Sunday, 31 May 2026

INTRODUCING THE MORGANS (II), CRISTINA MORGAN

Hi, I'm Cristina Morgan. I was born in HeidelbergBaden-Württemberg and I am a professional heartbreaker.

A few months ago, I discovered that the famous Welsh pirate Henry Morgan was an ancestor of mine and that I had brothers and sisters to meet. Thanks to The Grandma, an Andorran grandmother, who made every effort to locate us, today I know them all and to celebrate this meeting we decided to spend two months together travelling and reviewing our level of English because we have all decided to retire to Kingston, Jamaica, to enjoy the Morgan fortune, and English is its official language.

-Good morning and thanks to attend us.
 
-Good morning. It's an honour.

-What's your full name?

-My full name is Cristina Morgan Engeln.

-How do you spell your surname?

-E-N-G-E-L-N

-Are you a student? What are you studying?

-No, I'm not a student. I finished my studies a few years ago and now I'm working.

-Are you working? What is your job?

-Yes, I am. I work as a heartbreaker. It's not a traditional job, but people often say that because I meet a lot of people and I have a very outgoing personality.

-Do you like your job? Why?

-Yes, I do. I enjoy meeting new people and having interesting conversations. Every day is different, and I never get bored.

-Where are you from?

-I'm from Heidelberg, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany.

-How long have you lived there?

-I lived there for most of my life. It's a wonderful city, and I always enjoy going back whenever I travel.

-Why are you studying English?

-I'm studying English because it's an international language. It helps me communicate with people from all over the world.

-How long have you been studying English?

-I've been studying English for two months. I started learning it and I try to practise it regularly.

-Tell me about your city.

-Heidelberg is one of the most beautiful cities in Germany. It is famous for its castle, its old town, and its university. Many tourists visit it every year.

-What music do you like?

-I like pop music, indie music, and some electronic music. I enjoy listening to music when I'm travelling or relaxing.

-Can you play any instrument?

-Yes, I can play the piano a little. I'm not an expert, but I enjoy playing simple songs.

-Tell me about your favourite place.

-My favourite place is Heidelberg Castle. The view over the city is amazing, especially at sunset.

-What do you like doing in your free time?

-I enjoy travelling, reading novels, meeting friends, and discovering new cafés. I also like taking long walks near the river.

-Do you practise any sport? Which?

-Yes, I do. I enjoy jogging and yoga because they help me stay healthy and relaxed.

-What do people mean when they call you a heartbreaker?

-They usually mean that I have a friendly personality and that I make a strong impression on people. It's mostly a joke among my friends.

-What is the best thing about meeting new people?

-The best thing is learning about different cultures, experiences, and points of view. I find that very interesting.

-Would you like to live in another country?

-Yes, I would. I think it would be a great opportunity to learn new languages and experience a different way of life.

-What is your dream destination?

-My dream destination is Kingston in Jamaica, because of its beautiful landscapes and outdoor activities.

-How is a normal day with The Morgans?

-We haven't got similar days. Every day is different and this is something very important because it offers to you the possibility of living fantastic experiences every day and you can enjoy them with all your heart because you know that next day you're going to put the score to zero and we're going to start again. It's a non-stopping life.

-Which is your best memory with The Morgans?

-It's difficult to choose only one. I remember when we travelled back in time to the Scottish Highlands to meet Connor MacLeod, a man who was immortal. It was an amazing experience.

-Which is your favourite song?

If I think in my job, I like 'Still loving you' by Scorpions but I am choosing 'Wind of Change', another song by Scorpions. I am German and the fall of the Berlin Wall was a historic and much-desired moment for us.

The wind of change blows straight
Into the face of time
Like a storm wind that will ring
The freedom bell for peace of mind
Let your balalaika sing what my guitar wants to say.

Take me
To the magic of the moment
On a glory night
Where the children of tomorrow dream away
In the wind of change.

Scorpions 

THE MORGANS, SEARCHING THE PHILOSOPHER'S STONE

Today, The Morgans have started their first day in Hogwarts. First, they have assisted to the Hat's ceremony where a magic Hat has sent every one of them to a House.
 The family has started to search the Philosopher's Stone, which grants its user immortality as well as the ability to turn any metal into pure gold.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone is a fantasy novel written by English author J. K. Rowling
The first novel in the Harry Potter series and Rowling's debut novel, it follows Harry Potter, a young wizard who discovers his magical heritage on his eleventh birthday, when he receives a letter of acceptance to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and WizardryHarry makes close friends and a few enemies during his first year at the school, and with the help of his friends, Harry faces an attempted comeback by the dark wizard Lord Voldemort, who killed Harry's parents, but failed to kill Harry when he was just 15 months old.

