LONDON on the Ground

The influential artist, educationalist, philanthropist, feminist and suffragist was ahead of her time, but is little known today. Barbara Bodichon portrait by Samuel Laurence , 1880 (from a sketch in 1861). Source: Wikipedia, public domain Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon co-founded Britain’s first women’s suffrage group and Girton College Cambridge - Britain’s first residential college for the degree level education of women. She also successfully campaigned to allow married wom

The 17th century writer, poet, philosopher, scientist and playwright questioned the role of women and divided opinion. Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle (1623-1673), was a prolific writer of non-fiction and fiction, essays, poems and plays. Her aim was uniqueness in dress, thoughts and behaviour. Unusually for a woman at the time, her works were published, and under her own name. She designed her own clothes, was open about seeking fame and was quite a celebrity in Lon

Britain’s first woman jujitsu teacher trained the female bodyguards of suffragette leader Emmeline Pankhurst. Edith Garrud and her...

The Islington resident once tried to recruit Margaret Thatcher to the Labour Party . The plaque outside Nina Bawden's former home An...

The woman responsible for The Daily Courant, Britain's first daily newspaper in 1702. The launch issue of The Daily Courant was...