Bringing a little colour to your life each day - with six things that delight, inform and entertain.
In 2015, a metal detectorist in Oxfordshire discovered a hoard of silver coins and ingots, buried in the 870s as King Alfred fought Viking forces moving across England.
Erected by the Romans in AD 122 to keep the ‘barbarians’ out under the orders of Emperor Hadrian, this mighty stone wall once stretched nearly 80 miles (128km) from coast-to-coast in the north of England. It took three legions of men at least six years to complete.
The beautiful wild flower stitchwort seems to be a little known plant, despite being widespread around Britain and very beautiful. Perhaps that's because its charming white flowers appear at the same time as bluebells in April and May. Its favoured habitat is at the base of hedgerows and the edges of woodland.
John Metcalf, known as 'Blind Jack of Knaresborough', was the first professional road builder to emerge during the Industrial Revolution. Blind from the age of six, he was an accomplished diver, swimmer, card player and fiddler. But he is best known for pioneering 180 miles of turnpike road in the north of England, between 1765 and 1792.
The Painted Lady butterfly is a long-distance migrant to Britain, undertaking one of the most spectacular such journeys. Each year, it spreads northwards from the desert fringes of North Africa, the Middle East, and central Asia, recolonising Britain and mainland Europe.
Manufactured in billions every year, the hypodermic syringe could arguably be the greatest medical device ever invented - especially in the context of the current global vaccination endeavour. A Scottish physician was a pioneer of this concept.
Six things to delight and entertain you every day.