#ghosts of norfolk

[ghostcatcherire]

Drumbeats of the Past: Uncle Gerald's Fateful Meeting with the Hickling Drummer Boy

Embrace the chill and dive into the eerie beauty of the Norfolk Broads with my latest blog post—a winter ghost story that will send shivers down your spine! 👻✨

(Phantom Drummer. Image Source: Bing Image Creator) My step-uncle Gerald lived in the village of Hickling, nestled in the heart of the Norfolk Broadlands. He was one of the few remaining reed cutters, a job with a long, proud tradition in the area but sadly dying out as fewer people needed thatch for their homes. (Gerald Nudd 1940-1999. Artist unknown. Image Source: ©E.Holohan) It was back in…

[thetrueparanormal]

A new haunted location, documenting The Muckleburgh Collection in Norfolk, has been uploaded to the world's largest database of paranormal research 😄

[archivist-crow]

On this day:

NORFOLK RECTORY FLUIDFALL

On August 30, 1919, a "liquid poltergeist" was in residence at the Swanton Novers Rectory in Norfolk, England. Leading newspapers carried the saga of an oily substance that seeped through the ceilings, spreading from random patches to spurting fountains and flows of liquid. It was suggested the house was built over an oil well, but when the liquid proved to be refined gasoline, the theory was abandoned. Other liquids appeared. Thirteen different indoor showers proved to be water, methylated spirits, sandalwood oil, paraffin, or gasoline. A quart was collected every ten minutes.

The rectory walls and ceilings were torn open, but no source of the flows could be found. Wreckage and vapors forced the Reverend Hugh Guy to vacate the premises. Blame for the fiasco was placed on the fifteen-year-old housemaid, Mabel Phillipo. A stage magician, Oswald Williams, and his wife investigated the phenomenon—for science, they said, and not for the publicity. The water supply was shut oft, and pails of water, salted for identification purposes, were placed around the house. The Williamses hid inside the premises and emerged shortly after with a red-faced Mabel. They declared that the housemaid, having been caught throwing water on the ceiling, had broken down and confessed.

Soon after, Mabel countered that her face had been red because Mrs. Williams had repeatedly slapped her and that they had threatened her with prison if she did not admit to the antics. In court, Guy said that although he was not there, he knew the girl had not been hit. No one explained how the girl obtained the expensive substances on her meager wages or managed to transport fifty gallons of fluids to the ceiling, under the eyes of investigators, without being caught. In the end, the case was thrown out of court.

Text from: Almanac of the Infamous, the Incredible, and the Ignored by Juanita Rose Violins, published by Weiser Books, 2009

[indyfilmlibrary]

Dial (2024) – 3.5 stars

Director: Josh Trett Writer: Josh Trett Cast: Olivia Bourne, Denise Stephenson, Sonia Soomessur, Greg Lindsay-Smith Running time: 15mins It’s been more than five years since Josh Trett became the first director to receive a review from Indy Film Library. The Black Shuck was a meditation on death, the grieving process, and learning to embrace life again – and in many ways Trett’s latest effort…

[mybam2u]

Afterlife/Otherside Luma Norfolk Ghost (LIVE) projection experiment # 250

[peacockstalemusicalstorytelling]

The Ghost Ballad of Susan Nobes (A True Story)

[sleepyconfusedpotato]

Thank you for the tag @efingart @revnah1406 @kaitaiga @islandtarochips @alypink @alexa-mwll @welldonekhushi and @eccentrcks !

A little list to showcase your oc's favorite things:

Name: Charlotte "Jade" Le Jardin

Universe: OG! and Reboot!Modern Warfare

Favorite book (and why): Le Petit Prince (The Little Price). It's a classic kid's story from France that her father and mother read to little Lottie during their runaway times. As she grows old, she reads a lot of books to understand the popular cultures, but she enjoys Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. She's a dreamer!

Favorite song: A Million Love Songs by Take That

Favorite piece of clothing they own: She loves ALL her turtleneck, but she loves a particular semi-transparent green skirt that her mother made for her!

Favorite "little treat": Mr. Kiplings!

