Haunted Isles -in the company of spirits

Nobody really knows the truth about the fate of  Edward V and his brother Richard, Duke of York, their ghosts are said to haunt the Tower of London the last place they were seen alive. In 1483 following the death of his father, Edward IV,  Edward V set out from Ludlow to London for his coronation. Along the way his train was intercepted, at Stony Stratford, by his Uncle Richard, Duke of Gloucester and Henry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham. Several of Edward's entourage were captured and and sent to Pontefract Castle where they were later executed. Edward continued his journey to London in the custody of his Uncle. Upon his arrival in London Edward was lodged in the Tower which was in those days a Royal residence. Word of what looked like a coup d'etat had reached Edward's mother Queen Elizabeth and she sought sanctuary for herself and her children in Westminster Abbey. Edward's younger brother Richard, the Duke of York was with her. She was however persuaded to rele...

Set in the 12th century Marion de la Bruyere 's tale is one of illicit romance, betrayal and guilt. Marion de La Bruyere lived in Ludlow Castle which at the time was held by Josce de Dinan who having aquired the castle and lands in Shopshire via King Stephen then rebelled against him. Marion was in love with Arnold de Lys who was not on the side of de Dinan. There were many contenders for the castle,  King Stephen wanted it for the Earl of Leicester plus Hugh de Mortimer and Gilbert de Lacy were both trying to take Ludlow. Marion's lover de Lys was on the side of Gilbert de Lacy. Castle security was of the utmost importance but even so Marion and Arnold found a way to meet. Marion would lower a rope from the castle for Arnold to climb for their secret assignations. But one night, knowing that Josce de Dinan was away from the castle, Arnold left the rope hanging allowing Gilbert de Lacy's men to breach the castle. Realizing that Arnold had betrayed their love and ...

Teaser Tuesdays  is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of  Should Be Reading . Anyone can play along! Just do the following: •  Grab your current read •  Open to a random page •  Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page •  BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!  (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) •  Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! "In his book,Exploring English Character, Mr. Geoffrey Gorer analysed the answers to 5,000 questionnaires sent to a cross-section of the public.    He estimated from these that, one-sixth of England's population believes in ghosts and that a further quarter keeps an open mind on the subject." The Stately Ghosts of England by Diana Norman first published 1963 PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT  with either the link to yo...

Teaser Tuesdays  is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of  Should Be Reading . Anyone can play along! Just do the following: •  Grab your current read •  Open to a random page •  Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page •  BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS!  (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!) •  Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers! "Ghosts, now - well, they are just people who have died and bound themselves, because of great happiness or great tragedy, to a spot on earth." "When you are dead, you see, time doesn't exist." The Stately Ghosts of England by Diana Norman first published 1963 PLEASE LEAVE A COMMENT  with either the link to your own  Teaser Tuesdays  post, or share your ‘teasers’ in a comment here ( if you don’t have a blo...

The 1965 TV documentary film The Stately Ghosts of England starring Margaret Rutherford , her husband Stringer Davis and clairvoyant Tom Corbett covers 3 of the stately homes from Diana Norman's book of the same name, Longleat, Salisbury Hall and Beaulieu. Anyone who enjoyed Dame Margaret Rutherford's portrayal of Miss Marple will be delighted with this video which also shows the ghost hunting techniques of 50 years ago. Do take a look: