The 1950s was the decade of the Queen's Coronation and the Festival of Britain; of family shops and pea-souper smogs; listening to the wireless and watching the box; when money was counted in pounds, shillings and pence and weights were in pounds and ounces. It was when children walked to school and 'six of the best' was a painful experience; postmen wore uniforms with peaked hats and chimney sweeps rode bikes with their brushes and poles balanced on their shoulders; milk and bread were de...

Discover some of the Victorian Era's most outlandish inventions—from the world-changing to the simply weird—in this look at nineteenth-century innovation.We all know that some of history's greatest inventions came about in the Victorian age. But in The Ingenious Victorians, John Wade goes beyond those famous advances to explore some of the weird and wonderful ideas and projects that have largely been forgotten. He also offers a new perspective on some of th...

A detailed look at the British world of science fiction in the 1950s.John Wade grew up in the 1950s, a decade that has since been dubbed the "golden age of science fiction." It was a wonderful decade for the genre, but not so great for young fans. With early television broadcasts being advertised for the first time as "unsuitable for children" and the inescapable barrier of the "X" certificate in the cinema barring anyone under the age of sixteen, the author had on...

An off-the-beaten-path tour of the city's hidden highlights, and the stories behind them.London is full of curiosities. Who knew that beneath the Albert Memorial lies a chamber resembling a church crypt? Or that there are catacombs under Camden? Who would expect to find a lighthouse in East London, sphinxes in South London, dummy houses in West London, or a huge bust of film director Alfred Hitchcock in North London?How many of those who walk past Cleopatra...

An evolution of snapshot photography from Victorian times to the digital age. The arrival of the first snapshot camera in Victorian times bred a new kind of photographer, one who might never before have thought of owning a camera, but for whom the ability to take pictures without any previous experience offered a new liberation. The way snapshot cameras and the pictures they took evolved through the following years and into today's digital age is what this book is all about. With more than...

This Is The Missing ManualPeople more often than not spend more time researching the purchase of their next toaster than they do the dog they will be including in their lives for the next decade plus.Same for a vehicle or a home and statistically speaking they’re hoping to be with the dog a lot longer.This book isn’t about whether you should get a dog. The assumption at this point is you’re definitely getting one or in the process of getting one or ...

A comprehensive history of the development and use of cameras in recording British military conflicts from the 1850s to the 1950s.Books about war and the pictures that came out of conflict usually concentrate on the picture content. But behind every picture there is a camera—and that's what this book is about. Profusely illustrated throughout with pictures of the cameras, rather than the pictures they took, it looks at one hundred years of conflict from the Crimean ...

Over the years many weird and wonderful types of transport have come and gone, some of which succeeded against all odds, others that spectacularly failed, and some that never got beyond a designer's drawing board. Railway engines driven by horses, for example. Or maybe the surprising number of cars, boats and trains driven by aeroplane propellers. In this book you will find cars that flew, cars that floated on water and boats that ran on roads; steam-powered aeroplanes, electric submarines...

Much of what you find in this information-packed e-book will apply to any breed or mixed breed dog. However, some breeds are more mini-van like while others are more Ferrari-like. As a result, several versions of this booklet have been written but where required tailored to reflect specific breed characteristics. This one is tailored to the needs of the Ferrari-like Cane Corso, their owners, and prospective owners.What you read in the following pages is genuinely the ‘Missing Cane ...

Reveals, through the eyes of a conscripted soldier, the day-to-day lives of British soldiers in British West Africa during World War II. Looks at the strange cultures, the landscape and wildlife, the unusual situations that were encountered in an alien and often frightening location known as The White Man’s Grave

Essex is a place where you learn to expect the unexpected. If you know where to look, thereʼs history and mystery at every turn, and this book is here to help you find it all. It brings you stories of strange places with weird names, mystery buildings that make no sense until you know their history, bizarre legends, forgotten facts, lost villages, unknown islands, spirits and ghosts, witches and smugglers. Who knows, for example, the part played by Essex in the colonisation of America? Or ...

An off-the-beaten-path tour of the city’s hidden highlights, and the stories behind them.London is full of curiosities. Who knew that beneath the Albert Memorial lies a chamber resembling a church crypt? Or that there are catacombs under Camden? Who would expect to find a lighthouse in East London, sphinxes in South London, dummy houses in West London, or a huge bust of film director Alfred Hitchcock in North London?How many of those who walk past Cleopatra’s Needle pause t...