Favorite person in their lives: Mum and Dad (I mean, come on. she gave her entire life to replace them in MI6). But Ghost is coming in hot 😏

Dream home (if there were no obstacles, financial or otherwise): She'd love to live in the English countryside. Maybe in Norfolk, near her family's garden. A medium sized cottage that could house her family, where she can do whatever she wants inside.

Dream life: Wherever Ghost is with their children (they'll get it).

---

Tagging @pricescigar @adlerboi @applbottmjeens and YOU! 🫵

[marypickfords]

The Stalls of Barchester (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1971) A Warning to the Curious (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1972) Lost Hearts (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1973) The Treasure of Abbot Thomas (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1974) The Ash Tree (Lawrence Gordon Clark, 1975)

“For all five of these adaptations, Gordon Clark worked with cinematographer John McGlashan and sound recordist Dick Manton, who he credits with establishing the gloomy look that would be the hallmark of the series (as well as editor Roger Waugh who edited all the original series’ James adaptations save 1973’s ‘Lost Hearts’). Central to that aesthetic were the authentic East Anglian locations that have been the inspiration for many a terror tale, even aside from those of M.R. James.

‘James lived in East Anglia—the region that encompasses Norfolk and Suffolk—for most of his life,’ explains Helen Wheatley, citing this as one reason James set many of his stories there. ‘However, there is also a broader sense of the region as being rather out on a limb, a relative hinterland, which lends itself to ghost story telling,’ she continues. ‘In James’ stories, and their television adaptations, the geography and landscape of the region—expanses of flat land, the whispering grasses of the East Anglian coast line, sparsely populated agricultural land—has a particularly haunting quality.’

This landscape is key to the series’ hauntological appeal. Scholar Derek Johnston has an extensive catalogue of writing that examines nostalgia in relation to the Christmas ghost story—and the A Ghost Story for Christmas series in particular—and notes that the Victorian middle class idealization of rural life was subverted by James’ stories, which presented the country as peaceful on the surface but a place of dark, tumultuous secrets. He also points out that East Anglia is a land of invaders and colonizers, writing in his essay ‘Season, Landscape and Identity in the BBC Ghost Story for Christmas’ that ‘The connection to the local soil and landscape runs generations deep, but it has also been built upon the remains of earlier populations, with earlier connections to that landscape, overrun by the incomers...the landscape may encourage identification with the nation, but it also emphasises how the landscape is interpreted through the history of human action upon it.’” — Kier-La Janisse, from Yuletide Terror: Christmas Horror on Film and Television (2017).

[aikoiya]

A DP au idea

A scholar just recently arrived at Amity Park because of a newspaper show 2 ghost that exactly look like the 2 being that is shown through the ancient art and stories that even the most knowledgeable scholar wanting to know about, and that newspaper went to their house in Norfolk and while He could send other to investigate, he felt like investigate it himself as he have some knowledge about the being called ecto ghost from his ex (who got his information from his brother for some reason?)and leave his chapter librarian in charge of the house while the scholar leaves.

After arriving at Amity Park, the scholar looked around the town and, after confusing some locals with his Irish accent, found that the ancient ghosts are called phantom and plasmius(good) and that they are Enemies (weird) and they appear when the ghost first appeared at Amity Park (wait what?)and their defense (aside phantom) is Fenton family and that give the scholar deja vu and before he thinks of this, suddenly ghosts appeared as they causing trouble and a ghost that obsessed with box pressing him and the scholar saw phantom appear and fighting ghost and capturing them into a thermo (for some reason) and before he went after phantom to ask questions, the box ghost distract him and phantom goes away to capture more ghosts, the scholar stand there staring at box ghost and calm down, breath though his nose, and flick his finger through the ghost head using his solar sorcery to give box ghost extreme pain for causing stupidity and walk to the Fenton work to ask questions about ghosts and both phantom and plasmius.

After going to the Fenton work the scholar see a man talking to.... Wait.... No... No no no NO NONO NO NOOOOOOOOOO. Occam stands there, blank eyes ,thinking about his life choices and what goes wrong with it as he got one question for god......

WHY IS BIG-D HERE AND WHY THE MAN HE TALKING TO LOOK LIKE A SANE VERSION OF HIM!?!?!?!?

