Author: T.G. Campbell
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INTERVIEW WITH RETIRED PRISON OFFICER, GARY CLARKE, April 2021
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If, like me, the closest you’ve ever gotten to a prison is the TV series Bad Girls or—dare I say—Porridge, then the reality of this world behind the walls will be completely alien to you. Thus far, I’ve not had any cause to feature a prison in any of my Bow Street Society works. Yet, when I…
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WRITING NOTES: The Women of the Bow Street Society, March 2021
According to the official International Women’s Day website the first occurrence of this annual gathering happened in 1911. Marked by women worldwide, the fundamental aims of the day are to “celebrate women’s achievements, raise awareness about women’s equality, lobby for accelerated gender parity, [and] fundraise for female-focused charities”. The theme for International Women’s Day 2021 is ‘Choose…
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LET’S START AGAIN, SHALL WE? January 2021
T.G. Campbell looks to the year ahead Looking back on my previous blogs, I read what I’d written this time last year. To say the year didn’t go according to plan would be a huge understatement. Although the pandemic is far from over, glimpses of its end are occasionally seen through the metaphorical “pea-souper” fog.…
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GUEST AT BOW STREET: Richard Jones of London Walking Tours, December 2020
Join me at the Bow Street Society’s house to chat with the very charming Mr Richard Jones of London Walking Tours. Mr Richard Jones is a holder of the Institute of Tourist Guiding’s highest accolade—the Blue Badge Tourist Guide qualification. The aforementioned institute being the official governing body for tour guides in England. In order…
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PHOTOGRAPHING THE DEAD IN THE VICTORIAN ERA, October 2020
It’s October; the spookiest month of the year! With this in mind I wanted to explore the darker side of the Victorian Era by looking at the practise of photographing the dead. Needless to say, then, this blog includes several mentions of death which some readers may find disturbing. If death and the documenting thereof…
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SUMMER ENTERTAINMENTS IN VICTORIAN LONDON, August 2020
We’ve experienced a few intense heat waves over the course of this Summer, and it’s not over yet. The pandemic has also affected our plans for holidays abroad, parties, and even dining out. Yet, what entertainments would’ve been available to the members of the Bow Street Society in 1896? Whilst foreign travel was reserved for…
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OBJECTS OF THE BOW STREET SOCIETY, July 2020
For May and June’s blogs I was fortunate enough to have a virtual coffee with the curators of the Metropolitan Police Historic Collection and the Virtual Typewriter Museum respectively. These chats made me reflect on my own antique collection which I display on my stand at book signing events. Therefore, I decided to use this…