King James I
GNR_20202026-03-19T19:01:11+00:00A meandering but triumphant journey south along the Great North Road marked the start of the reign of King James I in 1603. It was his first visit to England...
London Coaching Inns
GNR_20202025-11-13T09:45:35+00:00By the early 19th century there were 120 stage coach inns within a city which was far more compact than today. Many of the coach services were aligned with specific...
Edinburgh Castle
GNR_20202024-01-17T16:57:57+00:00Edinburgh Castle is the northerly “bookend” of the Great North Road as St Paul’s Cathedral is in the south. Not strictly on the road but both...
Celia Fiennes
GNR_20202025-07-05T17:02:08+00:00Celia Fiennes was an early travel writer. She toured extensively through England in the late 17th century. Her diaries describe many of the towns...
Markham Moor – Service Station
GNR_20202023-07-23T17:49:41+00:00Few 20th century landmarks along the Great North Road are as distinctive as the concrete roofline of the former petrol filling station at Markham...
Then & Now
GNR_20202025-04-29T14:15:35+00:00"The Great North Road - Then and Now" is the title of an excellent 2013 book by lorry driver and roads enthusiast, Chris "Wolfie" Cooper. I suspect many of his loads were not...
The Battle of Barnet
GNR_20202026-03-18T09:07:47+00:00The Battle of Barnet may sound like a dispute between commuters on the Northern Line but in fact took place in 1471 and some 3,000 people died. It was one of the...
1832 Time Travel – London to York
GNR_20202023-06-29T11:58:20+00:00James Fox, alias the Time Travel Artist, includes a little gem of a video amongst his many animated history timelines. Our journey from London to York traces the route of the Great...
York Minster
GNR_20202024-01-17T16:33:40+00:00York Minster history spans two millennia and provides direct linkage from Roman times to the present. Its history parallels that of the Great North Road...