HAHAHHAHAHHAHHAHAHHHHAHAHHA

HAPPY (early) APRIL FOOL

It's actually the continuing post about DPx HTP about Occam O'Connell (hope you watch episode 4) went to Amity Park to investigate phantom and plasmius, the same time the previous dpxhtp post take place, and saw, his ex, Big-D and (unknown to Occam) his brother Jack Fenton. What do you think about my April FOOL and do you get the hint that the scholar is Occam before the reveal?

Funny you should mention it. I literally just got finished watching it!

It was fun! I enjoyed it! Also, Occam was great. I really enjoyed him, but I'm so sad that Lord Fatique was massacred like that.

Anyway, I actually first thought it was from D's perspective, but as soon as Solar magic was mentioned, I was like, "wait... YES!!"

I just love Occam's character & I love the sort of sorcery he uses!

Also, I think that the prank was actually interesting & it could actually make for a fun feature of your story.

Also, my brother told me that Mages bend reality, but they do it through rituals that requires skill & uses components. The way you described them, it sounded more like they could just think of what they wanted & make it so without any sort of preparation. If that's not the case, then I like them the way he described it!

[thomascromwelll]

🎬📽️🎞️Wolf Hall: The Mirror and The Light | Episode One Analysis

Part I [First minutes, and Wolsey references]

The new series premiered yesterday (10 Nov), and I am keen to analyze the first episode titled 'Wreckage.'

── .✦First and foremost, I want to clarify that my analysis is based on the novel, "The Mirror and The Light" At times, I may reference historical events as well. ── .✦Secondly, this analysis is grounded in my personal perspective; yours may differ, and I welcome a respectful discussion in the comments. ── .✦Lastly, please be advised that this analysis will contain spoilers.

At the end of the first series, Anne was executed, and the final scene showed Cromwell being greeted by Henry, who appeared pleased with the outcome of the recent events. We now revisit Anne's final moments from a new perspective. At the same time she is being executed, Henry is marrying Jane Seymour. Cromwell is away ensuring that everything proceeds as planned. This may be the first significant change in the adaptation for the new series. In the book "Bring Up the Bodies," Cromwell has a series of interactions following Anne's execution and was with the king prior to the wedding ceremony.

However, in this version, he returns home to prepare for attending the newlywed couple. (I must admit, I missed the interactions that occurred after Anne's death. The burial scene, coupled with the dialogues featuring Suffolk, Norfolk, and Kingston, plays a crucial role in highlighting Gregory's character development at that moment.)

On his way home, he has an interesting interaction with Rafe, which I noticed had a different tone than what the book conveys. In this scene, Cromwell appears emotional, or perhaps remorseful. When Rafe asks if he has any message for the king, Cromwell responds, "No message. Back to your new master," with tired eyes that suggest he is possibly worn out.

In the book, the tone is a bit different. After indicating he has no message for the king, Rafe mentions his wife, saying, "Helen will be glad to know the lady is beyond her misfortunes now." Cromwell is taken aback by this statement and replies, "She does not pity her, does she?" Rafe answers, "She thinks that Anne was a protector of the gospel, and that cause is, as you know, dear to my wife’s heart." This exchange leads to a sharper tone, as Cromwell responds, "Oh, well, yes. But I can protect it better." Here, Cromwell seems to be justifying his actions toward Anne with a hint of passive-aggressiveness.

"Anne was not pitiful," Cromwell insists. "Have you not told Helen how she threatened me with beheading? And she was planning, as we now know, to cut short the life of the king himself."

To be fair, I believe the script tries to condense all of this into Cromwell's line:

"When negotiation and compromise fail, then your only course is to destroy your enemy. Before they wake in the morning, Rafe, have the axe in your hand."

Whoever had the idea of bringing Wolsey back as a ghost has my respect. To me, he serves as Cromwell's own conscience—a figure who fully understands him. The reference to the coat is brilliant. In the series, Wolsey states, "When I was alive, my people wore orange tawny. The king might not want to be reminded."

In fact, in the book Cromwell has owned this coat since the days of Wolsey. When he searches for it, Richard Cromwell remarks, "You put that coat away when the Cardinal came down. You had no heart for it."

