End of 2021 Thanks and Update

For me, just like everyone else, 2021 has been yet another hard year. I sincerely hope that 2022 is a better year for all of us, although I definitely remember saying the same thing at the end of 2020. I have been suffering from a foot injury since May, which is only just starting to get a bit better. Sadly that has meant not being able to do much and certainly not drive, which has been the most frustrating. At least it has meant I have had more of an opportunity to write more when I can.

Before I go on to give a further update on things, I just want to take the time to thank each and every person who has read, shared, liked and followed the blog this year. It genuinely has meant to much to me that the blog has brought people enjoyment through such tough times. This year has been the best year for views since I started this blog three years ago. The best post of all this year has been on Brushy Bill Roberts, a man who claimed to be the infamous Billy the Kid. That can be read here. All that is down to all of you readers, so sending lots of virtual love and hugs your way!

Photograph of Brushy Bill Roberts

A new thing this year has been guest posts from other writers. It has meant a lot to me that others have wanted to contribute in various ways. I’ve certainly enjoyed hosting them, so I hope you’ve also enjoyed the very interesting content they’ve created, just as much as I have reading them too. Look out for more of this next year too, with lots more interesting topics. I can definitely promise you that! I have also done quite a few guest posts on other blogs, which has also been an honour.

Another wonderful first was attending the Jane Austen festival in Bath. I should have visited last year, but Covid circumstances meant it was cancelled. As a lifetime Jane Austen fan, this was something I really wanted to do. My sister made our dresses and I must admit she made did a brilliant job with them considering she’d never really sewed historical costumes before. I would definitely recommend it to anyone interested, even if it was just to witness the amount of people in Regency dress walking around Bath.

There have been lots of firsts this year too. I’ve also done two of my first ever online talks on my research into the life of Anthony Woodville, brother of Queen Elizabeth Woodville, the wife of Edward IV. I never would have thought that possible not long ago. One was alongside author and historian, Michele Schindler, for the Be Bold History Network, on the connection between Anthony and Richard III and Francis Lovell, the most trusted friend of Richard. This can be viewed here if you would like. The other I did was a brief talk based on an academic poster for this year’s conference held by the Royal Studies Network based on Anthony’s role as educator of Edward V. Another first for me was being a guest on the Tudor Dynasty podcast on William Caxton’s contribution to printing in England in the late fifteenth century, with lots of mention of Edward IV and Anthony Woodville thrown in. If you’d like to listen to that, it can be found here.

The most exciting announcement I have to make is one that means the world to me. For the last seven years, I have been researching about the life of Anthony Woodville, with the dream of one day writing a book on this often overlooked figure from the Wars of the Roses. I approached a publisher back in 2019 with little success, but this summer, I decided to try again with a different publisher. Earlier this month, I found that it has been accepted and it has a hand in date of May 2023. I hope that in the future, you will look forward to this as this project honestly means so much to me. Thank you for all of you who have so far supported my research, it will be of so much help whilst writing the book. Special mention must go to Kevin and Alan, volunteers at Pontefract and Sandal Castles, who have already been extremely helpful. They have been creating a very useful website on the history of both sites. It can be found here.

Portrait of a young gentleman, said to be Anthony Babington, Wikimedia Commons

This shouldn’t hinder the blog, so I hope that you can continue to enjoy the blog in the coming year. There are lots of interesting topics planned ranging from Victorian prison hulks, medieval London, to pioneering women. I hope they’ll be something there for you to enjoy. The first posts coming in January 2022 are linked to Mary Queen of Scots, including one about Anthony Babington, a local landowner that once owned my hometown in Derbyshire, who was involved in the Catholic plot that resulted in the execution of Mary Queen of Scots.

All that is left now is to wish you all a healthy and much better 2022. May it be a better one for all of us. Most importantly, thank you all once again for your support over the last year. Each and every view, like and share means a lot to me, so I pass on my hearty thanks and love to all of you.