The World’s Quirkiest Hotels
Few would have once said that the hotel makes the holiday. But in this brave new world of niche travel, international interconnectivity, and Instagram, accommodation is increasingly coming to occupy centre stage...
Alexander Meddings
Alexander Meddings is a professional writer and content consultant. After graduating in ancient history from the universities of Exeter and Oxford, he moved to Italy to pursue his passion at the source. He now lives in Rome, where he works as a writer and guide.
Famous Films Set in Rome
Exploring Rome can feel like wandering through a film set. World-famous monuments, like the Pantheon, Piazza Navona and Trevi Fountain, emerge as though from out of nowhere, thronged by locals who mingle like extras around their bars and cafes. With such an…
The Best Bistecca alla Fiorentina in Florence
Seeking out Florence's finest fillets? Let's take you through the best the city has to offer.
The Emperor Caligula’s Unlikely Role Model
Rulers have always idolised and imitated past figures, and Rome's emperors were no different. The emperor Caligula cultivated an affiliation with Alexander the Great. Without a great deal of success.
Chasing Down the Best Gelato in Florence
No trip to Italy would be complete without indulging in one of the country’s best loved culinary offerings: gelato. Shops that specialize in the stuff – gelaterie – line almost every street of the Renaissance city, drawing tourists and locals…
Gaius Apuleius Diocles: History’s Highest-Paid Athlete
From football stars to tennis maestros, sportsmen and women are often cited as overpaid examples of capitalistic culture gone mad. In 2009 Tiger Woods became the first sports star to gross over $1 billion. In 2017 Cristiano Ronaldo extended a…
Burning Ambitions: The Life and Death of Girolamo Savonarola
Florence's beauty masks a violent past, erupting in outbreaks of factional violence and religious extremism. The story of Giralomo Savonarola captures the latter. And it is as gruesome as it is gripping.
The Tory Whip with a Thirst For Knowledge
In the Spring of 2012, I took part in a seminar about the Black Death. It was part of a course about politics and the arts in Medieval France: compelling, comprehensive. Full of those juicy anecdotes that make history so…
I Can’t Shoot A Scotsman In York, So Why Can An American Run Riot In Las Vegas?
So it’s happened again. Inevitably. The details are still murky, but a terrorist (let’s call him what he is) has shot up a crowd of festival-goers along the Las Vegas Strip in what now appears to be the bloodiest mass…
Idiosyncracies of the English Language
The idiosyncracies of the English language render it as barmy as it is brilliant. This article takes you through examples of the English language at its most idiosyncratic.