Wolsey appears once more in this episode, consistently acting as Cromwell’s conscience. He reminds Cromwell of his actions to avenge his deceased Cardinal. I believe Cromwell tries to justify his wrongdoings by relieving his mind in these reflections. In the book, Call-Me brings up the topic:

"People have been talking about the Cardinal. They say, look at what Cromwell has wrought in two years against Wolsey's enemies. Thomas More is dead. Anne, the queen, is dead. They look at those who slighted him during his lifetime—Brereton, Norris—though Norris was not the worst..." Cromwell responds, "If I wanted revenge on Wolsey’s enemies, I would have to strike down half the nation."

The idea that Wolsey introduces in the series—that Henry could also suffer from Cromwell's vengeance is intriguing and suggests further development. I speculate that perhaps Cromwell's eventual downfall may relate to a sense of vengeance toward Henry. The lack of Cromwell’s presence and his constant support of the king could be interpreted as a form of revenge against Henry in the years following 1540. (I can elaborate on this if needed, but it's just a speculation.)

Wolsey says: 'You've wreaked a terrible vegeance on my enemies in these days, my friend. Thomas More and the queen, her brother... Brereton, Norris.'

'Of course, some might ask who was the greatest of Wolsey's enemies? Some might ask when chance serves, what revenge will Cromwell take on his sovereign?'

"When he says, 'Such thoughts might reach the king, and that would be the end of it,' it serves, in my point of view, as a warning of the dangers he will face when he lets his guard down and speaks too much."

TO BE CONTINUED...

[cinemaocd]

The Mirror and the Light stream of concsciousness ramble on Wreckage....GO!

So the opening works really works for me I think the new footage is seamless and even the aging works because the tone shift is dramatic at the end of season one...the lighting the excessively bright lighting in the wedding scene and I'm wondering dear god Peter I hope you haven't taken to heart all our bitching about the brightness levels in season one??? Surely this is an aesthetic/artistic choice and then I remember that it matches the discordantly sunny scene at the end of season one when Henry embraces cromwell after Anne is killed. I love that Rafe and Crom just exchange one word "done" and Rafe wishing it weren't bloody and being a tad accusatory and I remember those scenes in the book when Anne flirted with Rafe in order to tease him ...So much of the dialog is very um not in the book but I like the ax quote it probably has a precedent. Love that we are diving straight into the plot and Call me is a different person but the same clothes and the dialog has to be too on the nose to help newcomers, which is a choice and I guess I'm fine with it because it's ep one. Still. Keep up people. The ambiguity continues when we don't actually know what the letter is though its implied its from Mary and if so in the next scene Crom fully lies to the king's face about it. Love the lightning in the tower scene with Chapuy, kinda wanted it to be a folly outside under the open sky like in the book but I guess they couldn't just conjure up a sunny day. the hilarious chapuy cromwell frenemy banter continues...OMG seeing Richard, even from behind I knew it was him and he looks more like historical Crom every minute and is probably closer to his age than mark but oh look Crom's wee knife. I love that we are getting bad ass crom and his knives and his bully boy moves with the poles and calling himself a dog (*dies) and especially the scene in the privy chamber when he practically tackles fitz...The scene with mary was letter perfect to the book but somehow missed the tone of the book which was funny but also tragic...and the mouse bones embrace was entirely great and lilith lesser is KILLING it and she'll pray for him and dear god he needs it...oh the cap thing was sexy when it should have been awkward but I forgive because when they are busted by lady shelton and she says "unhand the lord privy seal" it kills me...love crom and lady shelton they are another great pair of flirts. Oh and then the triumph of the signing and lording it over the other lords and norfolk having to eat shit was golden. Henry gets scarier/weirder in every scene and I love it. Margaret Douglas making the most of her two lines and being HBIC throughout was golden: FORESHADOWING. Jane continuing to be awkward as well as flirtatious with cromwell...also love the scene where they walked through a dark hallway and he leads her into the light of the dance...the light of Henry's love. Oh and the lovely reunion between Mary and her father only marred by the weirdness of Henry saying "you've loved and done as much for her as my kin" and then qualifying it...TACKY, but then jovial crom at the cheerless picnic with his boys where he is telling them all smiles about the white rose promise to Katharine and they all total bitches about it except Richard. I love you Richard. I don't remember Ghost!Wolsey having this many lines in the book but I can never get enough JP in a red Cardinal's gown so I don't care. Cromwell's orange jacket is amazing but I think Mark is actually having some kind of asthma attack in some scenes because he's wheezy, maybe they should build a fan into his suit. Same thing with Damien, though I think his breathlessness might be character work as Henry is getting progressively less fit as it goes on.

