Edging back to normal
I don't have a whole lot to say about books or writing or history this week. I'm still revelling in the opportunity to do things that we once took for granted. We've been allowed back into Wales for a few months now, so we took advantage of the heatwave to get out of...
Thoughts from a week away
I’m sitting in Wales looking out the window at a landscape hazy in the heat of a July day. It’s a wonderful, lazy place where we walk and read and chat aimlessly about all sorts of things, usually pointless (Can analysis be worthwhile? Is the theatre really dead?) but...
A few days away
Ever since I discovered that about half my Twitter followers seem unaware of my blog, I've been telling everyone that I blog every Friday (and occasional Tuesdays). So it's a bit embarrassing to admit that I don't really have anything to say this Friday. That's...
The joys of historical research (#125 in a continuing series)
I’m writing the next James Burke book. Or rather, I’m trying to write it but instead I am alternately bashing my head against a keyboard, playing an inordinate amount of Spider Solitaire, and writing this. Burke in Ireland was a rather more downbeat book than most of...
The history behind the film ‘Edge of the World’ (and my book ‘The White Rajah’)
Last week's blog post brought us up to the point where the new film, Edge of the World, picks up the story of James Brooke. Edge of the World has Brooke's party landing rather randomly in Borneo and promptly being captured by a party of native Dyaks. Brooke landing in...
James Brooke and his Journey to the Edge of the World
If you read the Daily Mirror on Saturday (26 June), you will have seen an interesting article about James Brooke. Although they were kind enough to mention me and The White Rajah, its focus is on the film, Edge of the World, which I reviewed a couple of weeks ago. The...
The White Rajah – the true story
With Edge of the World now available on DVD (covid having robbed it of a cinema release) there is growing interest in the life of James Brooke, the character portrayed by Jonathan Rhys Myers. Last year I wrote three blog posts about him and, though that's not so long...
‘Edge of the World’
Edge of the World becomes available in the UK on Monday, but you've been able to watch it in the USA since 4 June and, thanks to the nice people at Signature Entertainment, I've seen a copy. Edge of the World tells the story of how James Brooke travelled to Borneo,...
Two historical novels I’ve enjoyed recently
I usually write quite long reviews because I have been asked to review a book by somebody or because I think that there is a lot that can sensibly be said about it, but this week I'm doing two very short reviews simply because I really enjoyed these books and would...
Filming ‘The White Rajah’
Back in 2013 I blogged that Rob Allyn, an American film producer with a solid, if unspectacular, back catalogue, had been travelling around Sarawak in Borneo scoping out the possibility of making a film about Sir James Brooke. Despite a reported £15 million dollar...