The book was first published in the United Kingdom on 26 June 1997 by Bloomsbury. It was published in the United States the following year by Scholastic Corporation under the title Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. It won most of the British book awards that were judged by children and other awards in the US.

The book reached the top of the New York Times list of best-selling fiction in August 1999 and stayed near the top of that list for much of 1999 and 2000. It has been translated into at least 73 other languages, and has been made into a feature-length film of the same name, as have all six of its sequels.

Most reviews were very favourable, commenting on Rowling's imagination, humour, simple, direct style and clever plot construction, although a few complained that the final chapters seemed rushed.

The writing has been compared to that of Jane Austen, one of Rowling's favourite authors; Roald Dahl, whose works dominated children's stories before the appearance of Harry Potter; and the Ancient Greek story-teller Homer.

More information: Harry Potter Fandom

While some commentators thought the book looked backwards to Victorian and Edwardian boarding school stories, others thought it placed the genre firmly in the modern world by featuring contemporary ethical and social issues, as well as overcoming obstacles like bullies.

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, along with the rest of the Harry Potter series, has been attacked by some religious groups and banned in some countries because of accusations that the novels promote witchcraft under the guise of a heroic, moral story.

Other religious commentators have written that the book exemplifies important viewpoints, including the power of self-sacrifice and the ways in which people's decisions shape their personalities. The series has been used as a source of object lessons in educational techniques, sociological analysis and marketing.

The book, which was Rowling's debut novel, was written between approximately June 1990 and some time in 1995.

In 1990 Jo Rowling, as she preferred to be known, wanted to move with her boyfriend to a flat in Manchester and in her words, One weekend after flat hunting, I took the train back to London on my own and the idea for Harry Potter fell into my head... A scrawny little black-haired bespectacled boy became more and more of a wizard to me... I began to write Philosopher's Stone that very evening. Although, the first couple of pages look nothing like the finished product.

Then Rowling's mother died and, to cope with her pain, Rowling transferred her own anguish to the orphan Harry. Rowling spent six years working on Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, and after it was accepted by Bloomsbury, she obtained a grant of £8,000 from the Scottish Arts Council, which enabled her to plan the sequels.

By mid-2008, official translations of the book had been published in 67 languages. By November 2017, the book had been translated into 80 languages, the 80th being Lowland Scots. It was translated by Matthew Fitt, who said that he was honoured to be the Scots translator, and that he wanted to do it for a long time.

The translation is considered significant by Heart, who described it as probably the most incredible version so far, The Guardian, who believed that it may just be the best of all, and Stylist. Bloomsbury have published translations in Latin and in Ancient Greek, with the latter being described as one of the most important pieces of Ancient Greek prose written in many centuries.

More information: Go To Quiz

The Philosopher's Stone, more properly philosophers' stone or stone of the philosophers, in Latin lapis philosophorum, is a legendary alchemical substance capable of turning base metals such as mercury into gold (chrysopoeia, from the Greek χρυσός khrusos, gold, and ποιεῖν poiēin, to make) or silver. It is also called the elixir of life, useful for rejuvenation and for achieving immortality; for many centuries, it was the most sought goal in alchemy.

The Philosophers' Stone was the central symbol of the mystical terminology of alchemy, symbolizing perfection at its finest, enlightenment, and heavenly bliss.

Efforts to discover the Philosophers' Stone were known as the Magnum Opus (Great Work).

The earliest known written mention of the Philosophers' Stone is in the Cheirokmeta by Zosimos of Panopolis (c. 300 AD). Alchemical writers assign a longer history. Elias Ashmole and the anonymous author of Gloria Mundi (1620) claim that its history goes back to Adam who acquired the knowledge of the stone directly from God. This knowledge was said to be passed down through biblical patriarchs, giving them their longevity. The legend of the stone was also compared to the biblical history of the Temple of Solomon and the rejected cornerstone described in Psalm 118.

The theoretical roots outlining the stone's creation can be traced to Greek philosophy. Alchemists later used the classical elements, the concept of anima mundi, and Creation stories presented in texts like Plato's Timaeus as analogies for their process. 

According to Plato, the four elements are derived from a common source or Prima Materia first matter, associated with chaos. Prima Materia is also the name alchemists assign to the starting ingredient for the creation of the Philosophers' Stone. The importance of this philosophical first matter persisted throughout the history of alchemy. In the seventeenth century, Thomas Vaughan writes, the first matter of the stone is the very same with the first matter of all things.
 