[mlmxreader]

Trenches Deep | John Price x m!reader

『••✎••』

↳ ❝ Could you do one with Price and M reader with prompts 11 and 14? ❞

: ̗̀➛ the trenches are not a desirable place to be, even more when the bloodshed never ends.

: ̗̀➛ MCD, blood and gore, death and gore, swearing, smoking

↳ @mockerycrow @seigwaidau

•───────────────★•♛•★──────────────���

A long time ago, you and Price used to dream of the mundane; waking up together in the morning and groaning when he tried to kiss you before he had gotten rid of his morning breath.

Snuggling up on the sofa together and watching atrocious horror films that were far more boring than anything else, like the one about the puppeteer in Norfolk who couldn’t get rid of a stupid looking creation; or perhaps the one about the two men in the lighthouse. Either way.

You and Price used to dream of the mundane so much; laughing together in the kitchen whilst making dinner in the afternoon, long walks in the cold winter sun in the evenings. The mundane.

The same old routine every single day no matter what, yet it never seemed to get boring to become a relic of its time - it never seemed any different, the beauty of the mundane purely inescapable.

You used to dream so much about the mundane; about being his husband and him being yours. It seemed like reality would never sink in fully, like your dreams were the only thing you could ever afford to indulge in.

You both used to dream about it a lot, even when confined to snowy and icy trenches that went on either side of you for as far as the eye could see; even when confined between blocks of frozen wood and frozen dirt.

Piled up so high that you needed to use a ladder to clamber over it. Mice would run along across the solid mud, squeaking and screaming as they scuttled around; chased by rats and covered in lice and fleas.

You and Price were no better off, constantly itching and infected from the bites, small marks turned into huge scabs by constant irritation and opening.

Lice and fleas were the least of your worries, though; the shelling had not stopped since the first time you set foot upon the trenches. The ground seemed to wail and sob every time one smashed and crashed against the ground, so loud that not even a thunderstorm could be heard.

The shells were only one part of the devil's symphony, though.

Further back, the machine guns howled and gnashed their jaws, starved dogs set to attack by cruel masters. Either side of the trenches, the machine guns became the chellos and the great big saxophones.

The constant cries of agony and despair screamed throughout No Man's Land, drowned out by the other instruments as they weakly tried to save their own skin. But it was pointless. Bayonets caused enough damage, but coupled with shells, machine guns, and toxic gas - there was no escaping it.

No one could survive in such a world. You and Price were all alone, as Ghost had been caught by the gas not two days ago, and Gaz's body was still somewhere out there, half buried in mud and blood. You let out a sigh, shivering as you pressed your body closer to Price's, but he hardly reacted.

Price rarely reacted to anything anymore. His stare was constantly vacant and a thousand miles away, no emotion behind it whatsoever. His lips were constantly in a frown and his voice was always monotonous and flat.

Price hadn't been himself for years, ever since stepping foot in those horrid trenches.

"Jealousy was always a good look on you," you sighed. "Can't remember the last time you even smiled, anymore."

Price nodded slowly, but didn't show an ounce of anything more than vacant, far away staring. "Yeah."

"I wish we could go back to normal," you whispered. "We... we used to have dreams, John..."

"And look where it got us," he said flatly. "Stuck in a shit pit, all our friends dead. Nothing left anymore."

You nodded, swallowing thickly. "If anything happens to you, I'm not gonna make it, y’know. I'm not gonna be able to go on."

He nodded again. "Nor me."

But you couldn't tell if he meant it anymore. Price was a shell of himself, these days. Far from the man that you loved, and it made your heart drop to your stomach to even think about it; the Price you loved was dead.

He had died a long time ago, and yet, you would fight for him and his survival - even though he wasn't your Price anymore, you would still fight. You watched with wide eyes and a weak protest as he forced himself up against the ladder of the trench, the rotten wood creaking and moaning as he put his weight onto it.

