Category: victorian
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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…
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COFFEE WITH A CURATOR: Paul Robert, Virtual Typewriter Museum, June 2020
Welcome to June’s blog and the second instalment of ‘Coffee with a Curator’, a series of interviews intended to give you an insight into the captivating work of curators from around the world. You may read the first interview with Dr Clare Smith, Historic Collection Curator at the Heritage Centre dedicated to the Metropolitan Police…
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BOW STREET SOCIETY’S LONDON: Tower of London, April 2019
A glimpse into the real-life world of London in 1896. The Tower of London attracts millions of tourists every year and it’s been on my “bucket list” of places to visit for a long time. In March I was finally able to tick it off. The photograph above is of the famous White Tower that…
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A VICTORIAN HAUNTING, October 2019
T.G. Campbell’s visit to Delapré Abbey in Northamptonshire In the Northampton countryside is a hidden gem dating back 900 years to a time when nuns following the Cluniac order formed a nunnery dedicated to St. Mary de la Pré. Delapré Abbey, as it’s known today, has been partially restored to its former glory. It’s a…
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COFFEE WITH A CURATOR: Dr Claire Smith, Metropolitan Police Historic Collection, May 2020
May’s blog sees the start of a new series of interviews intended to give you an insight into the captivating work of curators around the world. For the first instalment, I was privileged to share a (virtual) coffee with Dr Clare Smith, Historic Collection Curator at the Heritage Centre dedicated to the Metropolitan Police Service…
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INTERVIEW WITH RETIRED BOW STREET POLICE STATION OFFICER, March 2020
Bow Street is one of London’s most famous thoroughfares — in addition to being the location of the Society’s fictional headquarters, of course. Its police station was as famous as its magistrates’ courts. The vast majority of police presence at the Bow Street station was removed in the second half of the twentieth century with…
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LADY OWSTON’S PERFECT CHRISTMAS, December 2019
An introduction by T.G. Campbell: As we’re entering the festive season I wanted to include something light-hearted in my blog this month. Given Lady Katheryne Owston’s usual occupation as a freelance journalist for the Truth and Women’s Signal publications, in addition to being an active member of the Bow Street Society, I thought it apt to write a piece from…
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WHERE DID “COPPER” COME FROM? September, 2019
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The 190th Anniversary of the Founding of the Metropolitan Police Force The 29th September 2019 will mark the 190th anniversary of the founding of the Metropolitan Police by Sir Robert Peel. It’s difficult for many to imagine a world in which there’s no police. Almost more difficult to imagine is a society so resistant to…