Jacqueline Rose began “The plague” with the first UK pandemic lockdown (March 2020) and she finished it with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine two years later. Written, as she puts it, ‘in the heat and chill of its moment’, it is remarkably eloquent and reflective, distinguished by a precision of thought […]

Virtually nothing is known about Anne (Agnes) Hathaway other than she was the mother of three children – Susanna in 1583 and the twins, Judith and Hamnet, in 1585.   Sean Sheehan   She was the daughter of a sheep farmer and probably illiterate, but her claim to fame rests […]

The cultural critic Walter Benjamin is probably best known for his essay, “The work of art in the age of technological reproducibility”, and the use of the term ‘aura’ to designate the quality in a work of art that changes its singularity when it is subject to reproduction.   Sean […]

“Documentary photography remains important today but fifty years ago it was absolutely vital and Chas Gerresten provides visual evidence of what took place: everyday life, the demonstrations, civil unrest and the  coup d’état of September 11.”   Sean Sheehan   Salvador Allende won the presidency of Chile in 1970 and, […]

What if Native Americans had discovered Europe, if Nazi Germany emerged victorious in World War II, if Trump wins the 2023 election? What if your parents had never met one another?   Sean Sheehan   Speculating along these lines invite responses ranging from intellectual curiosity to fear, trepidation and an […]