Pushing himself up, Price peered over the edge. A single gunshot rang out. His grip went limp, and his body fell back with the force; a red spray kicked through the air, bits of skull fragments splattering this way and that.

His eyes were still open, still vacant and blue as he stared up at the skies he once filled with cigarette smoke. A pool of gushing red slowly forming around in the mud where his head laid.

You sat there, breath shaking and vision going blurry as you fought to cry out and to scream; nothing came of it except short, sharp gasps. Your breath ragged and harsh, forcing your stomach to push fully out and then back in. Wide eyed and weary, you gently nudged his shoulder.

"John? John, c'mon, get up... get up... we have to go... come on. Come on, the match is on later... it's Liverpool against Man City... c'mon, John... c'mon... please stop looking at me like that, it's time to go... please... please..."

[thetrueparanormal]

Tomorrow a new haunted location article, documenting somewhere in Norfolk, will be uploaded to the world's largest database of paranormal research 😄

[thiswaycomessomethingwicked]

Do you have good recommendations of books/movies/ect that either do a particularly good job explaining certain facets of it (you mentioned Early Modern Catholicism recently, which was what got me thinking of this), or simply captures a vibe of the period in a way you think was particularly well-done?

Thanks!

Oooh like late medieval/early modern Catholicism/religious movements of the time (i.e., reformation)?

I think some of my favourites are:

Little Hours (film) - ok, so hear me out. Boccaccio would have LOVED the recent film interpretation of those stories of his (it's stories one and two from the third day, if I remember right. Been a while since I read the Decameron). It's modern in language, music, humour and incredibly pop-modern particularly. Yet the clothes and scenery etc. are all more or less of the late 14th century. Boccaccio, who wrote in the vernacular and enjoyed the bawdy and "common" entertainments of the day, would have been like "yes, you get it. you get what I'm doing" about it.

Just a fun, raunchy story of the late medieval era and it does capture some of the vibes~~.

(Story time: I got into an argument with one of the more curmudgeonly and pedantic historians I know irl and he was so against this movie and I was like "I'm sorry that you're wrong and Boccaccio's ghost is going to laugh at you but it is what it is I guess".)

Wolf Hall (book and show) - while I love the show, I recommend the books over it (for many reasons, not the least of which is: let Thomas Cromwell be fat). That said, if you're pressed for time or can't get into Hilary Mantel's writing style, the show is perfectly good.

She does a great job of capturing England in a state of change and the push pull of the early reformation. Cromwell is obviously of the Protestant persuasion but the dynamic, complicated quality of the average person's engagement with their faith and the Church is more or less captured. It's also just gorgeously written--very lush, you sink into her writing style, quite gorgeous. She also gets her historical details right, so that's a win.

(Unlike the movie Luther which is just like: Luther is always right, the Catholics are always wrong. The end.)

If you're a fan of Thomas More, he doesn't come the best in this, but you know - we are deep in an interior third person of Cromwell's brain so that informs the view of the world we are presented.

(There is a hilarious scene where Cromwell is trying to rally the troops to save More from himself and you get Cromwell, the Duke of Norfolk and a few others kneeling before Henry basically begging for mercy to be shown and it's so fucking funny. Bleak, heart breaking, but also funny.)

A Man for All Seasons (play and film) - and the famous play that Hilary Mantel is in direct conversation with! There's a good movie version of it that I was enamoured with for a time. It's very much a pro-Thomas More piece of writing, so take that for what it's worth. It does suffer a little from the Luther effect of Thomas More always being right and Cromwell and Cranmer and the others always being wrong (or, rather, Luther suffers from the A Man for All Seasons effect). But you know, it's still worth watching I think.

An Instance of the Finger Post (book) - a little later than the other pieces, this is set in the 17th century and is a great who-dunnit from three different perspectives, exploring the classic issue of an unreliable narrator. I remember feeling that it captured life in Oxford just post the Restoration quite well. Also we get some fun cameos from Locke, Boyle and others who were bopping around at that time. Two of the narrators are also known figures from Oxford in the 1660s.

Lent (book) - So, my main man Marsilio Ficino wrote that famous letter to the college of cardinals after Savonarola was executed describing Savonarola as a demon who didn't know he was a demon. Jo Walsh took that concept and ran.

