{"id":27941,"date":"2023-05-06T09:00:59","date_gmt":"2023-05-06T09:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/?p=27941"},"modified":"2023-04-27T17:01:46","modified_gmt":"2023-04-27T17:01:46","slug":"corpse-talk-queens-kings-and-other-royal-rotters-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/2023\/05\/06\/corpse-talk-queens-kings-and-other-royal-rotters-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Corpse Talk: Queens & Kings and Other Royal Rotters"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
\nBy Adam & Lisa Murphy<\/strong> (David Fickling Books)
\nISBN: 978-1-78845-032-4 (PB)<\/p>\n

The educational power of comic strips has been long understood and acknowledged: if you can make material memorably enjoyable, there\u2019s nothing that can\u2019t be better taught with pictures. The obverse is also true: comics can make any topic or subject come alive\u2026 or at least – as here – outrageously, informatively undead\u2026<\/p>\n

The fabulously effective conceit of Corpse Talk<\/strong> is that your cartooning host Adam Murphy (ably abetted off-camera by Lisa Murphy) tracks down (digs up?) famous personages from the past: serially exhumed for a chatty, cheeky This Was Your Life<\/strong> talk-show interview. It also often grosses one out, which is no bad thing for either a kids\u2019 comic or learning experience.<\/p>\n

Culled from the annals of The Phoenix<\/strong>, this regally-themed recollection is dedicated to not-so-private audiences with a succession of famous, infamous and utterly unforgettable royal rogues and rapscallions in what would almost certainly not be their own words\u2026<\/p>\n

Catching up in date of demise succession, our fact-loving host begins the candid cartoon conferences by digging the dirt with Ramesses II: Pharaoh of Egypt 1303 BCE – 1213 BCE<\/em>. He preferred to be called \u2018Ramesses the Great\u2019 <\/em>and our intrepid interviewer incisively traces the \u201caccomplishments\u201d and gift for self-promotion of the dusty legend.<\/p>\n

As always, each balmy biography is supplemented by a sidebar feature examining a key aspect of their lives, such as here with \u2018How to Make a Mummy\u2019<\/em>, <\/em>scrupulously and systematically sharing the secrets of interring the definitely departed, after which we refocus on the ancient orient to quiz Qin Shi Huang Di: Chinese Emperor 259 BCE 210 BCE <\/em>on his reign and once more sifting truth from centuries of post-mortem PR briefings.<\/p>\n

Backing up the inquiry \u2018The Emperor\u2019s Tomb\u2019 <\/em>details the layout of the vast City of Death<\/em> Qin was buried in, as well as the Palace of Shadows<\/em>, its terracotta army and the treasures it guarded.<\/p>\n

Cleopatra: Pharaoh of Egypt 69 BCE – 30 BCE <\/em>outlines her incredible life, whilst \u2018Barging In\u2019 <\/em>examines her astounding gold sea-craft – and how it brought her to the attention of back-up lover\/sponsor Mark Anthony<\/em>.<\/p>\n

A thankfully thoroughly sanitised account of the sordid exploits of Nero: Roman Emperor 37-68 <\/em>is supported up by a deconstruction of one of his feasts in \u2018Cafe Nero\u2019<\/em>, after which Justinian II: Byzantine Emperor 669-711 <\/em>personally <\/em>explains how his determination and guile enabled him to rule, lose, recapture and retake control of the mighty Late Roman Empire. The impenetrable defences of 8th<\/sup> century Constantinople are then dissected in \u2018The Walled City\u2019<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

As well as a bit about burned cakes, Alfred the Great: King of Wessex 849-689 <\/em>reveals remarkable military and civilising feats of the learning-obsessed ruler whilst expanding the knowledge base and defining the fractured kingdoms of \u2018The Dark Island\u2019 <\/em>of Britain.<\/p>\n

The Norman conquest is unpicked from the (one-eyed) view of the losing contender in Harold Godwinson: English King 1022-1066. <\/em>The account is <\/em>accompanied by an extended look at the historical source document in \u2018Born on the Bayeaux\u2019 <\/em>before the first English civil war is remembered by formable Angevin matriarch Empress Matilda: English Queen 1102-1167<\/em>. This is followed by a detailed deconstruction of the sturdy castle defensive system in \u2018The Old Bailey\u2019<\/em>.<\/p>\n

