This "lively" study of female lawbreakers across centuries and cultures is "chock full of disquieting stories and truly twisted personalities" ( Booklist).Organized A-to-Z under six categories, this book offers insight into the lives and minds of women in different centuries and different countries, with diverse cultures and backgrounds from the poverty-stricken to royalty, who have defied law and order and social taboos. Read about mistresses, murderers, ...

As much as 70 per cent of Essex is agricultural, and given its proximity to the capital it is not surprising that so many members of the Women's Land Army found themselves on Essex farms and in Essex fields during the two world wars, doing their bit to make sure that Britain did not starve. This book not only includes interviews with some of the last surviving land 'girls' but also contains a wealth of material unearthed in diaries, letters and in the stories handed down f...

The Little Book of The East End is a funny, fast-paced, fact-packed compendium of the sort of frivolous, fantastic or simply strange information which no-one will want to be without. Here we find out about the most unusual crimes and punishments, eccentric inhabitants, famous sons and daughters and literally hundreds of wacky facts (plus some authentically bizarre bits of historic trivia).

While Southend-on-Sea, like many seaside towns, may not have been at the forefront of the struggle for suffrage and equal rights in the lives of women between 1850 and 1950, there are surprisingly famous names linked to the town and its women. Novelist Rebecca West, living in nearby Leigh-on-Sea during the First World War (and her lover, H.G. Wells) played a key role in the suffrage and feminist movements and in women's entry into the scientific and literary professions. Princess Louise, a...

A history of true crime in a quaint resort town in Essex, England that hosts a variety of amusements—along with a legacy of madness, mayhem, and murder.This ghoulish look into the past takes readers on a sinister journey through Southend-on-Sea, from medieval times to the twentieth century, and featuring a rogues' gallery of cutthroats, highwaymen, witches, murderers, and madmen.Included are more than twenty notorious episodes offering fascinating insight i...

Writing Female Smugglers of the Nineteenth Century has proved quite a challenge, but a fascinating one. This was a century when the romantic notion of smuggling – bold runs onto beaches with kegs of alcohol – was diminishing as duties were slowly eroded on such highly desirable goods. But it was a century when more innovative and ingenious ways of smuggling a larger variety of goods came to the fore. Tobacco and alcohol, yes, but also lace, luxury fabrics and garments, jewellery and even l...

Including many conversations with Southendians, this title aims to recall life in their town, during the 1950s and '60s. It focuses on social change, as well as school days, work and play, transport, and entertainment. It also includes memories of the late '60s clashes between Mods and Rockers, and of the infamous Wall of Death at the Kursaal.

Here are Essex Girls in a different light to the stereotype of modern public expectation. Murderers, mayhem-makers, swindlers, witches, smugglers and lustful adulteresses have played a part in the darker side of the county's history. From the thirteenth century onwards, Essex has produced more than its fair share of infamous women. Some got their comeuppance, some profited from their infamy and others were misguided, or with the benefit of hindsight, misjudged. The reader ...

Did you know?In the eleventh century, Edward the Confessor banished nightingales from the royal palace at Havering-atte-Bower because their singing disturbed his devotions.In 1913, Benny Hucks of Stansted Mountfitchet was the first person to perform a loop-the-loop in an aircraft.On Boxing Day 1946, Hatfield Heath villagers challenged local German and Italian POWs to a football match – and lost 11–0.Brentwood was the first town i...

The modern history of London's East End has been well-documented – but what of its ancient roots? From embryonic beginnings in the Stone Age, through Roman rule and civil wars, all the way to its jam-packed twentieth-century timeline, the East End has always been a place of innovation, diversity and change. Written by an East Ender with a love of her roots, The Little History of the East End is an engaging look at the area's history through the people that made it...

The Secret History of Southend offers the reader an off-the-beaten-track tour of the city's landmarks and streets, revealing the forgotten stories of Southend – its people, its visitors, its history, its streets and its buildings. This book is filled with hundreds of little-known facts and historical anecdotes. From the arrival of the 'Brides in the Bath' murderer to the famous mountaineer who liked to live at the top of his building, this book will amuse, fascinate and inform all lovers o...

The popular seaside resort of Southend-on-Sea has long been a haven for holidaymakers, but the town also harbours some disturbing secrets... Discover the darker side of Southend with this spooky collection of spine-chilling tales from around the town. From ghostly sightings in Hadleigh Castle, ominous sounds and smells on the seafront and tales of mysterious shapes at the town's pubs and taverns, this book is guaranteed to make your blood run cold. Illustrated with over si...