For a child in the great city of Venice in the thirteenth century, there could be nothing better than the stories of sailors. There were stories of strange animals, wonderful cities, sweet spices, …
'I want to learn to fly, 'Amelia Earhart tells her family one evening. But it is 1920. Flying is expensive and dangerous, and most people think it is for men, not women. But nothing can stop Ameli…
You can drink it, and you can cook with it. You can even make buildings, dresses and hats out of it. You can give it to somebody as a present, or you can buy it for yourself. And of course you can …
There were six of them - three Katherines, two Annes, and a Jane. One of them was the King's wife for twenty-four years, another for only a year and a half. One died, two were divorced, and two wer…
Tripitaka, can you go to the West for me - and for Buddha?' When the holy woman Guanyin asks the young monk Tripitaka to bring holy writings back from India, he says 'yes'. But how can he travel a…
Sinbad the sailor spends many years at sea. He visits strange countries, meets some strange people and some frightening animals. He is sometimes rich, sometimes poor and always in danger. But all t…
Look at desert, and what do you see? Nothing much - just a hot, flat, dry place, with lots of sand, and no animals or people. But look again. There are deserts with mountains, and deserts with snow…
'It's good place for gold,' said people in the 1840s, and they came from all over the world. 'It's a good place for a prison,' said the US government in the 1920s, and they put Al Capone there in t…
Hollywood - nine big white letters against the Hollywood Hills. Every year millions people come from all over the world and look up at this famous sign. Why do they come? They come to see the stars…
It is the year 650 in England. There is war everywhere because the old king s dead and he has no son. Only when the new king comes can the fighting stop and the strange, magical story of King Arthu…