'The Man on a Donkey' by H.F.M. Prescott

With all the Tudor stuff on the BBC and the excellent dramatisation of Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall, I thought blog readers might like to be reminded of a seriously good historical novel based on Tudor times, one that is often forgotten these days.

The Man on a Donkey by H.F.M. Prescott was first published in 1952 and it remains one of the greatest historical novels ever.  It goes in and out of print – though as a Northallerton bookseller once commented to me, "We can always sell it here" – and it's currently in print in a two-volume paperback by Loyola Classics.  (You'll find this and various other editions on Amazon.)

And why does it always sell round here?

Because it deals with the Pilgrimage of Grace (as in Thomas Milner of Skutterskelfe: the life & times of a Tudor gentleman) and is set in familiar places – Richmond, Swaledale, Pinchinthorpe, York etc, etc.

Highly recommended.

Talk in Hutton Rudby

At 8pm on Thursday 19th - the day after tomorrow - I'll be at Church House, Hutton Rudby to give a talk on Thomas Milner of Skutterskelfe, his life & times (and the pulpit, of course).

A belated Happy New Year

A belated Happy New Year to all my readers & many thanks for visiting the blog! Your messages of support, encouragement and appreciation have meant an enormous amount to me over the months of blogging.

I'm not undertaking any new work at the moment – as some of you know, I have problems with my vision and reading is rather problematic these days.  However, I have various projects to finish off and a couple of engagements this spring.  I'll be speaking at Hutton Rudby History Society on 19 February on the subject of Thomas Milner of Skutterskelfe, and at the Cleveland & Teesside Local History Society and University of Teesside Joint Day School on 14 March on the subject of the Jackson family and their Day Book.  And if I don't seem to recognise any old friends who are there, I'm not cutting you dead, it's just that you're a blur because I've had to stop wearing my distance specs.  Do come up to me and speak!

In the meantime, I am reading (slowly!) Paul Menzies' book Middlesbrough: Remembering 1914-18.  Don't miss it!  It's such an immediate, vivid, concrete evocation of those days.  We've become so used to seeing the War depicted on its grand, global scale – this is what it was like to be there in Middlesbrough at the time.

And I must also strongly recommend the exhibition Middlesbrough in the Great War at the Dorman Museum.  It is on until 6 April, and it's beautifully done.  The Dorman is open Tuesdays to Sundays, admission free.  If you haven't visited for some time, you simply must, you will be amazed – and it's a great place for children too, especially the H2O gallery.  (And there's a playground nearby in Albert Park as well, to tire them out completely).

Update on the Redmaynes of Stainforth

I've just made some alterations to the post on The Redmayne family of Stainforth, from information received from a reader.  Thank you, Norman!

Joseph Beresford Shields: Stockton lad in Essex

I'm just making a correction today to the post about Joseph Beresford Shields 1879-1917, because I've heard from Carole Mulroney in Leigh-on-Sea that the address of the house in which Joe lived was Southsea Avenue, not Southend Avenue.

Carole will be telling the story of Joe's letters in the local history magazine - if nobody from Leigh-on-Sea comes forward to claim the letters, I'll see if Preston Park Museum would like them.  If anyone has a better idea, please let me know!

John Richard Stubbs' diary for 1907

This is the last of the diaries.

John retired the following year.  He and Ellis left Park End, Ormesby and returned to live again in Coatham, at 7 Trafalgar Terrace.  He gave his law library to Middlesbrough Town Council in 1908.

These diaries probably survived because they were stored in the office.  In the 1990s they were discovered again in old deed boxes in the offices of the successor firm in which John's grandson, great-granddaughter and great-grandson-in-law worked for most of the 20th century: Meek, Stubbs & Barnley of Albert Road, Middlesbrough.

John died on 6 December 1916 at Coatham.

John Richard Stubbs' diary for 1906