The Crusades are represented by rival legends made real. First up is admirable and noble Saladin: Sultan of Egypt and Syria 1137-1193<\/em>, bolstered by a catalogue of Moslem contributions to global civilisation in \u2018Gifts of Genius\u2019<\/em>, after which the unhappy truth about Richard the Lionheart: English King 1157-1199 <\/em>is laid bare. After debunking centuries of self-aggrandising myths, \u2018The Siege of Acre\u2019<\/em> traces one of the crusaders\u2019 few actual heroic exploits\u2026<\/p>\n

Moctezuma II: Aztec Emperor 1456-1520 <\/em>relates how his timidity and sense of self-preservation led to the destruction of his dominions at the hands of conquistadores before \u2018Temple of Doom\u2019 <\/em>takes us into the deepest inner workings of the bloodstained ziggurats dedicated to human sacrifice on an industrial scale\u2026<\/p>\n

The most complex and contentious period in British history is taken apart by those royals at the heart of it all when Henry VIII: English King 1491-1547 <\/em>tries to give us his spin on events leading to the reformation. Following \u2018Full Tilt – a History of Jousting\u2019 <\/em>– come \u2018The Six Wives of Henry VIII\u2019 <\/em>– consecutively Catherine of Aragon (1485-1536)<\/em>, Anne Boleyn (1507-1536)<\/em>, Jane Seymour (1508-1537)<\/em>, Anne of Cleves (1525-1557)<\/em>, Catherine Howard (1523-1542 <\/em>and Catherine Parr (1512-1548)<\/em> – offering their side of the arguments and events.<\/p>\n

Their raucous riotous revelations are augmented by a breakdown of the duties of a Queen\u2019s faithful attendants in \u2018The Waiting Game\u2019<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Charles II: English King 1630-1685 <\/em>relates how he came to power following the Second Civil War, backing up personal reveries with \u2018A Memoir on Monarchy\u2019 <\/em>running down the changing role of rulers, after which we cross the channel to hear how it all went wrong for France\u2019s final female autocrat in Marie Antoinette: French Queen 1755-1793<\/em>. Her fall from grace is abutted by a chilling lesson on guillotine mechanics in \u2018Decapitation Stations\u2019<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Contemporary cousin Catherine the Great: Russian Empress 1729-1796 <\/em>managed to run things largely her own way, but as back-up \u2018Tsars in their Eyes\u2019 <\/em>shows, she was plagued by a constant stream of pretenders, all claiming to be true, proper, better qualified and, yes, male contenders for her throne.<\/p>\n

South African rebel and strategic genius Shaka Zulu: Zulu King 1787-1828<\/em>, recounts how he literally created a mighty nation from nothing whilst \u2018The Battle of Isandlwana\u2019 <\/em>covers how his innovations were used to humiliate the overwhelmingly powerful British Army before the procession of pomp and circumstance closes with Queen Victoria: English Queen 1819-1901<\/em>, accompanied by a phenomenally absorbing family tree, branching out and into every royal bloodline in Europe: a true \u2018Game of Thrones\u2019<\/em>\u2026<\/p>\n

Clever, cheeky, outrageously funny and formidably factual throughout, Corpse Talk<\/strong> unyieldingly tackles history\u2019s more tendentious moments whilst personalising the great, the grim and the good for coming generations.<\/p>\n

It is also a fabulously fun read no parent or kid could possibly resist. Don\u2019t take my word for it though, just ask any reader, royal-watcher or republican in waiting\u2026
\nText and illustrations \u00a9 Adam & Lisa Murphy 2018. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Adam & Lisa Murphy (David Fickling Books) ISBN: 978-1-78845-032-4 (PB) The educational power of comic strips has been long understood and acknowledged: if you can make material memorably enjoyable, there\u2019s nothing that can\u2019t be better taught with pictures. The obverse is also true: comics can make any topic or subject come alive\u2026 or at … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Corpse Talk: Queens & Kings and Other Royal Rotters”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[42,122,125,97],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27941","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-best-of-british","category-historical","category-humour","category-kids-all-ages"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p4AFj-7gF","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27941","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27941"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27941\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27942,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27941\/revisions\/27942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27941"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27941"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.comicsreview.co.uk\/nowreadthis\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27941"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}