Tag: England

St Michael's Cathedral was destroyed during the Coventry Blitz, in which 554 people were killed

UK: Coventry Cathedral – WWII Ruin – Reconstruction Drive! (30.9.2026)

My paternal grandmother – Gladys Wyles – would tell us stories about how she lived in Leicester during WWII. She remembered the bombing of nearby Coventry and how the Luftwaffe pilots came down on parachutes amongst the streets. Many were so polite and smart that the UK government permitted them to roam freely around the city carrying-out various aspects of rescue and reconstruction work. Many were glad to be out of the war – but considering how many British were killed in their bombing-raids – it is interesting that such POWs were not routinely attacked out of revenge. I have never visited Coventry.

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Cheam Village Used To Be A Sleepy Village!

UK: WHEN EAST CHEAM WAS NOT A PLACE OF FICTION! (14.9.2026)

Each house possessed an ample front and back garden, with a covered garage to park the family conveyance – usually on the property or nearby. As there was ample space – these houses were large and roomy. Sutton was only forced to build rental properties for workers post-1945 – although people like Thomas Wall, did use his own money to build workers’ cottages for his employees – but these were few and far between. Today, such cottages are worth millions on the free market and are highly sought after (ironically). The British comedian – Tony Hancock (1924-1968) – was famous for a fictional character he created whose back-story had him living in “East Cheam” – but East Cheam has not be used for probably hundreds of years – despite the odd campaign here and there. In 2022, Sutton Council renamed the “Electoral Ward” where we live into “West Sutton and East Cheam” – thus bringing the designation back to life. Tony Hancock must have really researched this area very well to come-up with this obscure name – making it famous

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How the disability were treated in the old days,

UK: Epsom’s Horton Chapel! (13.9.2026)

Furthermore, I cannot find any pictures online. I think most people are unaware that a) this object exists, or b) the general public are permitted into this “entrance” area of a private members club – providing they do not attempt to pass through the barriers. Either way, there used to be five psychiatric hospitals in the Epsom area (known as the “Cluster”) – which suggests that many more maladies were once considered “mental illness” – even women demanding to vote or have a say. Working-class people “getting ill” so that their labour can no longer be exploited was also considered “psychotic” between earlier and middle part of its history (it existed between 1902-1997). One such unfortunate was a former wrestler who drive an ambulance during the Nazi German bombing of London. He was wounded by shrapnel in the neck – and he was placed in the psychiatric hospital – where he wasted away. He was a British Jewish person surnamed “Solomon” – who is buried in Horton Cemetery.

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One of the first known images of the Major Oak, according to the RSPB

UK: Robin Hood’s “Major Oak” Dies in Sherwood Forest! (26.8.2026)

If this is the case, then ironically the building was soon “removed” for some reason or other (to be fair, according the maps, there were many places termed “lodges” and they seem common). In recent years, this area was a multi-storey car-park (not far from a cinema and the town centre) but has just been developed into expensive flats. The “Rectory” used to located nearby – but that disappeared decades ago (and was flats for disabled and vulnerable people for awhile). I have spoken to numerous local historians who have no idea as to “why” Sutton is associated with Robin Hood. I came to live here in the early 1990s – and the idea serves as a flowing undercurrent of identity in the area that is never questioned. I have no knowledge as to why this is. Obviously, there may well be a historical connection that nobody remembers today. Be that as it may, surely the English notion of “Socialism” (the redistribution of wealth) has its bases not in (the far later) Marx (who was exiled to 19th century England) – but in Robin Hood’s idea of “robbing from the rich to give to the poor”. Whatever the case, an old tree in Sherwood Forest has finally died after 1200-years of life. Robin Hood and his men are supposed to have met and/or hidden under its branches.

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Cornwall: Vandalised “Village Giraffe Statue” Leaves Locals in Mourning! (19.8.2026)

I once heard a news article on the local “Pirate FM” (when staying in Camelford researching the King Arthur Legend) that five-year-old children were going to school still wearing nappies, unable to say their own names, or feed themselves properly. A shocking state of affairs primarily effecting the local Cornish. Meanwhile, White middle-class English incomers take advantage of this poor economics and buy-up acres of cheap property – using it for holiday homes. The former British Tory Prime Minister – David Cameron – used to spend luxurious hunting holidays in Cornwall – whilst doing absolutely nothing to relieve the grinding poverty suffered by the indigenous population. Still, at least the lady in-charge of the giraffe – possesses the strength of character not to immediately resort to crowd-funding as an answer – as this is a hideous late-capitalist convention that removes a national government’s responsibility toward its tax-paying citizens (as citizens, we pay billions in tax to see it asset-stripped from the NHS and given as free hand-outs to Neo-Nazi Ukraine and Zionist Israel). Furthermore, those who commit criminal acts should pay for the damage they have done.

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William Whiston (1667 – 1752), holding his drawing of the solar system.

UK: I Once Ran a Half-Marathon over 1 Hr 40 Mins [13.25 Miles] in Hereford During the 1980s – and Neither of My Legs Were Broken! (8.8.2026)

I was born in Oxford (Hitler bombed my mother’s family out of working-class Lewisham in 1940) – and I love the history and “learning” associated with the place (I can walk around with a book about Marx on open display and no one bats an eyelid). I did attend Oxford – but I paid to do so – as I could not attain a place due to my own limitations when I was young. It just so happened that my intellectual abilities matured at the same time when I experienced a decade of wealth. Although Oxford does discriminate, I “paid” to access a “Philosophy of Mind” course – which I passed despite not fitting-in (I was in my late 30s at the time and was surrounded by BBC executives, Guardian Reporters, and UN employees – but my family was proud). However, I was told a story of a young woman who was born into a poor working-class family and brought-up on a housing estate.

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