More information: Live Science 

Early medieval alchemists built upon the work of Zosimos in the Byzantine Empire and the Arab empires. Byzantine and Arab alchemists were fascinated by the concept of metal transmutation and attempted to carry out the process. The 8th-century Muslim alchemist Jabir ibn Hayyan (Latinized as Geber) analyzed each classical element in terms of the four basic qualities. Fire was both hot and dry, earth cold and dry, water cold and moist, and air hot and moist.

He theorized that every metal was a combination of these four principles, two of them interior and two exterior. From this premise, it was reasoned that the transmutation of one metal into another could be affected by the rearrangement of its basic qualities. This change would be mediated by a substance, which came to be called xerion in Greek and al-iksir in Arabic from which the word elixir is derived.

It was often considered to exist as a dry red powder also known as al-kibrit al-ahmar, red sulfur made from a legendary stone -the Philosophers' Stone.The elixir powder came to be regarded as a crucial component of transmutation by later Arab alchemists.

In the 11th century, there was a debate among Muslim world chemists on whether the transmutation of substances was possible. A leading opponent was the Persian polymath Avicenna (Ibn Sina), who discredited the theory of transmutation of substances, stating, Those of the chemical craft know well that no change can be effected in the different species of substances, though they can produce the appearance of such change.


According to legend, the 13th-century scientist and philosopher Albertus Magnus is said to have discovered the Philosophers' Stone. Magnus does not confirm he discovered the stone in his writings, but he did record that he witnessed the creation of gold by transmutation.

The 16th-century Swiss alchemist Paracelsus believed in the existence of alkahest, which he thought to be an undiscovered element from which all other elements (earth, fire, water, air) were simply derivative forms. Paracelsus believed that this element was, in fact, the Philosopher's Stone.
 
 
 
We teachers are rather good at magic, 
you know.

Minerva McGonagall

Saturday, 30 May 2026

INTRODUCING THE MORGANS (I), ANDREA MORGAN

Hi, I'm Andrea Morgan. I was born in Rouen, Normandy and from a very young age I was fascinated by the world of rugby, in general, and cheerleading in particular.

A few months ago, I discovered that the famous Welsh pirate Henry Morgan was an ancestor of mine and that I had brothers and sisters to meet. Thanks to The Grandma, an Andorran grandmother, who made every effort to locate us, today I know them all and to celebrate this meeting we decided to spend two months together travelling and reviewing our level of English because we have all decided to retire to Kingston, Jamaica, to enjoy the Morgan fortune, and English is its official language.

-Good morning and thanks to attend us.

-Good morning. It's an honour.

-What's your full name?

-My full name is Andrea Morgan Sinclair.

-How do you spell your second surname?

-S-I-N-C-L-A-I-R

-Are you a student? What are you studying?

-No, I'm not a student at the moment. I finished my studies a few years ago and now I work full-time.

-Are you working? What is your job?

-Yes, I am. I work as a sports cheerleader and also as a cultural entertainer. I perform at sports events, festivals, and community celebrations.

-Do you like your job? Why?

-Yes, I love my job because it allows me to meet many people and create a positive atmosphere. I enjoy performing and helping people have a good time.

-Where are you from?

-I'm from Rouen, a beautiful city in Normandy, in the north of France.

-How long have you lived there?

-I lived there for most of my life. Recently, I have spent some time travelling for work, but Rouen is still my hometown.

-Why are you studying English?

-I'm studying English because I often work with international visitors and performers. English helps me communicate with people from different countries.

-How long have you been studying English?

-I've been studying English for about ten years. I first learned it at school and now I continue practising it through work and travel.

-Tell me about your city.

-Rouen is famous for its history, beautiful cathedral, and traditional Norman architecture. It is a lively city with many cultural events throughout the year. 

-What music do you like?

-I enjoy pop music, dance music, and some French contemporary music. I often listen to energetic songs because they help me prepare for performances.

-Can you play any instrument?

-Unfortunately, I can't play any instrument very well. I learned a little piano when I was younger, but I mainly focus on dancing and performing.

-Tell me about your favourite place.

-My favourite place is the historic centre of Rouen. I love walking through the old streets and visiting the cathedral. It has a very special atmosphere.

-What do you like doing in your free time?

-In my free time, I enjoy dancing, travelling, reading about culture and history, and spending time with my friends and family.

-Do you practise any sport? Which?

-Yes, I do. I practise dance fitness and gymnastics regularly because they help me stay fit for my performances. I also enjoy running a few times a week.

-What is the best thing about being a cheerleader?

-The best thing is the energy from the audience. It's very rewarding when people enjoy the performance and join in the celebration.

-Would you like to work abroad in the future?

-Yes, I would. I think working abroad would be a great opportunity to learn about new cultures and improve my English even more.

-What cultural events do you usually participate in?

-I usually participate in festivals, local celebrations, parades, and community events. I enjoy promoting culture and bringing people together.

