NB! · London · Museums · Observations · Heritage
The British Museum is simply a whole mountain of random things that were carried off from other countries and cultures. It only strengthens the view that being British is nothing to be proud of. The only thing that was British was the enormous queue at the entrance
Art · London · Humour
The Lament for Icarus, a painting by Herbert James Draper, painted in 1898
London · Monarchies · Mores · People · Humour
Prince Philip's aunt and Empress Alexandra Feodorovna's niece, Queen Louise of Sweden (1889-1965), née Battenberg, often visited London, and once a bus very nearly ran her down. After this unpleasantness, Queen Louise, when walking the streets of London, always carried with her a small card
NB! · Archive · Faith · London · Monarchies
NB! · Archive · London · Monarchies · Humour
Archive · London · Monarchies · Society
The series of celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of victory over Nazi Germany has begun not only in Russia and the post-Soviet countries. Britain has been celebrating since yesterday. Yesterday senior members of the royal family joined thousands of people in London to watch a military parade and a
Interviews · London · Monarchies · Observations · People
Harry seems to have begun to forget that he is himself the very security risk on account of which nobody wishes to speak to him. If only because whatever the King says will, a second later, be relayed across every American television channel. Take the strictly private conversation with his
In the Press · London · Nature · Humour
In 2016 The Field reported that Obelisk, a horse of the Household Cavalry, lured pigeons by spitting oats from his mouth. And when the pigeons came close, he trampled them to death. And he did this regularly. In the end the horse was sent away for "psychological retraining"
Archaeology · Archive · The East · Books · London · Museums · Observations · Ethnography
I am reading the diary of Professor Ivan Ivanovich Zarubin about his journey to the Pamirs in the summer of 1914. He describes sailing down a mountain river on a raft made of inflated goatskins. It brought to mind the Neo-Assyrian relief of the 8th century BC from the
NB! · London · Museums · Palaeontology · Humour
London's Natural History Museum houses the most charming mammoth of all times and peoples. A model, not the real thing
Faith · Geography · Maps · London · Observations · Society
Some interesting observations: London's population at that time was 6.4 million. An incredible figure for the period. Today London's population is 9.6 million, and no fewer than 15-20% of them are Muslims. Major European capitals with a significant share of non-Christian inhabitants
London · Monarchies · Observations · Mores · Humour
It probably could indeed have happened, but the man drinking tea was not Gagarin at all. It was Captain-Lieutenant Vetoshkin, who fished out a piece of lemon with his fingers and ate the flesh, leaving the rind. And what, pray, is so remarkable about that? I eat my lemon