The History Company

Recent Posts

• Flight of the Condor over the Forth

  By chris holme on May 12, 2019 • ( 2 )

  

  It was the moment the Spanish Civil War came to Scotland – eight months after it had ended in Spain. October 16, 1939 saw the first Nazi air raid over Britain to bomb ships in the Firth of Forth. Many… Read More ›

• Can anything good come out of Aberdeen?

  By chris holme on July 12, 2021 • ( 0 )

  

  Even editors of the British Medical Journal can drop a clanger. Ernest Hart ranks among the most successful in the journal’s history. Over his 32 years in charge, BMA membership increased tenfold as he transformed the BMJ from relative obscurity… Read More ›

• History Company newsletter

  By chris holme on June 17, 2021 • ( 2 )

  

  Good morning folks Welcome to my first newsletter. I am very grateful to those of you who have taken the time to comment on my History Company posts over the last ten years. A newsletter is good way of keeping… Read More ›

• Speaking the Unspeakable

  By chris holme on October 19, 2020 • ( 1 )

  

  It struck on October 23, 1942.There was no warning. For families across Britain it was like any other Friday night settling around a cosy coal fire listening to the BBC Home Service with its cheery wartime distractions: a concert from… Read More ›

• Digitally remastering Dundas

  By chris holme on July 10, 2020 • ( 1 )

  

  Henry Dundas, the first Viscount Melville, has left us with a problem. Not so much his statue – perched 150 feet above St Andrew Square in Edinburgh he is already out of sight with only defecating pigeons for company. It’s… Read More ›

• Growing bananas in Haringey

  By chris holme on June 21, 2020 • ( 1 )

  When discussion gets a bit shouty shouty, it’s usually time for a quiet listen. Sir Geoff Palmer’s interview with Jim Al-Khalili is 28 minutes of utterly engrossing radio – at times shocking and funny but ultimately life affirming. Best just… Read More ›

• Coughs and Sneezes

  By chris holme on March 31, 2020 • ( 1 )

  

  Whoever thought it up deserves a medal. Few catchphrases last a century and still resonate with the public. “Coughs and Sneezes Spread Diseases” originated in the 1918 influenza pandemic to support a US Public Health Service campaign. It was tagged… Read More ›

• Call the Midwife Christmas Special (2)

  By chris holme on December 20, 2019 • ( 1 )

  

  Part one of this quiz was about nurses.  This is part two aimed more at film and TV buffs. CtM was really well filmed – something new for the Hebrides? Nope. Two of the greatest cinematographers cut the their teeth… Read More ›

• Call the Midwife Christmas special

  By chris holme on December 20, 2019 • ( 4 )

  

  Tens of millions around the world will tune in to the Call the Midwife special on Christmas Day. It’s set in the Outer Hebrides in late 1964. Here’s part one of a wee quiz to tease out the history. Part… Read More ›

• Surviving Father’s Day

  By chris holme on May 28, 2019 • ( 0 )

  

  Fathers Day looms – June 16 so time for reflection on contributions dads make. OK, so maybe they don’t get things right that often. But sometimes they do. Germany celebrates earlier – May 30 with Vatertag. This set me thinking…. Read More ›

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