Above painting: Louis Jean Francois - Mars and Venus an Allegory of Peace

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Monday, October 31, 2022

Samhain, All Hallow's Eve, Halloween

Depiction of an ancient Celtic person dressed in costume before the bonfire.

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays. I love the spookiness that surrounds this month and the historical meanings behind it. Halloween originated in ancient Celtic culture and was called Samhain. For the Celts, November 1 is when they celebrated their new year, and so the night before marked the end of the harvest and the beginning of winter--which is when death rates rose because of the cold temperatures and issues with food.

On Samhain night, it was said that ghosts were allowed to roam the earth as the boundary between the living world and that of the dead blurred. People would build great bonfires, where they would make sacrifices of their crops and livestock. They dressed up in costumes made from animal skins, heads, horns, etc.. to ward off the ghosts. By the 8th Century, a pope named November 1st All Saints Day, and the evening before became known as All Hallows Eve, eventually becoming Halloween.

So why do we carve pumpkins? They used to carve turnips into grotesque heads, and set them in their windows with candles burning as lanterns to ward off evil spirits.


A cast of a carved turnip from Ireland.


Friday, October 28, 2022

Haunted History: New Slains Castle in Scotland

On this week's History, Books and Wine podcast, we're having a haunted happy hour! I'm chatting with Lori Ann Bailey about the ghosts that haunt New Slains Castle, as well as Bram Stoker's Dracula which it is said he was inspired upon a visit there. Below are some images I took on a trip to New Slains a few years ago.









Take a listen to find out the creepy and tragic history behind this haunted castle in Scotland.


Here's a snippet to get your started.



History, Books and Wine podcast is available on our website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and more. Listen and enjoy wherever you download your favorite podcasts!

Tuesday, October 11, 2022

Haunted History - LaLaurie Mansion in New Orleans




On this week's History, Books and Wine podcast, we're having a haunted happy hour! Lori Ann Bailey takes us down to the bayou with horrific tales of cruelty centered around the famous haunted house of horrors in The Big Easy.

Take a listen to find out the creepy and tragic history behind this haunted mansion in the historic city of New Orleans. 

Here's a snippet to get your started.




History, Books and Wine podcast is available on our website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and more. Listen and enjoy wherever you download your favorite podcasts!

Tuesday, October 4, 2022

The Cataclysmic Great Fire of London and a Disgusting Beauty Regimen with Guest Evie Hawtrey

 


On this week's History, Books and Wine podcast, we have guest author Evie Hawtrey talking about the great fire of London in 1666, a disgusting beauty regimen, and Evie's new release, AND BY FIRE

Take a listen to find out the fascinating history behind the cataclysmic fire that cost nearly $2 billion in today's currency. And trust me, you don't want to miss the most horrendous beauty regimen. 

Here's a snippet to get your started.



History, Books and Wine podcast is available on our website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and more. Listen and enjoy wherever you download your favorite podcasts!


About Evie's Book...

Nigella Parker, Detective Inspector with the City Police, has a deeply rooted fear of fire and a talent for solving deadly arson cases. When a charred figure is found curled beside Sir Christopher Wren’s Monument to The Great Fire of London, Nigella faces her toughest challenge yet—stopping a murderous artist creating sculptures using burnt flesh.

Partnering with Colm O’Leary of Scotland Yard, a former lover who made the mistake of saying three little words, Nigella tracks the arsonist across greater London, racing to connect the dots between an antique nail pulled from a dead man’s hands, and a long-forgotten architect dwarfed by the legacy of Wren.


Wren is everywhere Nigella and O’Leary turn. Why? In answering that question they resurrect the coldest of cold cases—the search for a bookseller gone missing during the Great Fire of London more than 350 years earlier. Conducted by an unlikely pair of detectives, a lady-in-waiting to the Queen and a royal fireworks maker, that 17th century investigation discovered devilry in the fiery destruction of St. Paul’s. Did that devilry lead to murder? And can crimes past help catch a modern-day killer?


As Nigella and O’Leary rush to decode clues, London’s killer-artist sets his sights on one of them as the subject of his next fiery masterpiece.




Tuesday, September 27, 2022

The Scandalous Mitfords: Socialites, Nazis, Communists, Oh My


This week on the History, Books and Wine podcast, I'm pouring a glass of vino and diving into the Scandalous Mitford family! They were made up of socialites, debutantes, couple of fascists, a communist, socialists, a couple of Nazi sympathizers, WWII volunteers, a soldier, authors, a duchess... the list goes on and on... This wild family of seven siblings were constantly in the papers in the 1920s, 30s, 40s...and still TO THIS DAY! 

Nancy's book The Pursuit of Love was just adapted into a short series by Netflix, starring Lily James. Diana even has a cameo on the show, Peaky Blinders, played by Amber Anderson.

There is something about the Mitfords that fascinates and continues to do so a hundred years later.

Take a listen to find out the fascinating history behind this scandalous and evergreen family. Here's a snippet to get your started.


History, Books and Wine podcast is available on our website, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, and more. Listen and enjoy wherever you download your favorite podcasts!


Can't get enough Mitfords? I invite you to read my international bestseller, and Costco Book Club PickThe Mayfair Bookshop: A Novel of Nancy Mitford and the Pursuit of Happiness

From USA Today bestselling author Eliza Knight: a brilliant dual-narrative story about Nancy Mitford—one of 1930s London’s hottest socialites, authors, and a member of the scandalous Mitford Sisters—and a modern American book curator desperate for change, connected through time by a little London bookshop.


1938: She was one of the six sparkling Mitford sisters, known for her stinging quips, stylish dress, and bright green eyes. But Nancy Mitford’s seemingly sparkling life was really one of turmoil: with a perpetually unfaithful and broke husband, two Nazi sympathizer sisters, and her hopes of motherhood dashed forever. With war imminent, Nancy finds respite by taking a job at the Heywood Hill Bookshop in Mayfair, hoping to make ends meet, and discovers a new life.


Present Day: When book curator Lucy St. Clair lands a gig working at Heywood Hill she can’t get on the plane fast enough. Not only can she start the healing process from the loss of her mother, it’s a dream come true to set foot in the legendary store. Doubly exciting: she brings with her a first edition of Nancy’s work, one with a somewhat mysterious inscription from the author.  Soon, she discovers her life and Nancy’s are intertwined, and it all comes back to the little London bookshop—a place that changes the lives of two women from different eras in the most surprising ways. 

Wednesday, September 21, 2022

A Naughty Rebel Princess


On this week's History, Books and Wine podcast, we have guest author Georgie Blalock talking about a naughty rebel princess. 

Princess Louise was the youngest daughter of Queen Victoria, and made quite a reputation for herself. Come join our happy hour to learn about this fascinating royal!

Here's a sample to get you started... 


Episodes of History, Books and Wine are available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio and many more places where podcasts downloads are available. You can also listen to this episode HERE.

Tuesday, September 13, 2022

The Stone of Scone

The Stone of Scone Replica
Photo credit: Eliza Knight



Today's episode on History, Books and Wine podcast, with Lori Ann Bailey, is about The Coronation Stone aka The Stone of Destiny. 


Who knew when Lori planned this episode that it would become as relevant as it is today?


While the UK mourns the loss of Queen Elizabeth II, somewhere behind the scenes, plans are in motion for the coronation of King Charles III.


Listen anywhere you find your favorite podcasts to find out why a huge chunk of stone is essential to the process.


Here's a sample...