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THE STORY OF HOW A WILD MOUNTAIN ADVENTURE EVOLVED INTO AN ELITE OLYMPIC SPORT'Why is the best blood of England to waste itself in scaling hitherto inaccessible peaks, in staining the eternal snow, and reaching the unfathomable abyss never to return?’ - The Times, 1865In the 1950s, rock climbing was a wild mountain adventure that was defined by a rebellious, bohemian culture and practised by small groups of amateur enthusiasts. Today, rock-climbing has become a professionalised, high-performance, mass-participation Olympic sport. There are now more than 400 climbing walls and over 500,000 people climb regularly in the UK. Ascent tells the story of this remarkable transformation. Anthony King – a dedicated climber himself – traces the sport’s evolution through decades of rebellion, innovation and achievement to its place today as a vibrant, diverse culture. His own experiences colour the narrative; we discover not just how climbing developed, but what it feels like to climb and be a climber. More than just a history of the sport, through this story we also see how British society itself has changed. Expansive, immediate and deeply engaging, Ascent is both cultural sport history and lived experience.

The plays and poetry of William Shakespeare have entertained and enlightened us for more than 400 years. By exploring his life in Elizabethan England, Shakespeare’s Notebook provides a fascinating and detailed picture of the man behind the plays, and the theatrical world he inhabited. Through his works, contemporary sources and a wide selection of illustrations, this book reveals how Shakespeare’s plays relate to his own roles of husband, father, actor and playwright. It celebrates the enduring legacy of rich language and memorable characters that resonate in many forms today.

‘This intriguing book delves into the history of these two Olympic class ships. It matches the origins of their ancient Greek namesakes … the Titans & Olympian Gods.’ – Steve Hall, Titanic historian and co-author of RMS Titanic in 50 ObjectsIt is impossible to understand Titanic without appreciating the broader context: the development of the White Star Line and its competitors in the preceding decades; Anglo-German competition; the British fear of the ‘American peril’ as foreign capital increasingly controlled British shipping companies; and the relentless advance in shipbuilding and technology. This definitive volume explores the lead-up to the construction of Olympic and Titanic, providing a step-by-step account of the design process and a look at the financial, logistical and political obstacles the White Star Line had to tackle; the ups and downs of Olympic’s maiden season; and Titanic’s disastrous end. Relying on extensive primary-source research and presenting much unpublished data, Olympic & Titanic: Triumph and Disaster is not only a valuable reference tool, but provides an essential insight into this period of maritime history.

Imagine a world where life unfurls with quiet tenacity, each day a testament to survival against the odds. Here you’ll meet the floral trailblazers – plants whose extraordinary talent for endurance and adaptation surpass anything on a human scale. The Power of Plants takes you back to their Jurassic origins and explores how environmental adaptations and unique survival tactics have ensured their success. Marvel at some of the world’s most incredible plants, from sweet peas to mangroves, and discover the remarkable influence they have on our work, rest and play. The secret world of plants reveals a remarkable story: a celebration packed with joyous insights to delight nature lovers and keen gardeners everywhere.

‘I feel you have captured the essence of my Great Aunt Helen.’ – Howard Ostby, descendant of Titanic survivor Helen OstbyThe early 1900s were a man’s world, and the Titanic was no exception. Even today, the stories we know about that fateful night mostly revolve around men and their actions, despite there having been nearly 500 women and girls on board. From the stewardess who survived three different maritime disasters to the mother whose young children were kidnapped and taken aboard the Titanic, and from the Carpathia passenger whose reports on the Titanic started a journalism career to the woman who went down with the ship but who no one remembered seeing, Melinda E. Ratchford tells the stories of women whose lives were inextricably linked to the sinking, revealing the world as it was for women in 1912. Titanic Women’s Stories is an investigation into the lives of these women before, during and after the tragedy that irrevocably changed both their world and ours.

Cuddly and cute, fierce and ferocious, cunning and conniving, worshipped and feared – felines appear in many forms in the humble folk tale. The cats in this collection of 57 stories are often heroic, witty and, at times, scheming or downright terrifying. Kitties big and small, from every corner of the world, such as the Kasha from Japan, the Nunda from East Africa, El Hombre Gato from Argentina, Kisa, the Cat from Iceland and many others can be found purring, hissing and prowling through these pages.