-How is a normal day with The Morgans?

-We haven't got similar days. Every day is different and this is something very important because it offers to you the possibility of living fantastic experiences every day and you can enjoy them with all your heart because you know that next day you're going to put the score to zero and we're going to start again. It's a non-stopping life.

-Which is your best memory with The Morgans?

-It’s difficult to choose only one. I remembered when we travelled to Normandy to visit Mount Saint Michel. It was a great surprise and I loved coming back home.

-Which is your favourite song?

I like 'Gracias a la Vida', a song written by Mercedes Sosa. I remember a great performance by Joan Baez and the Chilean composer Nano Stern.

Gracias a la vida que me ha dado tanto
Me ha dado la marcha de mis pies cansados
Con ellos anduve ciudades y charcos
Playas y desiertos, montañas y llanos
Y la casa tuya, tu calle y tu patio.

Thanks to life, which has given me so much.
 It gave me the ability to walk with my tired feet.
 With them I have traversed cities and puddles
 Valleys and deserts, mountains and plains.
 And your house, your street and your patio.

Mercedes Sosa 

HOGWARTS, AN AMAZING MAGIC WONDERFUL SCHOOL

Today, The Morgans have arrived to Hogwarts 
School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

There, Albus Dumbledore, Severus Snape, Hermione Granger, Harry Potter, Ron Weasley and Minerva McGonagall have received them. Rubeus Hagrid is going to be their guide during this visit to the most popular school of wizards.
 
Finally, The Grandma did not travel to HogwartsShe has decided to take a few days off. Last night, she was in Lyon and from there she will travel to Köln first and then to Oslo, to return to Barcelona before the 13th, when she has a very important challenge to take on with The Morgans.
 
Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, commonly shortened to Hogwarts is a British school of magic for students aged eleven to eighteen, and is the primary setting for the first six books in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series.

Rowling has suggested that she may have inadvertently taken the name from the hogwort plant (Croton capitatus), which she had seen at Kew Gardens some time before writing the series, although the names The Hogwarts and Hoggwart appear in the 1954 Nigel Molesworth book How to Be Topp by Geoffrey Willans.

Hogwarts school was voted as the 36th best Scottish educational establishment in a 2008 online ranking, outranking Edinburgh's Loretto School. According to a director of the Independent Schools Network Rankings, it was added to the schools listing for fun and was then voted on.

More information: Hogwarts On Line

In the novels, Hogwarts is somewhere in Scotland, the film Prisoner of Azkaban says that Dufftown is near. The school is depicted as having numerous charms and spells on and around it that make it impossible for a Muggle to locate it. Muggles cannot see the school; rather, they see only ruins and several warnings of danger.

The castle's setting is described as having extensive grounds with sloping lawns, flowerbeds and vegetable patches, a loch called The Black Lake, a large dense forest called the Forbidden Forest, several greenhouses and other outbuildings, and a full-size Quidditch pitch. There is also an owlery, which houses all the owls owned by the school and those owned by students. Some rooms in the school tend to move around, and so do the stairs in the grand staircase. 

Witches and wizards cannot Apparate or Disapparate in Hogwarts grounds, except when the Headmaster lifts the enchantment, whether only in certain areas or for the entire campus, so as to make the school less vulnerable when it serves the headmaster to allow Apparition. Electricity and electronic devices are not found at Hogwarts.

In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Hermione indicates that due to the high levels of magic, substitutes for magic that Muggles use such as computers, radar and electricity go haywire around Hogwarts. Radios however, make an exception. Rowling explains this by saying that the radios are not powered by electricity but by magic.

Hogwarts is on the shore of a lake, sometimes called the Black Lake. In that lake are merpeople, Grindylows, and a giant squid. The giant squid does not attack humans and sometimes acts as a lifeguard when students are in the lake.

Hogwarts is a coeducational, secondary boarding school, taking children from ages eleven to eighteen.

Education at Hogwarts is not compulsory, with some students being home schooled as stated in the seventh book. Rowling initially said there are about one thousand students at Hogwarts. She later suggested around six hundred, while acknowledging that this number was still inconsistent with the small number of people in Harry's year. She further explained that this had resulted from her creating only 40 characters for Harry's year.

Rowling has said that Hogwarts is a multifaith school. She has further stated on the subject, The only people I never imagined there are Wiccans. In response to the query, Do you think there are a lot of LGBT students in modern age Hogwarts? I like to imagine they formed an LGBT club, Rowling replied, But of course.

According to the novels, admission to Hogwarts is selective, in that children who show magical ability will automatically gain a place, and squibs cannot attend the school as students, though they can work there in other roles, as Argus Filch does. A magical quill at Hogwarts detects the birth of magical children and writes their names into a large parchment book, but there is no admission test because you are either magical or you are not.

