Author Archives: John Pullen

Over the centuries, many famous objects and people have been lost to history. People die and objects of every description disappear. But, how often can we say that a whole room has been misplaced, stolen or lost? By this, I do not mean that it was destroyed during a battle or that the building itContinue reading “Where is the Amber Room?”

Throughout history, the throne of England has, of course, changed many times. Over the centuries, since 1066, many of the changes included a bloody death or two. Often they were individuals who claimed they were the rightful heir to the kingdom. Some were, some were not and some we have no real idea about. OneContinue reading “King Perkin Warbeck”

Charles Dickens is considered by many to be England’s greatest author. This is not to demean Shakespeare but remember, he was a playwright, not a novelist. Dickens did not have an easy upbringing. His father was gaoled for non-payment to a baker for some bread and Charles had to find work to help the familyContinue reading “The Real Mystery of Edwin Drood”

Today, there are about 7,000 different languages in use around the world. Without it, we would find it almost impossible to communicate and our history would be very different. English and Chinese Mandarin are the two languages used by the greatest number of people. However, it is likely that over time, this number is probablyContinue reading “Who Spoke First?”

This is a story of a man found dead on the 1st of December 1948. He was lying against a sea wall on Somerton Beach in Adelaide, Australia. He was well-dressed in a suit and had no obvious cause of death. His age was estimated to be around 45 years of age. Searching his clothesContinue reading “The Tamam Shud Mystery”

This is not so much about video or virtual reality games, but those that do not have to be plugged in or insert batteries to begin to play. With this in mind, there are thousands of such games, many of which have long histories. Chess is a good example and we shall look at thisContinue reading “How to Win at Games”