The Little Book of Lincolnshire is a compendium of fascinating information about this historic county, past and present. Contained within is a plethora of entertaining facts about Lincolnshire’s famous and occasionally infamous men and women, its towns and countryside, history, natural history, literary, artistic and sporting achievements, customs ancient and modern, transport, battles and ghostly inhabitants. A reliable reference book and quirky guide, this can be dipped in to time and time again to reveal something new about the people, the heritage, the secrets and the enduring fascination of the county. A remarkably engaging little book, this is essential reading for visitors and locals alike.

FEATURED IN THE SUNDAY TIMESHenrietta Moraes first discovered Soho when she was eighteen – or so she tells us. Her favourite sport was social climbing (heaven knows she enjoyed the exercise) and she was good at it, going to all the right parties and simply gate-crashing others. From the summit of the 1950s bohemian scene she surveyed the life and times of those who broke all the rules, such as the artists Lucian Freud and Francis Bacon (for whom she became a muse). But that’s not all she did – as a key counter-culture figure in the 1960s Chelsea Set, no other woman was more indefatigable in becoming a bohemian legend. Through Hen, you’ll learn how to steal your best friend’s boyfriend; enchant and ensnare a husband; blossom into a magnificent muse; dress like a comic book superhero; become a connoisseur of every illicit drug known to medical science and dose a Rolling Stones concert with them; join the caravan set and head along the gypsy trail in search of the Holy Grail, before rematerialising as the minder for a mind-blowing pop icon…Along the way you’ll indulge in the gentle art of cadging drinks; the feline felony of cat burglary; the canny craft of charity shop shoplifting and the haphazardness of steamy sex in second-hand bookshops. Hen, Mistress of Mayhem takes you to the epicentre of Soho’s Golden Age; stage by stage it forms a complete guide to a hell-raising companion.

Taking you through the year day by day, The Portsmouth Book of Days contains a quirky, eccentric, amusing or important event or fact from different periods of history, many of which had a major impact on, or reflect, the social and political history of England as a whole. Ideal for dipping into, this addictive little book will keep you entertained and informed. Featuring hundreds of snippets of information gleaned from the vaults of Portsmouth’s archives, it will delight residents and visitors alike.

‘Reindorp has done a stellar job of balancing their privilege and pathos.’ - The Lady‘Everyone in this book seems to be awash with booze.’ - The TelegraphGlamorous, fun and packed with scandalous anecdotes and exclusive interviews, Never Shaken, Never Stirred tells the story of two extraordinary sisters, Ann and Laura Charteris, who made marrying well an art form. While Laura eventually became the Duchess of Marlborough, Ann’s third and final husband was the journalist Ian Fleming, who she inspired to start writing the spy franchise he would become famous for. Along the way there were marriages, and affairs, with some of the biggest names of the twentieth century. The sisters’ collective husbands included a duke, four peers, Jacqueline Kennedy’s former brother-in-law and the alleged illegitimate son of Queen Elizabeth’s uncle. There were also passionate flings with a Labour leader, a press baron and a cluster of film and literary stars. History would come to define Ann and Laura by the men they married, but their marriages are only part of the story. From royals to writers, film stars to politicians, aristocrats to academics, the Charteris sisters knew everybody that mattered, their countless friendships allowing them a privileged ringside seat during many momentous historical moments of the last century. Blazing a glamorous trail with their beauty, charm, riotous behaviour and energetic love affairs, the aristocratic Charteris sisters alternately delighted and scandalised British society, and their lives continue to do so to this day.

‘I am a great admirer of Her Majesty. This gem of a book beautifully encapsulates the life of one of history’s most iconic royals.’ - Barbara BushAt age 25, Elizabeth II became Britain’s fortieth monarch and vowed to dedicate her life to service and duty on behalf of her country. Upon her death, aged 96, she certainly had achieved that. She was the constitutional monarch of fifteen sovereign states, head of the fifty-six member Commonwealth of Nations, Supreme Governor of the Church of England, and Head of the Armed Forces. Most notably, however, on 9 September 2015, she became the longest reigning monarch in British history and for a time was the oldest serving sovereign in the world. She consistently adapted in order to remain relevant, while devotedly upholding the age-old traditions of the monarchy. Although there have only been six British female monarchs, it cannot be denied that some of the most enlightened times in history have occurred during periods of queenship. Elizabeth I led the country through the Golden Age and Victoria ushered in the Industrial Revolution, but it is Elizabeth II who has left the most illustrious and progressive legacy of all: a true icon of modern monarchy.

