The Diary Review

‘Wind more moderate, but still blowing hard from opposite shore. On every hand are traces of last night’s hurricane. [. . .] It is with litt...

‘My work at F.O. is nearly over, and not to my regret: much of it was interesting, but the constant interruption and disturbance from visito...

‘The Emperor blubber itself has a very delicate flavour. As a treat this morning Campbell gave us each a small strip of Emperor’s breast don...

‘I feel as if a lovely delicate child, tender and humorous, had been knocked down by a truck and lay dying.’ This is the US playwright Cliff...

Gertrude Bell, an early 20th century British traveller and archaeology enthusiast, died 100 years ago today. Her expertise in the Middle Eas...

Humfrey Wanley, an English librarian, palaeographer and scholar of Old English, died 300 years ago today. He was employed by manuscript coll...

‘Ten minutes after seeing the neurologist, I can’t get out of the car park. At Glasgow Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, I drive round an...

Wanda Gág, an American artist and author best known for her Millions of Cats children’s book (apparently, the oldest US picture book still ...

Sir Henry Rider Haggard, the British author of many an adventure story set in colonial Africa, often in sympathy with the native populations...