Book for Elizabeth the 1st
Bristol Books has supported Elizabeth Carr, the first person born through IVF in the USA by publishing "Under The Microscope" , where she gives a first-hand account of growing up under scrutiny after being the product of a scientific breakthrough.
Bristol Books has supported Elizabeth Carr, the first person born through IVF in the USA by publishing "Under The Microscope" , where she gives a first-hand account of growing up under scrutiny after being the product of a scientific breakthrough.
The book outlines Elizabeth's unique story through a series of vignettes of her life, supplemented with additional context on the history of fertility treatment. Sponsored by US-based Brown Fertility, LifeView and Nikon the book was launched in Florida in early March 2022. It follows our publication of Louise Brown's book in 2015 - "My Life As The World's First Test Tube Baby" in hardback in 2015 and later in softback.
Elizabeth has been in the spotlight since she was three cells old when pictures taken with a microscope showed the cells dividing that were to become her. She is now a fearless patient advocate for those going through fertility treatment.
The Bristol Miscellany Quiz
This Christmas we’re delighted to provide you with a festive quiz for you and your friends or work colleagues to share.
All the answers can be downloaded here, but are also found in Manson’s Bristol Miscellany - the perfect gift for a Bristolian this Christmas!
TEN MISCELLANEOUS QUESTIONS
1. In the 1950s crowds gathered on College Green to look at two mysterious figures that had been delivered to the construction site of the Council House. The architect returned from holiday to say they were to go on the roof. What did the figures represent?
2. In what square is there a replica of part of the Bristol High Cross?
3. In the early 1960s Guy Bailey was turned down for a job on Bristol’s buses, why?
4. In what year did John Cabot set sail from Bristol in the Mathew to seek the land of America?
5. What chemical element gives Bristol Glass its distinctive blue colour?
6. The oldest known Mikveh in Europe, dating from 1100, is situated in Bristol. What is a Mikveh?
7. Elizabeth Blackwell was born in Temple Back, Bristol in 1821. What is her claim to fame?
8. What was the surname of the family that owned Ashton Court?
9. Where might you find Western Spike Speedwell, Fingered Sedge and Autumn Squill?
10. Which Bristol building was used for the first time on August 3 1858, replacing a previous facility in Guinea Street?
REALLY OLD BRISTOL!
1. What area of Bristol was known as Abonae in Roman Times?
2. The name Bristol comes from Anglo Saxon words Brycg and Stow. What do they mean?
3. What is the name of the central Bristol pub named after flat-bottomed boats that sailed across to the River Wye?
4. Besides the Avon – what other River flows through Bristol?
5. In what book was Knowle valued at 40 shillings?
POWER & POLITICS
1. Which King created the county of Bristol in 1373?
2. What building in the centre of the city was not included in the county and remained part of Gloucestershire until 1629?
3. After the battle of Bosworth Field in 1485, King Henry VII made a pilgramage to Bristol to give thanks for his victrory at a Holy Well. Where is it?
4. What was the name of the Monastery in the centre of Bristol that was dissolved by Henry VIII?
5. From what island in the Bristol Channel did Marconi send his first radio transmission?
LAW & ORDER
1. In which Bristol pub was the Pie Poudre Court?
2. What building constructed in 1880 was loosely inspired by Carisbrooke Castle and helped with Bristol’s law and order?
3. In what district was a prison built on the site of a pleasure garden following the 1877 Prison Act?
4. Where in 1793 did the militia open fire on a crowd of people, killing 14, during riots?
5. What was the function of the boat named the Pyronaut in Bristol?
MAKING MONEY
1. Who set sail in the Mathew in 1497?
2. What name is given to the “counting tables” that stand in Corn Street where people would conclude deals?
3. What kind of business did Charles Heal & Sons operate in Bristol?
4. What sort of vehicle is a Bristol Type 401?
5. In 1949 the3 then biggest aeroplane in the world was made in Bristol – what was its name?
6. Harvey’s Bristol Cream sherry was a new blend in the 1860s – what was the original sherry dating from the seventeenth centuyry called?
7. What type of bus (designed in Bristol) was driven by Reg Varney in the 1970s comedy On The Buses?
8. In which churchyard is the grave of 18-year-old slave Scipio Africanus?
9. Where did the USA establish its first consulate in Europe in 1792?
10. What was created to provide the main entrance into Bristol’s Floating Harbour?
Click here to download the answers
New Book launch: Shirehampton Sketches
Bristol Books latest publication Shirehampton Sketches will be available to purchase at the Shirehampton local market
Bristol Books latest publication Shirehampton Sketches will be available to purchase at the Shirehampton local market between 10am and 3pm on Thursday 2nd December at the Tithe Barn.
The book has been expertly researched and written by local author Richard Coates and is packed with over 280 pages including 84 short chapters and three features dealing with many different aspects of life and history in the Shire area.
Watch again: Manson's Bristol Miscellany Book launch
Online launch of Manson's Bristol Miscellany with author Michael Manson from 24th March 2021
Online launch of Manson's Bristol Miscellany with author Michael Manson from 24th March 2021
Discovering the ‘soul of the city’
People interested in the ‘hidden history’ of Bristol can buy the first volume of an indispensable treasure trove of fascinating discoveries from the city’s rich and diverse past.
People interested in the ‘hidden history’ of Bristol can now purchase the first volume of an indispensable treasure trove of fascinating discoveries from the city’s rich and diverse past.
Manson’s Bristol Miscellany began simply as a compilation of things that piqued his own curiosity as he wandered around the streets he has called home for 45 years in a quest to find the ‘soul of the city’.
He said: “I’m still finding new corners, new streets, new communities even. I’d be delighted if the Miscellany helps readers to see their environment just that little bit more clearly, and maybe embark on their own voyage of discovery.
“The toppling of Edward Colston’s statue in the city centre last June prompted an increased interest in Bristol’s history. It made me think that it was time for a revaluation, and I’ve very much tried to look at Bristol from ‘below’, hence the items included in the book.
From hidden rivers, medieval walls and public protests to links with slavery, prisons and the treatment of mental illness, Michael’s search for the soul of the city has resulted in a ‘curiosity shop’ compendium of interesting snapshots of the city.
He added: ““It was thanks to being in lockdown that I gained the motivation to pull all the loose ends of my compilation together and finish the Miscellany.”
Sometimes informative, frequently fascinating, occasionally shocking, the book is extensively illustrated with some striking images to help recount the city’s power and politics, business and trade, markets and fairs, law and order, mines, plague and much more.
From Britain’s first female doctor to Bristol Cars, even people who think they know Bristol well are likely to discover something new to them in this book’s clearly-written, bitesize sections.
Did Bristol once have its own time zone? Why is the city’s High Cross 40 miles away? Did a Bristol citizen really invent the blanket? It’s all here, and plenty more besides.
Eugene Byrne, Editor of the Bristol Times, said the new publication was: “The result of a long love-affair with the city, and a splendid introduction to all the important milestones in Bristol’s history, with plenty of oddities and surprises for those who think they know it already.”
Steve Poole, Professor of History and Heritage at the University of the West of England, and Director of the Regional History Centre, described the book as: “An indispensable compendium of Bristol ephemera for streetwalking and armchair explorers alike…dig in and enjoy!”
Michael Manson
Michael has written four history books on Bristol as well as three novels. His debut work of fiction, the Bristol-based Where’s My Money?, which was published in 2015, was selected by BBC TV as one of their ‘Books That Made Britain’.
He is also co-founder of the Bristol Short Story Prize and is an organiser of the Bristol Festival of Literature.
Manson’s Bristol Miscellany is available buy now from the Bristol Books website, priced £18.