Didn-t Cleopatra look like Elizabeth Taylor? Didn-t Shakespeare look like Shakespeare? Doesn-t Mazzini deserve to have a biscuit named after him? Did Napoleon pass his French exam? Did Nelson really see no ships? Van Gogh-or Van Gogh? And can you spot Hitch-s cameo appearance this time?
Potted Portraits is an enjoyable saunter through a portrait gallery of varied personalities from History; revered or reviled, loved or loathed, each led a remarkable life that continues to be of interest today.
In a series of light verse biographies which delight in testing the limits of tolerance with their rhymes, puns and general linguistic convolutions, discover a few new things about some familiar characters; or reacquaint yourself with some familiar stories in a new way. Included are some perhaps rather less well-known figures, though no less deserving of attention and rewarding to read about.
If you want a little light didacticism, with the reasonable chance
