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Episode 208: London Field Trip Report

*Of course, we had to pose in front of Highclere Castle! (Yes, that’s “Downton Abbey.”)*

Once upon a time a couple of chicks and a group tour expert thought it would be fun to plan a tour around our former subjects… finally, three years, four reschedules, 56 people went on that eight-day trip. These are their stories. (And historical trivia, travel and book recommendations, societal observations, and even a lesson in gas exchange…there’s a lot to learn in this one.)

Some finds at Blenheim Palace:

*Gladys Deacon sphynx at Blenheim Palace*

*Winston Churchill’s curls from his first big boy haircut*

TIME TRAVEL WITH THE HISTORY CHICKS TRAVELERS

*The Superbloom at Tower of London was a favorite for A LOT of us*

Head on over to our Instagram, The History Chicks Field Trips, for the motherlode of trip photos!

The history pub tour that Beckett and her dad took was through Liquid History Tours; the Jack the Ripper tour Susan took was through RipperVision, her guide was Richard (although some Seagulls took the tour with a different guide from the same company and loved it just as much.)

Susan and our Jack The Ripper Tour guide, Richard! (He said he was going to look scary for this, he was a perfectly charming gentleman!)

Our tea etiquette lesson was delightfully presented by Eileen Donaghey at Fortnum and Mason where, you too, can stock up on Jubilee-themed tea and biscuits from wherever you are!

Tea at Fortnum & Mason, Susan and Beckett’s table.

Beckett and her dad visited the Bate Collection of musical instruments at the University of Oxford.

Finding a pub in England is…not hard, but when we were in Oxford, this is where we enjoyed dinner and drinks (and more drinks): The Chequers.

“Other” Susan: Learn more about Saint Frideswide, an Abbess at Christchurch Chapel in Oxford

Starr: The book that Starr nerded out to and gave her visit to Jane’s world added depth:

Susie: The public art installation of giant corgis are dotted throughout Westminster (where we were staying so it was hard NOT to see one.) Here is a map of them, and the one that she referenced, Susan, represents Queen Elizabeth’s first corgi and the grandma of many of the ones she called for walkies in the Queen’s life. Funny story: this piece was created by the class of one of our Traveler’s daughters!

*One of the many corgis! This one is named Susan who was Queen Elizabeth’s original corgi and the matriarch of the many corgis she’s had over the years.*

June enjoyed her time at the Postal Museum!

Find yourself near Victoria Station on a Sunday evening and fancy a game of Trivia? Our Trivia Teams really enjoyed the Sunday evening game with Johnny the Fox at The Warwick!

The Superbloom music that Diana referenced was this, Music For Growing Flowers, by Erland Cooper.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_35eEzViLk

If you’re excited to join us on another Field Trip, we would love to have you join us on our October Boston and Newport adventure! Click on over to Like Minds Travel for information, or if you are going to be in Boston and would like to join that trip’s Local’s Meet Up, find out more here!

Episode 207: The Wives of Henry VIII

Life gets in the way of the best intentions, doesn’t it? Covid has derailed us this week so instead of talking about our visit to the land of Henry VIII we thought we would get in the Way Back Machine to our 2012 series on the wives of Henry VIII! We’ve remastered and edited them into one really short audiobook (or long podcast, however you want to think of it.) Beckett is still recovering but hopefully, we’ll be together in two weeks!

Episode 206: The Gilded Gentleman, Invisible Magicians, and Golden Plates

Today we want to introduce you to a show we both really enjoy: The Gilded Gentleman! It’s produced by our friends Tom Meyers and Greg Young, The Bowery Boys, and is hosted by social and culinary historian Carl Raymond. Carl’s episodes are often a delightful companion to the stories of our subjects and this doubleheader is no exception.

Episode 205: Queen Lili’oukalani, Revisited

This month Queen Elizabeth II is celebrating her Platinum Jubilee, but she’s still alive so we can’t cover her* so we thought this would be an excellent time to get into the Way Back Machine to our 2017 conversation about Queen Lili’oukalani, the Kingdom of Hawaii’s last monarch (who was at Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1887!)

Episode 204: Elizabeth Taylor, Part Three (FIN)

*The image most have of Elizabeth Taylor, dazzling movie star…but is that really what she was?*

Unlike most actors, Elizabeth never left the public view and her entire life played out on magazine covers, scandal sheets, punch lines, and news stories with tales of fact and fiction. But, in this final chapter of her life, she uses that very visible platform to bring money and awareness as a vocal ally for those stricken by a then mysterious and deadly illness, AIDS–going so far as to form her own foundation to fight the disease and support its victims. (And, just because she could, she also became the first celebrity to launch her own perfume line and company.)