More information: Wizarding World

Every year, a teacher checks this book and sends a letter to the children who are turning eleven. Acceptance or refusal of a place at Hogwarts must be posted by 31 July. The letter also contains a list of supplies like spell books, uniform, and other things that the student will need.

The prospective student is expected to buy all the necessary materials, normally from shops in Diagon Alley, a concealed street near Charing Cross Road in London that can be found behind the wizarding pub, The Leaky Cauldron. Students who cannot afford their supplies can receive financial aid from the school, as happened with the young orphan Tom Riddle.

Letters to Muggle-born witches and wizards, who may not be aware of their powers and are unfamiliar with the concealed wizarding world, are delivered in person by a member of Hogwarts staff, who then explains to the parents or guardians about magical society, and reassures them regarding this news. Though the school is in Great Britain, its catchment area is the wider British Isles, as Irish students can also attend.


Each student is allowed to bring an owl, a cat or a toad.

Along with the acceptance letter, first-year students are sent a list of required equipment which includes a wand, subject books, a standard size 2 pewter cauldron, a set of brass scales, a set of glass or crystal phials, a kit of basic potion ingredients for Potions, and a telescope for Astronomy.

The Hogwarts uniform consists of plain work robes in black, a plain black hat, a pair of protective gloves, and a black winter cloak with silver fastenings. Each uniform must contain the wearer's nametag. First years are not allowed a broomstick of their own, though an exception to this rule is made for Harry in his first year after he demonstrates an excellent ability as a Seeker in Quidditch.

The primary mode of transport to Hogwarts is the Hogwarts Express that students take at the start of each school year. Students board the train from the also fictional and hidden Platform 9¾ at King's Cross station in London. The train arrives near Hogwarts, some time after nightfall.

From there, first-year students are accompanied by the Keeper of the Keys, Game and Grounds, which was Hagrid during the first novel to small boats, which magically sail across the lake and get them near the entrance of Hogwarts. The older students ride up to the castle in carriages pulled by creatures called Thestrals.

More information: Study International

When the first-year students initially arrive at the castle, they wait in a small chamber off the entrance hall until the older students have taken their seats, and then enter the Great Hall for the Sorting Ceremony to determine their House assignments.

As Professor Minerva McGonagall said in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your House will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your House, sleep in your House dormitory, and spend free time in your House common room."

After the Sorting Hat sings a song, each student in turn is seated upon the stool in front of the rest of the student body. The Hat is placed on the student's head, whereupon it examines his or her mind and assigns them to one of the four Houses based on abilities, personality, and preferences.
After the Sorting Ceremony, the students and teachers enjoy a feast, prepared by the Hogwarts house-elves. If Dumbledore is feeling cheerful, he will lead the students in singing the school song.

Hogwarts is divided into four houses, each bearing the last name of its founder: Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff. Throughout the school year, the houses compete for the House Cup, gaining and losing points based on actions such as performance in class and rule violations. The house with the highest end-of-year total wins and has its colours displayed in the Great Hall for the following school year.

Each house also has its own Quidditch team that competes for the Quidditch Cup. These two competitions breed rivalries between the houses. Houses at Hogwarts are living and learning communities for their students. Each house is under the authority of one of the Hogwarts staff members. The Heads of the houses, as they are called, are in charge of giving their students important information, dealing with matters of severe punishment, and responding to emergencies in their houses, among other things.

Each year, year level groups of every separate house share the same dormitory and classes. The dormitory and common room of a House are, barring rare exceptions, inaccessible to students belonging to other Houses.

Being a school of magic, many subjects at Hogwarts differ from the studies of a typical school. Some subjects, such as History of Magic, derive from non-wizard -or muggle- subjects, but many others, such as charms and apparition classes, are unique to the wizarding world.

More information: Cudoo

There are twelve named teachers referred to as Professors, each specialising in a single subject. All professors are overseen by a school head and deputy head. Transfiguration, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Charms, Potions, Astronomy, History of Magic, and Herbology are compulsory subjects for the first five years, as well as flying lessons.

At the end of their second year, students are required to add at least two optional subjects to their syllabus for the start of the third year. The five choices are Arithmancy, Muggle Studies, Divination, Study of Ancient Runes and Care of Magical Creatures. According to J.K. Rowling, very specialised subjects such as alchemy are sometimes offered in the final two years, if there is sufficient demand.

At the end of their fifth year, students take the Ordinary Wizarding Level (O.W.L.) examinations for all subjects in which they are enrolled. Each examination consists of a written knowledge test and, where applicable, a practical demonstration of skills before a panel of proctors from the Ministry of Magic.