Basically, we follow Savonarola (who is a demon that, at first, didn't realize he was a demon) as he gets stuck in this time loop where he has to keep reliving the last five(ish) years of his life until he manages to free himself from hell. It's like Ground Hog Day but in 15th century Florence.

I have questions around the mechanisms and theological implications of like...his birth, his childhood etc. but you know, don't let that ruin a fun read.

I will say, Lent is a sloooooow start. Like. very slow. I almost set it down and didn't pick it back up at first. It really hits its stride about halfway through. But, it's a fun look at 1480s and 90s Florence with Ficino, Mirandola, Poliziano, Lorenzo de' Medici for a hot minute before he dies etc.

My beef is 1: Piero Soderini, my boy, she did you dirty (tbf to Walsh, the book is from Savonarola's perspective and he and Soderini were not close, shall we say. I may, or may not be, biased); 2: Marsilio is present and we love that but there is no word on Cavalcanti. Not even mentioned in passing!; 3: some of the exposition is heavy handed and could have used some tightening up etc.; 4: Jo Walsh's use of the English for words like Prior etc. which she explains her motive for at the back of the book. I've still got quibbles with that choice, though I know that's a me-thing.

But if you want a novel that is a decent look at every day Catholicism in the early modern period, this is a good one.

Le Moine et la Sorcière (The Sorceress) (film) - a medieval French film from the 1980s that takes place in the 13th century and follows the arrival of a Dominican friar in a small southern French town investigating rumours of a sorceress. It's a delightfully weird piece that plays with the story of St. Guinefort (the dog saint!) as well as medieval faith healing and other local synchronistic practices that carried over from pre-Christianized France.

The whole exploration of local sainthood, where a figure is not formally determined to be a saint by the Church but local people venerate them and eventually they sort of are absorbed into the canon, is fantastic.

The friar, Etienne, is wonderfully drawn as a character. I do wish they had given the same treatment to Elda, the titular "sorceress". But it's still worth a watch if you can get your hands on it.

Name of the Rose (book and film) - an Umberto Eco classic! Another who-dunnit, but in a Medieval monastery in the 14th century. Absolutely worth reading - beautifully and intelligently written. Lots of back and forth on the different religious thoughts and movements of the time (some deemed heretical, others more just fringe things people were into).

William of Baskerville is the main detective figure but the story is told from the point of view of his acolyte Adso. It's got lots of gothic feeling to it with an isolated monastery, a labyrnthian library, murder, madness, sexual tensions and so on.

This is one of my favourite books (up there with Wolf Hall and Kate Zambreno's Heriones).

There is a movie version with Sean Connery and it's fun to watch but really, the book is worth it. 110% worth it.

Other good films/plays that I can think of off the top of my head (they're all more medieval but w/e):

Seventh Seal (film)

Becket (film and play)

Lion in Winter (film and play)

I hope this answers your question? (I mostly hope I got the time period roughly right! I know I veered heavily in medieval in some of the rec's but they're all gold and worth the time.)

Thank you so much for the ask! <3 <3

[yesimtrashforit]

My Extremely Thorough Examination of klaus.xls (Klaus' spreadsheet) (as of TMAGP 20)

Part 3: Locations and their significance pt 2

#27. Raynham Hall, Norfolk

Date: August 25, 2008

Category: 2

Rank: C

TSHU: 3057

Notes: [data damaged]

Raynham Hall in Norfolk is the site of one of the most famous ghost photographs in history. The Brown Lady of Raynham Hall.

This is the photo, taken in 1936 by Captain Hubert C. Provand. The Brown Lady is alleged to be Dorothy Walpole, wife of Charles Townshend. This is the only thing I could find!

#34. Sker House, Wales

Date: March 15, 2003

Category: 2

Rank: C

TSHU: 3057 (same as RAYNHAM HALL)

Notes: [data damage]

The Sker House was built as a monastic grange of Neath Abbey around the 16th century. The house is allegedly haunted, though there are too many stories to count. I'll link a blog page that talks about all of it.

The house was made famous through the novel The Maid of Sker by R.D. Blackmore in 1872 and later the novel Sker House by Ronald Welch in 1955.

