Connie Converse was arguably the first modern American female singer-songwriter. She was writing and recording her own music in the mid-1950s, but then she vanished without a trace, in August 1974. In this blog post we discuss her life, her mysterious disappearance, and her music. Elizabeth Eaton Converse was born on August 3, 1924, in Laconia, New Hampshire. She was a highly intelligent & creative child who was later awarded a full scholarship to Mount Holyoke College. However, Elizabeth did not complete her studies, she changed her name to "Connie" and made her way to New York City, to ..read more

Lilian Tisdall was my Great Grandmother. She was born in the Victorian era, she lived into her late nineties, she survived two world wars, and she experienced many of the significant & historic changes in the way that women lived their lives, during the 20th Century. She lived an ordinary life in what were extra-ordinary times in history, and her experiences are a valuable part of everyday social history, as well as my own family history. Lilian Maud Bunclark was born on 28th September 1883 at 145 Elderfield Road in Clapton, Hackney. Her father, Joseph Henry Bunclark, was the Manager of a ..read more

Felicia Mary Browne was an English artist and a member of the communist party. She was the only English woman, to die in the Spanish Civil War. Over 4,000 British volunteers enlisted and several hundred of them died. Most of these were men with left wing sympathies, motivated by the Europe-wide threat of fascism. British writers like George Orwell, WH Auden and Laurie Lee were just three of the men whose work now better informs our understanding of the war and British participation in it. Felica's story in contrast, is far less well known, but through her sketches and drawings, she documented ..read more

Singer, Songwriter and Musician Kate Garner, is the daughter of the late Chas Hodges from the legendary Cockney sing-a-long duo, Chas & Dave. When Kate appeared on our podcast in December 2021, she chose three very interesting #InspiringWomen to talk to me about: Musical Hall Singer, Marie Lloyd, Trinidadian Pianist Winifred Atwell, and her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. In the blog post below you can discover more about the two musical women who have inspired Kate's songs and her love of vintage music. LISTEN TO PODCAST EPISODE First, here's a short video tribute to Marie Lloyd by Kate Garn ..read more

In our festive Christmas Podcast episode, Ballet Dancer & Historian, Jessica Shoroshuck, from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, told us about the incredible life and work of Britain's most celebrated Prima Ballerina's, Dame Margot Fonteyn of the Royal Ballet. In this blog post we delve deeper into her life story, and give links for further reading, and viewing. Born Margaret Evelyn Hookham, on 18 May 1919 in Surrey, her mother, Hilda Hookam, guided & supported her daughter's career from an early age. Hilda was the illegitimate daughter of a Brazilian industrialist, named Antonio Gonçalves F ..read more

Top Time Management Coach & Business Entrepreneur, Abigail Barnes from Success by Design Training chose three contemporary #InspiringWomen to talk about when she was a special guest on our podcast show in November. Athlete, Sally Gunnell, Business Woman, Anita Roddick and Entrepreneur, Carrie Green were the three women who have inspired Abigail the most- and below we outline just why these women are all contemporary history makers, and are more than worthy of a place on our blog! LISTEN TO THE PODCAST EPISODE HERE SALLY GUNNELL OBE I was particularly pleased when Abigail said that she fou ..read more

Rosa Parkes and Ruth Bader Ginsburg were the two highly Inspiring Women that executive menopause coach, Lauren Chiren, from www.womenofacertainstage.com chose to discuss when she was a recent guest on the Hidden Herstory Podcast. LISTEN TO EPISODE In this blog post, we explore the lives of these two iconic American women, discover more about their lives and work in a selection of short videos, and give suggestions for further reading. ROSA PARKES Rosa Louise Parks (February 4, 1913 – October 24, 2005) was an activist in the Civil Rights Movement, best known for her pivotal role in the Montgo ..read more

I went along to see the "Noel Coward Art & Style Exhibition" at The Guildhall Art Gallery in London, in order to do some research into "Coward's Strong Creative Women" - a theme that we shall be exploring in Season 2 of our Podcast. I was also attending the special late night cabaret show, being held at the Gallery for one night only! There was plenty of iconic clothing and some wonderful old photographs to view. I loved the beautiful stage costumes, furniture and art work on show at the exhibition. Every item encapsulates the life and work of one of the most iconic theatrical writers and ..read more

Our special guest on the Hidden Herstory podcast this week was author & writing coach, Nikki Vallance, who chose three really great female writers to talk about who have inspired her - George Eliot, Daphne Du Maurier and Mary Wesley. The general theme of the podcast episode was "It's never too late to be who you might have been", a quote that has often been attributed to George Eliot, but which also applies to Mary Wesley, who only began writing novels when she was in her 70's. This quote is also the main ethos behind much of the coaching work that Nikki does with aspiring and established ..read more

https://video.wixstatic.com/video/cd2fe4_0fe67fefdbc4488d8f9bc302c330d6ad/720p/mp4/file.mp4 The inspiring story of two best friends, Australian swimmers, Mina Wylie and Sarah "Fanny" Durack" is just one of 50 potted biographies in the wonderfully entertaining and educational book "What Would Boudicca Do" by E. Foley & B. Coates. After reading about these two lifelong friends, I just had to find out more about their lives and how they became the first women to win medals for Australia at the Stockholm Summer Olympics of 1912. Mina Wylie was born on 27th June 1891 and grew up in the town of ..read more