Partying like it’s 1679 in Stony Stratford, Or, Mable Graves’s Very Bad Day:
Political Protest Songs in 17th Century England
Dr Angela McShane,
Hon Reader in History, University of Warwick
Date: 15th of April 2026
Time: 20:00
Venue: Zoom
Partying like it’s 1679 in Stony Stratford, Or Mable Graves’s Very Bad Day. In 1679, the landlady of The Cock in Stony Stratford was visited by agents of the powerful local magnate, Sir Richard Temple of Stowe. They were investigating a seditious pop song that had created a local and national sensation – and libelled their master. Did she know anything about it? Trouble was … Mabel did know … a lot. Come and hear the story of that sensational song, the era’s huge pop song trade in general, and find out what happened next for Mabel and her family.
About the speaker:
Angela McShane is a senior research fellow and Head of Renaissance and Early Modern Studies at the Victoria and Albert Museum, the V&A/Sheffield University Research and External Engagement Fellow, and an Associate Fellow of Early Modern History at Warwick University.
OTHER EVENTS
The Living Ghost Town of Randsburg
The Living Ghost Town of RandsburgOTHER NEWS
The End of Enlightenment: Empire, Commerce, Crisis
Date: 17th of December 2025
Time: 20:00
Venue: Zoom
Speaker: Prof Richard Whatmore, School of History, University of St Andrews
The Enlightenment is popularly seen as the Age of Reason, a key moment in human history when ideals such as freedom, progress, natural rights and constitutional government prevailed. In this radical re-evaluation, historian Richard Whatmore shows why, for many at its centre, the Enlightenment was a profound failure.
Mrs Holmes Taught Sherlock all he Knew: Uncovering the Truth about Victorian Women Detectives
Date: 21st of January 2025
Time: 20:00
Venue: Zoom
Speaker: Dr Sara Lodge, School of English, University of St Andrews
A revelatory history of the women who brought Victorian criminals to account—and how they became a cultural sensation.