Local and family history, nostalgia

This illustrated history portrays one of England's finest counties.

This illustrated history portrays one of England's finest major cities.

The city of Canterbury is renowned as the seat of the worldwide Anglican Church and its iconic cathedral is, indeed, a unique and remarkable edifice.

Kent has one of the most diverse and rich military histories of any county in England.

Having been granted city status during the Golden Jubilee celebrations in 2002, Stirling is Scotland's smallest city, with an enthralling wealth of architectural heritage and history that would be the envy of much larger places in the country.

Close to the Chiltern Hills lies the Bedfordshire market town of Leighton Buzzard.

St Albans has a long and fascinating history from its pre-Roman settlement as Verlamion, through the Roman municipium of Verulamium, the Benedictine monastery dedicated to Alban, the first British Christian martyr, to the charter borough and market created by Edward VI in 1553 and the city designated by royal edict in 1877.

Scotland boasts a huge variety of landscapes, from spectacular mountain and moorland scenery, beautiful lochs, remote islands and wonderful coastline, to its cultural heritage stretching back through the centuries from medieval times and earlier, its unspoilt towns and villages, through the impact of the Industrial Revolution to its dynamic cities of today.

Barrow-in-Furness and its surroundings have changed rapidly over the last century and a half.

Chesterfield is famous worldwide for the crooked spire of the medieval Church of St Mary and All Saints, which is visible for miles around and has become a symbol of the town, but there is much more to explore in this historic Derbyshire town.

Beverley's rich historic legacy is visible in its many beautiful buildings.

Swindon's unusual history as a large industrial town in the heart of Wiltshire has defined its townscape for the last 200 years.

The East Sussex seaside resort of Eastbourne, at the end of the South Downs alongside the famous Beachy Head, is largely a creation of the Victorian and Edwardian eras.

Steeped in history and rich in wildlife, Essex is truly a hidden gem among Britain's counties.

The ancient Suffolk market town of Beccles has a history of more than a thousand years, which saw it flourish as one of the principal trading communities in the county.

Situated in the south-west of Ireland, the port city of Cork is right on the very edge of Western Europe and has always been open to influences from Europe and the wider world.

Historically part of Lancashire, Bury grew rapidly during the Industrial Revolution as a mill town producing textiles alongside many other expanding towns in the area and now lies within Greater Manchester.

Barnard Castle and Teesdale in the Durham Dales is the second largest Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England and Wales.

Gloucestershire is a county of great variety with three distinct areas: the Cotswold Hills, the Forest of Dean and the Severn Vale.

Birmingham - Britain's second largest city - lies in the heart of the country.

Gateshead, on the southern bank of the River Tyne, has a rich heritage and distinctive identity.

Wales is said to be the most haunted country in the world.

The history of Greenwich in South East London is defined by its location on the Southbank of the River Thames and its proximity to central London.

Leicestershire is a fascinating and diverse county.

Situated on the Firth of Tay, Dundee is Scotland's fourth largest city and was once a major east coast trading port.

Northallerton is the county town of North Yorkshire, and its location - situated in James Herriot Country and between the two national parks of the North Yorkshire Moors and the Yorkshire Dales - makes it a popular destination for visitors.

Its farming and fishing industries yield an impressive harvest of ingredients, so it is no surprise to discover that Sussex also boasts a rich culinary heritage.

For centuries, Twickenham, Teddington, Whitton and the Hamptons were bucolic places, a string of villages alongside the great highway of the Thames.

The city of Portsmouth, on the Hampshire coast, has been an important naval base for centuries and is still home to much of the Royal Navy's fleet today.

One of the UK's largest cities, Leeds is a major commercial, financial and cultural centre in West Yorkshire.

Despite its size the Cheshire town of Knutsford is full of history, beautiful Italianate architecture and quirky buildings.

Famous as the home of the British Army, the small village of Aldershot in the north-east corner of Hampshire grew rapidly around the garrison that was established on the heath there for the British Army during the Crimean War in 1854.

North Shields and Tynemouth, historically united, lie on the north bank of the River Tyne.

Birmingham is Britain's second largest city.

The city of Aberdeen has been shaped by its natural surroundings and location on the North Sea coast.

A Preston Chronicle newspaper headline in 1866 of 'Thievery, Knavery & Harlotry in Preston' described a town struggling with crime and its consequences.

Plymouth is steeped in history, from the prehistoric remains discovered at Cattedown, the Bronze Age trading settlement at Mount Batten and the Roman burial grounds at Stonehouse to the Pilgrim Fathers' departure from the Mayflower Steps, the hard-fought battles of the Civil War and the Blitz during the Second World War.

Harrogate made its name as a spa town, after its waters were discovered in the sixteenth century.

With a coastline that stretches from Plymouth to Seaton, three Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Dartmoor National Park, South Devon is a region that has an enviable selection of scenic treasures and cherished destinations.

Monuments are all around us.

Since it was founded in 1810 by Lewis Tregonwell, the Dorset resort of Bournemouth has developed to become a favourite destination for holidaymakers across the decades.

Situated between the rivers Allen and Kenwyn, Truro is an ancient town but a young city.

Long before its rise as a celebrated seat of learning, Cambridge was a small market town on the banks of a river formerly known as the Granta.

Though there were airfields in Shropshire during the First World War, at Shawbury, Tern Hill and Monkmoor, it was in the late 1930s that a massive building programme began to dot the county with new RAF airfields, mostly for training purposes, until there were over sixteen - in some cases they were so close together that their circuits overlapped.

Deal and the adjoining Walmer have long been important towns on the Kent coast.

For centuries visitors to Monmouthshire have been seduced by its picturesque landscape and breathtaking beauty.

Today, Bournemouth is one of the favourite resorts on the south coast, but until the early nineteenth century, the area was just heathland where cattle grazed.

The seaside town of Broadstairs lies on the Isle of Thanet in East Kent.

This book brings to life a selection of the most notorious, and grimmest, murders and other crimes in and around Liverpool from the eighteenth, nineteenth, and early twentieth centuries.

The historic Wiltshire market town of Chippenham has seen huge changes over the years.