Students who achieve a high enough O.W.L. grade in a particular subject may take its advanced course for the final two years, in preparation for the Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests (N.E.W.T.) given at the end of the seventh year.

More information: Thought Catalog
 
 
Whether you come back 
by page or by the big screen,
Hogwarts will always be there 
to welcome you home.

J. K. Rowling

Friday, 29 May 2026

KING'S CROSS STATION & 9 ¾ PLATFORM, THE MAGIC TRIP

Today, The Morgans and The Grandma have decided to travel to Hogwarts. They are going to stay there until June, 12 discovering the world of magic.

They have taken their bags and they have gone to King's Cross railway station where Platform 9
¾ is waiting for them to cross it and arrive to wonderful world of magic and wizards.
 
During the trip, the family has been practising some A2 Cambridge Tests.
 
King's Cross railway station, also known as London King's Cross, is a passenger railway terminus in the London Borough of Camden, on the edge of Central London.

It is in the London station group, one of the busiest stations in the United Kingdom and the southern terminus of the East Coast Main Line to North East England and Scotland. Adjacent to King's Cross station is St Pancras International, the London terminus for Eurostar services to continental Europe. Beneath both main line stations is King's Cross St Pancras tube station on the London Underground; combined they form one of the country's largest transport hubs.

The station was opened in Kings Cross in 1852 by the Great Northern Railway on the northern edge of Central London to accommodate the East Coast Main Line.

It quickly grew to cater for suburban lines and was expanded several times in the 19th century. It came under the ownership of the London and North Eastern Railway as part of the Big Four grouping in 1923, who introduced famous services such as the Flying Scotsman and locomotives such as Mallard.
 
More information: King Cross
 
The station complex was redeveloped in the 1970s, simplifying the layout and providing electric suburban services, and it became a major terminus for the high-speed InterCity 125. As of 2018, long-distance trains from King's Cross are run by London North Eastern Railway to Edinburgh Waverley, Leeds and Newcastle; other long-distance operators include Hull Trains and Grand Central. In addition, Great Northern runs suburban commuter trains in and around north London.

In the late 20th century, the area around the station became known for its seedy and downmarket character, and was used as a backdrop for several films as a result. A major redevelopment was undertaken in the 21st century, including restoration of the original roof, and the station became well known for its association with the Harry Potter books and films, particularly the fictional Platform 9¾.

The area of King's Cross was previously a village known as Battle Bridge which was an ancient crossing of the River Fleet, originally known as Broad Ford, later Bradford Bridge. The river flowed along what is now the west side of Pancras Road until it was rerouted underground in 1825.

The name Battle Bridge is linked to tradition that this was the site of a major battle between the Romans and the Celtic British Iceni tribe led by Boudica. According to folklore, King's Cross is the site of Boudica's final battle and some sources say she is buried under one of the platforms. Platforms 9 and 10 have been suggested as possible sites. Boudica's ghost is also reported to haunt passages under the station, around platforms 8–10.
 
Kings Cross came into the ownership of the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) following the Railways Act 1921. The LNER made improvements to various amenities, including toilets and dressing rooms underneath what is now platform 8.

The lines through the Gas Works tunnels were remodelled between 1922 and 1924 and improved signalling made it easier to manage the increasing number of local trains.

A number of famous trains have been associated with King's Cross, such as the Flying Scotsman service to Edinburgh. The Gresley A3 and later streamlined A4 Pacific steam locomotives handled express services from the 1930s until 1966. The most famous of these was Mallard, which holds the world speed record for steam locomotives at 203 km/h, set in 1938.

King's Cross handled large numbers of troops alongside civilian traffic during World War II. Engine shortages meant that up to 2,000 people had to be accommodated on each train.

In the early hours of Sunday 11 May 1941, two 450 kg bombs fell on the, then, platform 10 at the west side of the station, damaging a newspaper train in that platform and destroying the general offices, booking hall and a bar, and bringing down a large section of roof. Twelve people were killed.

On 4 February 1945, a passenger train to Leeds and Bradford stalled in Gasworks Tunnel, ran back and was derailed in the station. Two people were killed and 25 were injured. Services were not fully restored until 23 February.
 
More information: The Culture Trip

King's Cross features in the Harry Potter books, by J. K. Rowling, as the starting point of the Hogwarts Express.

The train uses a secret Platform ​9 ¾ accessed through the brick wall barrier between platforms 9 and 10. In fact, platforms 9 and 10 are in a separate building from the main station and are separated by two intervening tracks. Instead, the brick roof-support arches between platforms 4 and 5 were redressed by the film crew and used to represent a brick wall that does not exist between the real platforms 9 and 10.

