It Happened in – serie

It Happened in Shropshire is a vibrant and compelling account of the county’s diverse heritage; its heroes, its battles, its discoveries, its crimes. Bob Burrows’s highly readable prose transports the reader through time, racing across the landscape of Shropshire’s past from the woolly mammoths of 10,000 BC, the Roman occupation of Wroxeter and the Battle of Shrewsbury, to the Industrial Revolution and to the sporting achievements and murderous exploits of recent years. The book celebrates Salopians of national renown such as Charles Darwin, Clive of India, Wilfred Owen and Percy Thrower, as well as commemorating the accidents and disasters of:Shropshire’s ghostly past…and presentThe legends of ‘Mad Jack’ Mytton and the charismatic outlaw Sir Humphrey KynastonA celebration of Salopian sporting champions: Ian Woosnam, Sandy Lyle, Richie Woodhall, Billy WrightShropshire’s notorious and also its heroic vicarsThe 'Black Panther’ and other Salopian murderers exposed

It Happened in Gloucestershire is a vibrant and compelling account of the county’s diverse heritage; its heroes, its battles, its inventors, its outlandish sports. Phyllida Barstow’s lively prose transports the reader across the county: from its stunning cathedral to its swan lake at Slimbridge, taking us surfing the Severn Bore, tumbling down Cooper Hill on the notorious Cheese Race, round the challenging course at Badminton and to Imjin Hill, site of the tragic stand of the Glorious Glosters. The book celebrates those who have helped to put Gloucestershire on the map: Eddie the Eagle, William Morris, Vaughan Williams, Desert Orchid, William Tyndale, Richard III – as well as the varied claims to fame of Concorde, GCHQ, the Cotswold Lions, the conqueror of small-pox, the Gloucester Old Spot and the hardy miners of the Forest of Dean.

From the world’s largest tripe factory to the Battle of Wigan Lane; from the Peterloo massacre to the first British canal – Lancashire can claim it all.It was one of the poorest parts of Britain due to its difficult terrain, poor soil, estuaries and bogs, but it went on to become one of the wealthiest through coal, cotton and slavery. Lancashire had:• the first town to be lit by gas• the first council houses• the first motorway.Its people included:• the last hangman• the most charismatic modern barrister, George Carmen• urbane broadcaster Alistair Cooke• great actors including Thora Hird, Leonard Rossiter and Ian    McKellern.It has suffered some of the greatest tragedies: the massacre of the Lancashire Pals in 30 minutes of the First World War; countless pit disasters; the pounding of the BlitzBut it replied by producing some of the greatest comedians: from George Formby to Ken Dodd to Peter Kay. Not to mention the many great cricketers, rugby players and footballers.A lively and informative book.