The New Murrey and Blue blog

humour

A big bang under Henry VII? Oh, I wish….

Jan 18, 2019

anniversaries, humour

Elizabeth of York, Explosives, fireworks, Henry VII, marriages

Did anyone know that although fireworks were probably used in England from the late 13th century onwards, they didn’t begin to become truly popular until at least 200 years later? The first documented use of fireworks is the wedding of King Henry VII in 1486. What a pity it all “went off” splendidly…a nice explosion…
On twentieth century comedy

Jan 9, 2019

humour, law

alcoholism, Barry Mainwaring, bigamy, Captain Mainwaring, Dads’ Army, Edward IV, Elizabeth Wydeville, Fiona Gray, George Duke of Clarence, Lady Eleanor Talbot, pre-contract

Here we commented on a literary attempted bigamist, whose first name just happened to be Edward. Anyone who has visited the Dads’ Army Museum in Thetford may have noticed some parallels. Captain George Mainwaring, although ten inches shorter than Edward IV, has a drunken brother and feelings for a widow named Gray/ Grey (Fiona, played…
Schrodinger’s royal marriages?

Jan 4, 2019

anniversaries, humour, law, religion

“Perkin”, adultery, Anne Boleyn, annulments, Catherine of Aragon, dispensations, executions, Henry VII, Henry VIII, Katherine Howard, Low Countries, paradox, Treason Acts, Tyburn

Anne Boleyn and then Katherine Howard thought they had married Henry VIII. Then he annulled them both, as he did with his first and fourth weddings, such that they were deemed to have been invalid from the start. However, he had these second and fifth Queens executed for treason in that they committed adultery whilst…
I wonder …

Dec 31, 2018

anniversaries, humour, religion, The play’s the thing

A Hard Day’s Night, Clarence Sale, Josephine Tewson, Laurence Olivier, Peter Sellers, Plantagenet Evans, rhyming slang, Ronnie Barker, Seven of One, The Two Ronnies

Was the late Ronnie Barker a Ricardian? He made something of a habit of referring to Richard’s family. In “The Two Ronnies”: His rhyming slang vicar spoke of “a small brown Richard III” (bird), The pair did a Shakespeare scene mentioning as many television programmes as they could (eg “…the Tyrannies…” for themselves), Peter Sellers…
HISTORICAL CORRECTIONS-THE MYSTERIOUS DEATH OF ST THOMAS BECKET

Dec 29, 2018

anniversaries, buildings, humour, religion

assassination attempts, Canterbury Cathedral, GRU, Henry II, Putin, Salisbury Cathedral, terrorism, Thomas Becket, tourism

Well, folks, even in 1170 it seems they were hell-bent on giving out improbable excuses! (This amusing cartoon parodying the recent events in Salisbury made me smile.)
Mugging with Henry VIII

Dec 18, 2018

humour, law

annulments, Christmas shopping, coffee, Henry VIII, mugs, royal marriages

And for your Christmas feast, a mug fit for a King. Or maybe a mug for a mug… You can now wake yourself up with a splash of caffeine whilst gazing at Henry VIII’s portly charm and watching his unfortunate ‘wives’ (due to the marriages being annulled , he technically only had two wives, not…
Anne Neville was a Tudor….?

Dec 13, 2018

anniversaries, genealogy, humour

“Tudors”, Anne Neville, Catherine de Valois, Catherine of Aragon, Gregory, Henry VIII, inaccuracy, novelists, Richard III, Richard of Warwick

Sooo….her guilty secret is finally revealed. According to this post , Anne Neville was a Tudor! No wonder she‘s shocked…and Richard is giving her a sideways look. Oh, dear.
Another helping of SHW

Nov 17, 2018

anniversaries, battles, humour, law

bigamy, cartoons, Caxton, Earl of Desmond, Edward IV, Elizabeth Wydeville, George Duke of Clarence, John Mowbray Duke of Norfolk, Lady Eleanor Talbot, pre-contract, Tewkesbury
And the Clocks Go Back!

Oct 28, 2018

anniversaries, humour

Avebury, clocks, executions, GMT, Halloween, Henry of Buckingham, Salisbury, Stonehenge

Well, British Summer time is now officially over and the hardy henge-workers are currently moving the megaliths at Avebury and Stonehenge into their winter-hours position! Time to celebrate the exciting festival shortly to take place–no, not Christmas (yet)–but the quasi-pagan Halloween, All Hallows/AllSaints/All Souls…and the execution of Henry Stafford, Duke of Buckingham in Salisbury Market…
Edward IV and Elizabeth Wydeville

Oct 17, 2018

anniversaries, genealogy, humour, law, religion

Anne Mortimer, bigamy, Boots, Bryan Dunleavy, Despencers, dispensations, Edward IV, Elizabeth Wydeville, Lady Eleanor Talbot, mistresses, Pope, pre-contract, Richard Earl of Cambridge

(This letter, of which a version was published in the September 2018 Bulletin, was in response to Bryan Dunleavy’s article about Edward IV and Elizabeth Wydville.) The article in the latest Ricardian Bulletin by Bryan Dunleavy is interesting, and also provocative, given that the bulk of readers of the publication are, by definition, Ricardians. However…