As pioneers of aviation go, Jean-Pierre Blanchard may not be the first name that springs to mind, but it was certainly not for the want of trying. Born in Les Andelys, France in 1753, Blanchard was both an inventor and a shameless self publicist. Early in his career he had designed and constructed a variation… Read More

Hawley Harvey Crippen was a small, mild mannered man. At just 5 feet 4 inches in height, of slight build and bespectacled, perhaps the only noticeable feature of this otherwise unremarkable man, was his large walrus moustache. His wife, on the other hand, was an extremely noticeable individual. Cora Crippen was an unsuccessful music hall… Read More