#35. Preston Manor, Brighton

Date: August 1, 2020

Category: 2

Rank: C

TSHU: 6047

Notes: [data damaged]

Preston Manor is known for being very haunted. One such ghost is an excommunicated nun known as The White Lady. She is the earliest and most famous ghost. There are so many instances of paranormal activity that I cannot go into here but I'll, of course, link sources.

#39. Newsham Park Hospital, Liverpool

Date: January 1, 2012

Category: 2

Rank: B

TSHU: 7037

Notes: Martial people

Newsham Park Hospital in Liverpool is a former seaman's hospital, orphanage, and asylum.

The first articles that come up when you search it up are about the ghosts, so.. that tells you a lot about its reputation.

NPH opened in 1874 as an orphanage for the education and support of the orphans of British seamen. By 1899, there were 321 children housed there. Conditions were unfortunately very harsh. Siblings were separated and punishment was unusually cruel. Allegedly, children were punished by being forced to stay in a cupboard for extended periods of time. It is believed that this area is haunted by the ghost of a little boy named Bill who died due to this form of cruelty. These cupboards on one of the upper floors are still there today.

By the end of World War I in 1918, almost one thousand orphans were housed there. It eventually closed in 1951 and became a hospital in 1954. It contained patients with many psychological disorders such as schizophrenia. In 1988, the building closed for good.

As far as other ghosts, there are several. One is the ghost of a nurse who h*nged herself after being accused of m*rdering a patient. There is also the ghost of a headless man in a white coat.

Strange occurrences include bodies being found in the nearby lake. One was a man who was found with his neck cut ear to ear (he had a razor in his pocket.) Another man was found trapped under ice. And finally, a domestic servant's body was found floating in the lake one morning in 1897. Many psych ward patients reported seeing children running around in the corridors.

Part 4 coming soon!

[the-empress-7]

So far, it seems like the best course of action for Catherine should be -

1. Don't buy more green coats.

2. Wear more coat dresses.

3. Less monochromatic pant suits.

4. More modern, independent wealthy woman old money nothing. But also, new clothes please.

5. Don't buy similar clothing. But also, don't experiment with fashion at all. Don't remind anyone she is a woman.

6. Close the buttons on her coats

7. Keep the coat buttons open so it looks more relatable

8. Cut her hair short.

9. Wear more elaborate updo (hat appropriate hair)

10. Have darker hair. Have lighter hair. Have bangs. But don't go to the expensive hair dresser.

11. Stop colouring her hair so often. but also be more girly and show off her amazing hair.

12. Show the children more.

13. Stop doing so many children related engagements

14. Do something gardening related

15. Move away from her domestic goddess image

16. Spend less on fashion

17. Highlight more British brands. Local brands. Small brands.

18. Stop wearing tacky Accessorize earrings. Stop wearing Kikis. Wear new tiaras.

19. Be more relatable, less Sloan ranger.

20. Stop obsessing over the kids pick up and drops. Let the nanny handle them.

21. Focus on her children so they don't turn into Harry.

22. Stay in her Lane and not take the focus from the king and queen.

23. Be the best princess of wales and be a trailblazer.

24. Do more engagements with William and show what a wonderful couple they are because they have crackling chemistry.

25. Do more engagements on her own because she is a grown woman and shouldn't need her husband all the time.

26. Keep her children away from the public because children need privacy and nurturing.

27. Stop doing so many meetings.

28. Stop having meetings at Windsor because her office is at KP.

29. Stop going to Norfolk so much because she spent so much on renovating KP

30. Not live at Adelaid cottage because it's small and not fit for a future queen and 2 future kings.

31. Not live at Windsor castle because she isn't queen yet and HM used to live there.

32. Stop with the awareness campaigns because it's boring.

33. Not meddle into politics at all.

34. Fart rainbows and pee glitter because that's what people expect of her

35. Invent a time travelling machine because it's about time and Elon musk hasn't done yet.

36. Reverse climate change because she has so much time on her hands and she has 6 hrs a day when her kids are at school

37. Go smack Harry upside his head because Charles is too busy to do it himself.

38. Get ghost Diana back to London because why not..

39. Turn into a warewolf because the full moon is upon us anyway and she would still look good as one.

Am I missing something, Empress? Am I? Am I??

40. Smile more

Cause there is nothing us women love more than being told to just smile and shut up 🙃