Within King's Cross, a cast-iron Platform ​9 ¾ plaque was erected in 1999, initially in a passageway connecting the main station to the platform 9–11 annexe. Part of a luggage trolley was installed below the sign: the near end of the trolley was visible, but the rest had disappeared into the wall. The location quickly became a popular tourist spot amongst Harry Potter fans.

The sign and a revamped trolley, complete with luggage and bird cage, were relocated in 2012, following the development of the new concourse building, and are now sited next to a Harry Potter merchandise shop. Because of the temporary buildings obscuring the façade of the real King's Cross station until 2012, the Harry Potter films showed St. Pancras in exterior station shots instead.

When the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando Resort expanded to Universal Studios Florida, the Wizarding Worlds in both Universal Studios Florida and Islands of Adventure were connected with the Hogwarts Express. The Universal Studios Florida station is based on King's Cross station and Platform ​9
¾, including a quarter-scale replica of the façade of King's Cross as the entrance to the station.

More information: Harry Potter Platform 9 ¾
 

We are in King's Cross, you say?
I think that if you decided not to go back,
you would be able to…
let's say… board a train.

Albus Dumbledore

Thursday, 28 May 2026

TRAFALGAR SQUARE, PAST HISTORY IN CHARING CROSS

Today, The Morgans & The Grandma have visited Trafalgar Square, the public
square in the City of Westminster, Central London,
that was
established in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. 

Before the visit, The Morgans have practised some A2 Cambridge Tests.


The Square's name commemorates the Battle of Trafalgar, the British naval victory in the Napoleonic Wars over France and Spain that took place on 21 October 1805 off the coast of Cape Trafalgar. The site around Trafalgar Square had been a significant landmark since the 1200s. For centuries, distances measured from Charing Cross have served as location markers. The site of the present square formerly contained the elaborately designed, enclosed courtyard, King's Mews. After George IV moved the mews to Buckingham Palace, the area was redeveloped by John Nash, but progress was slow after his death, and the square did not open until 1844.

The 52 m Nelson's Column at its centre is guarded by four lion statues. A number of commemorative statues and sculptures occupy the square, but the Fourth Plinth, left empty since 1840, has been host to contemporary art since 1999. Prominent buildings facing the square include the National Gallery, St Martin-in-the-Fields, Canada House, and South Africa House.

The square has been used for community gatherings and political demonstrations, including Bloody Sunday in 1887, the culmination of the first Aldermaston March, anti-war protests, and campaigns against climate change. 

A Christmas tree has been donated to the square by Norway since 1947 and is erected for twelve days before and after Christmas Day. The square is a centre of annual celebrations on New Year's Eve. It was well known for its feral pigeons until their removal in the early 21st century.

The square is named after the Battle of Trafalgar, a British naval victory in the Napoleonic Wars with France and Spain that took place on 21 October 1805 off the coast of Cape Trafalgar, southwest Spain, although it was not named as such until 1835.

The name Trafalgar is a Spanish word of Arabic origin, derived from either Taraf al-Ghar (طرف الغار cape of the cave/laurel) or Taraf al-Gharb (طرف الغرب extremity of the west).

Trafalgar Square is owned by the King in Right of the Crown and managed by the Greater London Authority, while Westminster City Council owns the roads around the square, including the pedestrianised area of the North Terrace.

The square contains a large central area with roadways on three sides and a terrace to the north, in front of the National Gallery. The roads around the square form part of the A4, a major road running west of the City of London. Originally having roadways on all four sides, traffic travelled in both directions around the square until a one-way clockwise gyratory system was introduced on 26 April 1926. Works completed in 2003 reduced the width of the roads and closed the northern side to traffic.

Nelson's Column is in the centre of the square, flanked by fountains designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens between 1937 and 1939 (replacements for two of Peterhead granite, now in Canada) and guarded by four monumental bronze lions sculpted by Sir Edwin Landseer. At the top of the column is a statue of Horatio Nelson, who commanded the British Navy at the Battle of Trafalgar.

Surrounding the square are the National Gallery on the north side and St Martin-in-the-Fields Church to the east. Also on the east is South Africa House, and facing it across the square is Canada House. To the south west is The Mall, which leads towards Buckingham Palace via Admiralty Arch, while Whitehall is to the south and the Strand to the east. Charing Cross Road passes between the National Gallery and the church.

Building work on the south side of the square in the late 1950s revealed deposits from the last interglacial period. Among the findings were the remains of cave lions, rhinoceroses, straight-tusked elephants and hippopotami.