Even in this predominantly secular age, Britain’s cathedrals remain potent symbols of religious continuity. Their purpose was to reveal God’s majesty, to declare the supremacy of the Church and the devotion of the men who built them. They were intended, literally, to be awesome. Similarly, our medieval abbeys, most of them sad remnants of a glorious past, serve to remind us of the dedication of those who aspired to the monastic ideal. No two cathedrals or abbeys are alike in their conception, location, construction or history, and it is this that gives them their limitless appeal. Informative, knowledgeable and wide-ranging, Stephen Friar’s study contains over 1,450 entries and explores the features of these places, as well as associated subjects, such as architecture, monuments and church music. Entries on the Anglo-Saxon Church, monasticism, the Reformation, the restoration of the Roman Catholic dioceses and more assist in revealing a wider historical context. Richly illustrated in both colour and black and white, The Companion to Cathedrals and Abbeys is essential reading to new and more seasoned researchers alike.

The Battle of the Somme raged from 1 July to 18 November 1916 and was one of the bloodiest fought in military history. For many, it has come to signify the waste and bloodshed of the First World War, as hundreds of thousands of men on all sides lost their lives fighting over small gains in land. Yet this battle was also to mark a turning point in the war and to witness new methods of warfare, such as all-arms integrated attacks, with infantry units and the new tank corps fighting alongside each other. In Somme 1916: The Blasted Battle, Andrew Robertshaw seeks to lift the battle out of its controversy and explain what really happened and why. Complete with detailed maps and photographs, as well as fascinating facts and profiles of the leaders, this book provides an unparalleled introduction to this legendary battle.

‘An important and moving contribution to the study of the Titanic.' - Gareth Russell, author of The Ship of DreamsAs Titanic left Southampton in 1912, neither the aristocrat nor the able seaman could have imagined they would end up navigating a tiny lifeboat together at night among towering icebergs. But when Thomas Jones realised Noël Rothes’ calm capability, he put her at the tiller of his boat, and for seven long hours they did all they could to shepherd twenty-five other people to safety. Their ordeal forged an unlikely rapport that lasted until Noël died in 1956. Drawing on contemporary sources, personal papers and letters, Angela Young, Noël’s great-granddaughter, brings their incredible story to light – a story of courage in the face of unthinkable tragedy.

‘Fascinating and elegantly written, Master & Cartographer introduces a largely forgotten naval hero of Stuart England’ – N.A.M. Rodger, author of The Safeguard of the Sea, The Command of the Ocean and The Price of VictoryThis is a book about maps and map-making, about power and class, and about war, seamanship and navigation. It is a study of wealth, patronage and money, in an England riven by religious disorder and toxic politics. Greenvile Collins (1643–94) was a naval warrant officer who caught the attention of a King. His seagoing career took him from Patagonia to the Arctic, into battles against Dutch men of war and Barbary corsairs, and to the slave markets and Silk Road ports of the Mediterranean. A scientific navigator, his professional drive drew him to Shetland, the Scilly Isles and all points in between, as he undertook the most ambitious hydrographic survey of the British coastline yet attempted. Then, even as he laboured to complete his monumental sea atlas, he was summoned yet again to the service of the Crown. The Glorious Revolution was a campaign of crisis for a deeply conflicted Royal Navy, and a crucial test of loyalty for Greenvile Collins and his fellow officers. ‘Greenvile Collins emerges as a sympathetic hero, who served three kings while compiling invaluable charts and navigational data for his fellow sailors. Not since Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey-Maturin novels have I enjoyed such rollicking armchair adventures at sea’ – Dava Sobel, author of Longitude

In this unparalleled investigation that deconstructs the modern hindsight that has tainted Titanic’s legacy, Allen Gibson presents a comprehensive history with a refreshing argument, that Titanic represented a considerable achievement in maritime architecture. Telling the story of the ‘unsinkable’ ship against a backdrop of a tumultuous and rapidly emerging technological world, he exposes the people and the circumstances that contributed to the disaster, and the blame that went on in its aftermath. This updated and expanded edition further unravels the mindset that wilfully dispatched the world’s largest ship out to sea with a famously deficient supply of lifeboats, and lays bare the technology so dramatically destroyed.