Books & Music

The first performance of Handel’s 'Messiah' in Dublin in 1742 is now legendary. Gentlemen were asked to leave their swords at home and ladies to come without hoops in their skirts in order to fit more people into the audience. Why then, did this now...

Subtitled 2000 years of Upper Class Idiots in Charge. Written by John O'Farrell, this is an hilarious, informative and cantankerous journey through Britain's fascinating and bizarre history.Styled as a 'Horrible History for Grown Ups', you can have a...

Push, pull and slide the London scenes to explore the sights of the busy city: turn the London Eye, open and close Tower Bridge, even raise the flag at Buckingham Palace! Busy London is a bright board book with easy-to-use mechanisms that are designed...

Getty Images Royal Photographer Chris Jackson has a unique insight into the world's most famous family, and it has never been more exciting than now, on the eve of the Coronation of a new British monarch, the first in an incredible seventy years...

Over 2,000 years of settlement give London its unique architectural heritage. Unlike Haussmann’s Paris, neither monarch nor politician imposed their will; private ownership and enterprise shaped the city and defined its parts. Elegant West End squares...

London has charmed visitors for centuries, and this collection of intricate illustrations is a celebration of the city’s unique appeal. Featuring famous London landmarks such as Buckingham Palace and the London Eye as well as beautiful scenes of...

This new edition of the Children's Bible will be treasured and enjoyed by children and adults of all ages. It features stunning, full-page illustrations and includes maps of the ancient lands to bring stories from the Old and New Testaments to life. It...

When Katherine of Aragon is brought to the Tudor court as a young bride, the oldest princess, Margaret, takes her measure. With one look, each knows the other for a rival, an ally, a pawn, destined  – with Margaret’s younger sister...

It is not known when or for whom William Byrd wrote his monumental ‘Great Service’, but we can be sure that he would approve of this new recording from Westminster Abbey.The ‘Great’ Service is here presented in its correct liturgical order (with the...

Elgar from the Abbey - what could be more fitting? From the regal opulence of Great is the Lord, first performed in Westminster Abbey in 1912, to the quiet devotion of the opus 2 Ave verum and Ave Maria, this varied programme is the perfect guide through...

Westminster Abbey has been the focus of British royal occasions for centuries, and the early seventeenth century saw the most dazzling musicians of the age writing music for the Court in all its various incarnations. This fascinating disc presents a...

Stanford’s eight-part Latin Magnificat was posthumously dedicated to Parry, whose own Songs of farewell are unmistakably valedictory in mood. Personal as well as musical associations run deep in this poignantly expressive programme, recorded in June 2019...