Consulting Swordsman
I often get asked “What’s your favourite sword?” Here’s my answer: How can one possibly choose amongst so many lovely options? And in other news, I finished my sword rack, at last! It’s in cherry, with acrylic supports, and carved finials: And it’s rather over-loaded: Because how on earth could I leave any one of … Read more
Approximately every 365 days there falls a date celebrated for many things, but in my household principally as the anniversary of my birth. Yes, you have anticipated me: it was my birthday. As is delightfully customary, I was showered with gifts, chief among them a tome that has, quite simply, changed my life. How to … Read more
The trumpet-blast of the Star Wars theme when that logo hits the screen transports me instantly back to the age of 11. Everything onscreen after that gets absorbed with the absolute trust and lack of cynicism that you’d expect of a person who still maybe sort of believes in Santa Claus. It’s magic, pure and … Read more
I love seeing sword-themed art being created, and so far this year my eye has already been caught by two fantastic, and quite different, approaches. I’m not affiliated to either, and get no commission from anything you buy. I just like their stuff. What do you think of these? On the left we have classically … Read more
Jussi Alarauhio is the graphics genius behind the art for Audatia the medieval combat card game I developed a few years ago. A while back he sent me the poster you see above, which he made for a HEMA club practising (you guessed it) Lechkuchner’s messer combat style. It is way too cool not to … Read more
They say travel is all about having new experiences. Well… having a week to fill between my Seattle and Vancouver seminars, I thought I’d take the opportunity to get back in the saddle. My friend Jen Landels (she of Pulp Literature fame, and as yet the only guest blogger on this site) runs the Academie … Read more
Today is an auspicious day. It marks the 16th anniversary of the founding of my School, with my first demonstration class held in a small training hall inside the Olympic Stadium. One of the greatest challenges from the beginning was that the people who are most interested in the training I have to offer are … Read more
I am resistant to change in the English language. I dislike the use of ‘reference’ as a verb. Refer to something, don’t reference it. And as for the astonishingly lazy and stupid “I could care less” when the speaker means “I couldn’t care less”, well, that makes me quite cross. But every now and then … Read more
You may recall I went to Scotland a couple of weeks ago, and on that trip a select few got to travel to Glasgow to visit the Museum Resource Centre. There we met a curator, Dr Ralph Moffat, who kindly opened case after case of swords, guns, and armour, for us to (literally) play with. One … Read more
[Warning: these videos contain some very graphic violence. If you are under 18, and like screen sword fights, please go here instead.] Game of Thrones is a great TV series, a soap opera of majestic proportions with amazing effects and great stories. It is not, and does not pretend to be, historically accurate in any … Read more