History of santa

Corn-dolly crafter Colette Hughes describes the bleak situations our ancestors faced. “Imagine,” she says. “It’s winter and your family is hungry and cold. It gets dark early, fresh food is in short s

Strictly straight-talking former MP Ann Widdecombe is one of the most colourful characters in politics, but she revealed a totally different side to her personality when she took part in a certain dance competition. Now, Ann joins best to share her views...

On the morning of 4 August 1577, the good Christian folk of Bungay assembled in St Mary’s Church for their regular Sunday service. But more sinister forces were also gathering in the Suffolk town. Dar

Just where did all the weird ghosts go is a question that has been posed in Fortean Times. One answer might be Wales. Ghost hunter John Harries declared, “In order to meet a Welsh ghost one really nee

Many people associate clans with Scotland, but the word originated in Ireland in the early Middle Ages. It derives from the Irish clann, meaning children, and is used to describe a highly organised hi

Beloved by schoolchildren for decades, the once-popular playground game of conkers has seemingly fallen from favour recently. This has been blamed on health-and-safety rules, but this is largely a myt