The site has been significant since the 13th century. During Edward I's reign it hosted the King's Mews, running north from the T-junction in the south, Charing Cross, where the Strand from the City meets Whitehall coming north from Westminster. From the reign of Richard II to that of Henry VII, the mews was at the western end of the Strand. The name Royal Mews comes from the practice of keeping hawks here for moulting; mew is an old word for this. After a fire in 1534, the mews were rebuilt as stables, and remained here until George IV moved them to Buckingham Palace.

More information: London x London

I've often thought a blind man could find his way
through London simply by gauging
the changes in innuendo:
mild through Trafalgar Square,
less veiled towards the river.

Louis Bayard

Wednesday, 27 May 2026

MEETING MR. BEAN, A CHILD IN A GROWN MAN'S BODY

Today, The Morgans and The Grandma have been reunited after she had been missing for a few days.

It wasn't exactly a disappearance, but rather The Grandma had some personal matters to attend to in Scandinavian lands, left in a hurry and without saying a word. To celebrate this misunderstanding, the family has visited the king of misunderstandings and despair, Mr. Bean, an old friend who lives in London.
 
Before the visit, The Morgans have been practising some A2 Cambridge Tests and has been practising some English vocabulary about Going Out and Shopping Around.
Mr. Bean is a British sitcom created by Rowan Atkinson and Richard Curtis, produced by Tiger Aspect and starring Atkinson as the title character. 

The sitcom consists of 15 episodes that were co-written by Atkinson alongside Curtis and Robin Driscoll; for the pilot, it was co-written by Ben Elton. 

The series was originally broadcast on ITV, beginning with the pilot on 1 January 1990 and ending with The Best Bits of Mr. Bean on 15 December 1995.

Based on a character developed by Atkinson while he was studying for his master's degree at the University of Oxford, the series centres on Mr. Bean, described by Atkinson as a child in a grown man's body, as he solves various problems presented by everyday tasks and often causes disruption in the process. The series has been influenced by physical comedy actors such as Jacques Tati and those from early silent films.

During its original five-year run, Mr. Bean was met with widespread acclaim and attracted large television audiences. The series was viewed by 18.74 million viewers for the episode The Trouble with Mr. Bean and has received a number of international awards, including the Rose d'Or.

The series has since been sold in 245 territories worldwide. It has inspired an animated spin-off and two theatrical feature-length films along with Atkinson reprising his role as Mr. Bean for a performance at the London 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony, television commercials and several sketches for Comic Relief.

The programme carries strong appeal in hundreds of territories worldwide because, in addition to the acclaim from its original run, it uses very little intelligible dialogue, making it accessible to people who know little or no English.

More information: Mr Bean

The character of Mr. Bean was developed while Rowan Atkinson was studying for his master's degree in electrical engineering at The Queen's College, Oxford. A sketch featuring Bean was shown at the Edinburgh Fringe in the early 1980s. A similar character called Robert Box, also played by Atkinson, appeared in the one-off 1979 ITV sitcom Canned Laughter which also featured routines used in the motion picture in 1997.

The title character and protagonist, played by Rowan Atkinson, is a childish buffoon who brings various unusual schemes and contrivances to everyday tasks. He lives alone at the address of Flat 2, 12 Arbour Road, Highbury, and is almost always seen in his trademark tweed jacket and a skinny red tie. He also usually wears a digital calculator watch. 

Mr Bean rarely speaks, and when he does, it is generally only a few mumbled words which are in a comically low-pitched voice. His first name (he names himself Bean to others) and profession, if any, are never mentioned. In the first film adaptation, Mr appears on his passport in the first name field and he is shown employed as a guard at London's National Gallery.

Mr Bean often seems unaware of basic aspects of the way the world works, and the programme usually features his attempts at what would normally be considered simple activities, such as going swimming, using a television set, interior decorating or going to church. The humour largely comes from his original (and often absurd) solutions to problems and his total disregard for others when solving them, and his pettiness and occasional malevolence.

In the title sequence of episode two, Mr Bean falls from the sky in a beam of light accompanied by a choir singing Ecce homo qui est faba (Behold the man who is a bean) which was sung by the Southwark Cathedral choir in 1990. The opening sequence was initially in black and white in episodes two and three, which was intended by the producers to show his status as an ordinary man cast into the spotlight. However, later episodes showed Mr Bean dropping from the night sky in a deserted London street against the backdrop of St Paul's Cathedral.

In an obvious homage towards the end, the aliens send him back home in a beam of light and music similar to the opening of the original Mr Bean series. Whether Bean is an extraterrestrial is not made clear.

More information: Youtube-Mr Bean


Mr. Bean is essentially a child trapped
in the body of a man.
All cultures identify with children in a similar way,
so he has this bizarre global outreach.

Rowan Atkinson