Weird and wonderful history

A women with a shocked face next to a calendar with the date of Friday the 13th

Q&A Why is Friday 13th unlucky?

A 1793 etching by Thomas Rowlandson shows a person in bed with bugs covering their bare behind.

General History

Roasted cats and acid: 5 ways our ancestors tried to get rid of bedbugs

Scenic view of Cornwall

General History

Q&A Why is Cornwall called Cornwall?

A 1950s illustration imagines a group of mountaineers catching sight of a large Yeti in the Himalayas

General History

The hunt for the Abominable Snowman: what’s the history of the Yeti legend?

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Gussie Moran playing tennis with her lace knickers on show at the 1949 Wimbledon Championships.

10 scandalous moments in Wimbledon’s history . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Guitarist David Crosby of the Byrds performs with his band in front of a large crowd at the Magic Mountain Music Festival on Mount Tamalpais, June 1967. (Image by © Henry Diltz/Corbis)

General History

From Ancient Greece to Glastonbury: a brief history of music festivals

A mermaid combing her hair

General Early Modern

Tails from the deep: separating the real folklore of mermaids from Disney stories

Australian bushrangers

General History

Q&A Who were Australian bushrangers?

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A clown, c1970s. The next decade, there would be a panic over

Clowns, agoraphobia and kayaks: a history of fear and loathing . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

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Elsie Wright, who with her cousin Frances Griffiths took photos of sprites, gnomes and fairies, 1917 (Photo by SSPL/Getty Images)

Fake news: 8 of the most notorious photograph hoaxes, from fairies to UFOs . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Conspiracy WL Shakespeare

Conspiracy Did someone else write the plays of William Shakespeare?

A composite image showing an astronaut on the moon against a purple sky.

Conspiracy Did NASA fake the Moon landing?

Conspiracy WL Anastasia

Conspiracy Did Anastasia survive the massacre of the Romanovs?

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A painting by Dutch artist Hendrick Danckerts shows Charles II’s gardener, John Rose, presenting the king with a pineapple

Pineapples, tulips and follies: 10 status symbols from history . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A montage of Adolf Hitler and a purple starry sky

Second World War

Conspiracy Did Hitler escape from his bunker and live in Argentina after WW2?