by Staff Writer, June 10, 2009
It was the nightingale that inspired John Keats’ “Ode to a Nightingale”, a poem said to be “the nearest to perfection”. Listening to the birds chattering on 23 April, it was not hard to see how the beautiful bird song stirred his imagination. The nightingale’s call seemed to come from a distant, tropical place, standing out from other British birds with its stunning chorus comprised of trills, whistles and gurgles. This is perhaps appropriate, as the nightingale is at the heart of the ancient myth of Philomela, the princess of Athens, whose sister Procne was turned into a bird.
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by Staff Writer,
Thirteen years ago a group of Northamptonshire Scouts spent three weeks in Uganda, searching for a venture that they could fund and sustain. They discovered Outspan School. Continued…
by Ben Hewins,
This year we celebrate both the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth, and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his seminal work, On the Origin of Species. Few historical figures can claim to have had an impact as far reaching and profound as Darwin, and few scientific ideas have changed our understanding of the world around us quite as radically as his have. This year a special set of stamps and a commemorative two pound coin have been released.
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by Harry Coulthard,
Apethorpe Hall, hidden in the heart of Northamptonshire near Oundle, has recently been described as the ‘biggest risk’ English heritage has ever taken. It was put on the English Heritage Buildings at Risk register in 1998, when it was bought for just over three million pounds by English Heritage with taxpayer’s money. Since then a further four million has been spent on restoration. Critics have been quick to talk of a waste of taxpayer’s money, but in my opinion the work of Simon Thurley is a cause our nation should be proud of.
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