries up in the medieval Triforium. I can’t wait to visit this (someday)!

* Blanche Parry’s life at the side of Queen Elizabeth I – Blanche Parry is one of history’s most influential Welsh women, yet few know the name and only a handful know her story.

* Victoria Art Gallery’s Henry VIII portrait confirmed as original Tudor painting – A painting of Henry VIII belonging to Bath & North East Somerset Council’s Victoria Art Gallery has been confirmed as an original Tudor work.

* Dedication Is What You Need – Seemingly inconsequential, dedicating books to royalty was a vital part of Tudor publishing.

* How Americans Preserved British English – Americans today pronounce some words more like Shakespeare than Brits do… but it’s in 18th-Century England where they’d really feel at home.

* Tulip Procession held at Bradgate Park to mark anniversary of Lady Jane Grey’s execution – Bradgate Park hosted the event, which is the first of several happening this year

* X-ray probe to save Mary Rose cannonballs – Researchers are using powerful X-rays to look inside cannonballs found on the famous Tudor ship, the Mary Rose. They are trying to find a way of preserving the shot, which will corrode if it is put on display.

And finally –

Here’s another talk by Leanda de Lisle, this time on the Tudor family story. From the video description:

In June 1485, Richard III issued a warning. England faced an invader, ‘one Henry Tudor who usurps the title of this realm as every man knows’. So who was Henry Tudor? Leanda de Lisle tells his family story, and unravels the murder mystery of the lost princes in the Tower.

Upcoming Books and Exhibitions for March 2018

Posted on by March 4, 2018

Books

Just one book coming out in the US this month that has already been released in the UK – Nicola Tallis’ Elizabeth’s Rival: The Tumultuous Tale of Lettice Knollys, Countess of Leicester, which will be out on March 6.

And a few new books are due out this month as well, starting with Helen Castor’s Elizabeth I: A Study in Insecurity, part of the Penguin Monarchs series. It will be out in April as a hardcover in the US although you can get the Kindle edition now.

Next up is a look at Henry VIII’s cross-channel rival, Francis I: The Maker of Modern France by Leonie Frieda. It is out March 8 in the UK and in April in the US:

Another work is out in the Queenship and Power series of academic works – Elizabeth I in Writing: Language, Power and Representation in Early Modern England, edited by Donatella Montini and Iolanda Plescia. It is due out on March 21 is both the UK and US.

And finally, Derek Wilson’s most recent Tudor work, The Queen and the Heretic: How two women changed the religion of England about Queen Katherine Parr and Anne Askew will be out later in March is the UK and possibly the US (I found conflicting publication info).

Exhibitions

The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC is hosting an exhibition on Michel Sittow that opened on January 28, 2018 and runs to May 13, 2018. Sittow is probably most associated for fans of Tudor history with the portrait of what has long been identified as a young Catherine of Aragon. We had a discussion on the Q&A blog about the portrait being re-identified as Mary Tudor (Brandon) and it seems that the exhibition is now using that identification as well (although calling her “Mary Rose Tudor”). You can find out more about the exhibition here.