Q&A

Plague mask

Why did plague doctors wear beaked masks?

Children apple bobbing for Halloween, with an illuminated Jack-O-Lantern behind © Getty Images

General history

What are the origins of Halloween?

When was the first game of football? © Getty Images

When was the first game of football?

Why does Britain have so many accents? © Getty Images

Why does Britain have so many accents?

Where does the word 'shampoo' come from? © Getty Images

Where does the word ‘shampoo’ come from?

Who should we blame for Hawaiian shirts? © Getty Images

Who should we blame for Hawaiian shirts?

Where does the word ‘honeymoon’ come from? © Getty Images

Where does the word ‘honeymoon’ come from?

How much do you know about Saint Patrick? © Getty Images

How much do you know about Saint Patrick?

Who was the real Saint Valentine? © Getty Images

General history

Who was Saint Valentine?

Did pirates really live on the island of Tortuga? © Wikimedia Commons

Did pirates really live on the island of Tortuga?

Why do we say

Why do we say “send someone to Coventry”?

Who were Einstein's scientific heroes? © Wikimedia Commons

Who were Einstein’s scientific heroes?

What was the last battle on English soil? © Wikimedia Commons

What was the last battle on English soil?

Why we drive on the wrong side of the road © AP

Why we drive on the wrong side of the road

James Gordon Bennett Jr

Who was Gordon Bennett?