Showing results by author "LIAM DALE" in All Categories

When you look back in history at royal romances, surprising as it may seem, few have happy ever after endings, and in many instances the idea of “Love and Marriage” being inextricably linked is not quite as common as you might at first think. In fairy stories handsome Kings and Princes regularly sweep fair maidens off their feet, transforming them into Princesses and Queens, and although a rarer occurrence, a Royal Princess can create a Prince out of the most unpromising of characters! From King Arthur through to Prince Charles and Diana, Royal Romances - The British Monarchy gives you ...

Do you want to learn more about the great author Catherine Cookson , but don’t have time to read huge, long biographies? Then let The History Journals take you on an hourly history tour of his life. Mention the name of Catherine Cookson and images of a bygone era will immediately spring to mind. This truly remarkable author created a literary landscape based on her childhood experiences in the North East of England.

Brave New World July – September 1945 With Europe sifting through the rubble of a long and bitter war, the Japanese, true to their cultural heritage refused to surrender. The prospect of a protracted land campaign, resulting in the deaths of many more American military personnel, was too high a price to pay, leaving Truman to take the decision to end World War II swiftly, with the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Islamic terrorism had largely been confined to the “Lone Wolf” style of individual attacks. The Western world realized that if manipulated, it could be programmed to self-implode. The British counter terrorism unit was in the way of the grand plan and would have to be eliminated. A CIA trained female assassin was employed. Things didn’t work out. The consequences were serious and far reaching.

There are some names that just fall off the tongue with the lilting promise of great things, and John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (usually abbreviated to JRR Tolkien) is a perfect example. In his own lifetime this softly spoken, pipe smoking, tweed clad Oxford College Professor, the quintessential Englishman, caused a tremendous stir when he wrote first “The Hobbit” and then “The Lord of the Rings”. But Tolkien could never have guessed the impact his beloved books would continue to have on future generations of readers, and since Peter Jackson’s wonderful 21st Century movie adaptations ...

When it comes to the subject of war there are few conflicts that loom larger in our minds than the Second World War, fought between 1939 and 1945. Many of us can remember relatives and friends who were involved in the conflict, but as the years go by, passing on the lessons learnt from World War II to each new generation, becomes ever more important. Liam Dale's World War II History Journals fulfills that task, with year on year chapters covering the history of this landmark encounter in world history.

“A dog began to howl somewhere in a farmhouse far down the road, a long, agonized wailing, as if from fear. The sound was taken up by another dog, and then another and another, till, borne on the wind which now sighed softly through the pass, a wild howling began, which seemed to come from all over the country, as far as the imagination could grasp it through the gloom of the night.” With howling dogs, a shimmering moon and a chill wind through a darkened landscape, these words could only come from one novel; the great horror classic, Dracula, penned by the Irish born writer Bram Stoker...

If I asked you how many Robin Hoods you could name, what would the list be like? I’m sure you’d reel off a whole host of famous actors, like Errol Flynn, Douglas Fairbanks, Kevin Costner, Michael Praed, Sean Connery, and John Cleese, to name but six. All of these men have played the role of Robin Hood in various television and movie adaptations of the famous story. But that’s not what I meant. I’m talking about Robin Hood himself; the ever popular and ever noble outlaw hero who robbed from the rich and gave to the poor, with his trusty bow and arrow as his weapon of choice. The ...

From the horrors on the front line and the suffering and despair, hope and strength, WWI: The War to End All War gives you the experience of the world’s first modern, mechanised war in an entirely new light! A unique look at the war that shaped the 20th century.

New Challenges October – December 1943 While Hitler faced frustrations on all fronts, and the Japanese were kept at bay by the Americans, despite heavy US casualties, the Allied leaders faced a new challenge. Although Churchill and Roosevelt had always been comfortable working together, the Russian leader Joseph Stalin had in the past been regarded more as a foe than a friend. With the invasion of France imminent, plans made at the Teheran Conference were a minefield of diplomatic negotiations.

The whole question of women in history is an elusive one as the most written about ladies tend to be Queens, born or married into positions of power. Some, like the very English Queen Elizabeth I and Queen Victoria, built on their birthright with the power of their personalities to enjoy long and successful reins, while others made the history books for all the wrong reasons. And it is to this latter category that the subject of our journal, Marie Antoinette the most famous Queen of France, belongs.

Out of the many skilled and established British authors over several centuries, who would you choose as your top 10? Surely some if not all of these writers would feature Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, The Bronte Sisters, Bram Stoker, Catherine Cookson, Mary Shelley, William Wordsworth, Thomas Hardy, D.H. Lawrence and of course Sir Arthur Conan Doyle for giving us Sherlock Holmes. This biography collection offers you the chance to learn of the life and time of each quill artist as well as an introduction to their works and novels. Written by Liam Dale, award winning TV presenter and writer.

Theatre of War: The Pacific Campaign is devoted to the history of the Pacific Theatre of World War II. Starting with the tensions in the Pacific that led to the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor through the epic battle of Midway and the atomic bombing of Japan.

MARY SHELLEY - The Mother of Frankenstein. "It was on a dreary night of November, that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils. It was already one in the morning; the rain pattered dismally against the panes and my candle was nearly burnt out, when, by the glimmer of the half-extinguished light, I saw the dull yellow eye of the creature open; it breathed hard, and a convulsive motion agitated its body. His limbs were in proportion, and I had selected his features as beautiful. Beautiful! --Great God! His yellow skin scarcely covered the work of muscles and arteries beneath; his hair was of ...

From the horrors on the frontline and the suffering and despair, hope and strength, WWI: The War to End All War gives you the experience of the world’s first modern, mechanised war in an entirely new light! A unique look at the war that shaped the 20th century.

Anybody who visits London at the height of the summer will soon realise that the United Kingdom’s capital city attracts sightseers from every far-flung corner of the globe. And what’s on their list of attractions to see? Nine times out of ten it will be Buckingham Palace, often followed by the Tower of London, and since the tragic death of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997, her former residence, Kensington Palace. In an age when the monarchy, British or otherwise, is accused of being an outdated institution, the tourists still flock in their millions to follow in the footsteps of Royalty...

Do you want to learn more about the great author Thomas Hardy, but don’t have time to read/listen to huge, long biographies? Then let The History Journals take you on an hourly history tour of his life. Some of the most memorable stories of all time were written by the 19th century author and poet, Thomas Hardy.

Mention the spirit of Dunkirk today and people will associate the phrase with that “never say die” mentality so closely associated with the British as a nation. However, few would be able to tell you more than the fact that Dunkirk had something to do with World War II, and that it’s very probably a place in France. This is of course correct on both counts, although metaphorically speaking, just the tip of the iceberg.

Ask a random sample of people to name the History Makers of World War II and you can pretty much predict their answers. First on the list will be Adolf Hitler, who made history for all the wrong reasons, then next it could well be Sir Winston Churchill with his characteristic V for victory sign and large cigar. Such luminaries as Field Marshal Bernard Montgomery, fondly known to his men as “Monty”, General de Gaulle and President Franklin D Roosevelt are all likely to be in the top ten, along with Hitler’s henchmen Herman Goering and the Desert Fox, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, as well...

Tentative Steps July – September 1943 From their success in North Africa the Allies were ready to return to occupied Europe, first landing on Sicily before moving north onto mainland Italy under the command of Montgomery, known fondly by his men as Monty. But as the Italians surrendered, the Germans occupied Rome, making the battle for Italy a long, hard slog, while the plans for the invasion of Northern France steadily took shape.