Life, Art, Oxfordshire and beyond
The Snake’s Head Fritillary (Fritillaria meleagris) was chosen as the county flower of Oxfordshire in 2002. It is an iconic chequered purple and white lily, bold in colouration with pendulous bell-shaped flowers on a delicate arched stem with long slim leaves, and when the flowers bloom a field is transformed into a legion of miniature …
It’s a hundred years this year since women were given suffrage – the right to vote. After a prolonged and often violent campaign, led by Emmeline Pankhurst who was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most important people in the twentieth century, women over 30 got the right to vote in 1918 …
Continue reading "FAMILY: From Sappho and suffrage to soil and science"
The Grand National is a the world’s most watched horse race – with as many as 600 million people around the globe tuned in to their TVs. That’s five times more than the number of people who watch America’s Superbowl and twice as popular as the last Royal Wedding! It is held each year at …
Continue reading "Family: The Grand National – fancy a flutter?"
What to do with the tinies To keep the little ones entertained this Easter holiday, we recommend a trip to Blenheim Palace Gardens (ticket price applies) where you can take the mini-train to the butterfly house and be amazed by the winged beasts overhead. And if they’re inspired, this time of year is the perfect …
The first of April marked 100 years of the Royal Air Force, the world’s first independent Air Force, and there are celebrations across the country throughout the summer to commemorate the service of those who have selflessly defended the Nation’s interests - at home and overseas - over the past 100 years. A Centenary Baton …
Feathers are strong and yet delicate, often in striking colours that shimmer in the light. Ancient caves in Italy recently revealed hundreds of bird bones where the longest and probably most colourful feathers had been removed from the wings of species that weren’t eaten for food. It is likely therefor that they were used, along …
Forty years earlier than the Wright Brothers’ first plane, there were flying stuntmen. Washington Harrison Donaldson was an acrobat and trapeze artist who once dangled by his ankles from a trapeze beneath a hot air balloon a kilometre above the ground. He was even invited to perform at PT Barnam’s New York shows – which …
Once upon a time many years ago there was a city called Troy on the Turkish coast, over the sea from the Greek city of Sparta. Troy was surrounded by a tall thick wall so that, when the giant gates were closed, the people who lived in the city were safe. For ten years Greek …
At this year, if there are a few days of sunshine, then keep your eyes open in the garden and the park and you might spot butterflies. Did you know that butterflies are a type of insect, even though they hatch from eggs as caterpillars? The caterpillar spends most of its time feeding and growing. …
Esther Lafferty's Inkwell 