This is Hetty Bower with our new Foreign Secretary, although this was 2013 when Ed Milliband was Labour Leader. When Hetty died her final words were: "Ban the bomb, forever more. " If she was alive today there's no question what she'd tell Ed to do. Read my article on Hetty in East End Review.

Hetty, rise up!

She marched at the first Aldermaston in 1958 and was still going 50 years later, complaining only that the crowd walked too slowly. An extract from Great Women of London on Hetty Bower — born in Hackn...

eastendreview.co.uk

A High Court judge upheld the Palestine Action ban, dismissing the argument that they're no different from the suffragettes. She argued they operated with more "transparency". M'lady should study her history more closely! My latest Substack exposes the truth about the suffragettes:

The suffragette fake news scandal that would make Trump blush

A UK High Court judge recently applauded the suffragettes for their "transparency". The truth is the movement was full of lies and deceit.

estherfreeman.substack.com

No @owenjones.bsky.social let's not "flood" Clacton with door knockers for Count Binface. It's easy to sit and laugh at it all form London, but in Clacton real people are living incredibly tough lives. substack.com/home/post/p-...

No Owen Jones, let's not flood Clacton with canvassers for Count Binface

As yet another Westminster psycho-drama unfolds following the resignation of Nigel Farage, once again its constituents who get forgotten.

substack.com

#OTD in 1907 Frida Kahlo was born. An amazing artist and activist, her important work and legacy threatens to be overshadowed by socks and tea towels. Read the full article on my Substack: estherfreeman.substack.com/p/frida-kahl...

Frida Kahlo is more than a piece of home decor

OTD in 1907 Frida Kahlo was born. Her striking image adorns countless textiles and home furnishings. But this risks erasing her powerful artistic and campaigning legacy

estherfreeman.substack.com

Very much looking forward to speaking at this tomorrow, talking about The Foundling Hospital's wet nurses, amongst other things! Do register if you haven't already done so.

Women's History Network@womenshistnet.bsky.social · 2mo ago

One week to go! Make sure to sign up to our special panel event, 'Women's Reproductive and Maternal Health' happening on Tuesday 23rd June at 10am BST. We'll be hearing about research spanning from the medieval age to the present day. Register on our website: womenshistorynetwork.org/sign-up-to-o...

Join me at the official launch of my new book - Great Women of London @waterstones.bsky.social *in Walthamstow* at 6.30pm on Tuesday 30th June. Contact the store to book you free place >> www.waterstones.com/events/book-...

Try before you buy - read an extract from my new book - Great Women of London - in The Waltham Forest Echo, featuring lesbian suffragette and queer Quaker, Eva Slawson. walthamforestecho.co.uk/2026/06/05/t...

The Waltham Forest rebel who challenged notions of womanhood in Edwardian Britain

Social historian Esther Freeman tells the story of Eva Slawson, one of many female Londoners who rebelled against patriarchy in the early 1900s

walthamforestecho.co.uk

Roman Road in Bow, East London has a rich history. But one fish and chip shop has an unusual past. Discover its links to the suffragettes. This mini walking tour is taken from my new book, Great Women of London. Buy it now at: bit.ly/greatwomenlo... www.youtube.com/watch?v=kT2q...

The hidden history of this fish and chip shop in Bow

YouTube video by Women Activists of East London

youtube.com

Ethel Froud was one of the most important teachers of the 20th century - yet nobody seems to have heard about her. estherfreeman.substack.com/p/the-femini...

The feminist teacher who tore up the rule book

#OTD Ethel Froud died, and we lost one of the most brilliant and radical teachers this country has known

estherfreeman.substack.com

I've started a new series of mini walking tours over on our You Tube channel. Visit and learn about some local history without needing to leave your house (I've suffered the wind and pollen so you don't have to!). Follow the link to WATCH and SUBSCRIBE youtu.be/MXny6qLj4mU

Happy 150th birthday to the telephone, which in its early days caused a moral panic about women talking to men in their pyjamas! estherfreeman.substack.com/p/how-the-te...

How the telephone corrupted women

It's 150 years since the invention of the telephone. While today our moral panic focuses on the ways phones might be harming young people, back then the hysteria was about women.

estherfreeman.substack.com

Discover the story behind my new book - Great Women of London. Out now! www.transformreads.com/the-story-be...

Delighted to become a member of The Historical Writers Association who produce @historia-hwa.bsky.social You can see my profile here>> historicalwriters.org/writer/esthe...

Great talk. Thanks so much!

Dr Romany Reagan@msromany.bsky.social · 3mo ago

Two streets in Hackney are named after women almost no one has heard of. Come hear these & many more hidden histories at my talk this Sunday! ‘A Quiet Roar’ @hackney-hist-fest.bsky.social 🎟 Only £3 www.tickettailor.com/events/hackn... #hiddenhistory #hackneyhistory #womenshistory #londonhistory

It's 100 years since the General Strike. As usual, the stories of women have been excluded from this landmark moment in history. Yet they were there and their role was important. Disocver more on my Substack. estherfreeman.substack.com/p/the-women-...

The women of the 1926 General Strike

In May 1926, Britain's first and only General Strike began. Although often told through the eyes of men, women were there too, and their role was significant.

estherfreeman.substack.com

My new book - Great Women of London - is out now. Expect stories of lesbian suffragettes, a 103 year old Iraq war protestors and the women who brought down the BNP. Buy your copy here: share-uk-109210.square.site

It's time for a Bechdel Test for Jews. I can not watch another Holocaust movie where they are simply voiceless victims! It's insulting, and historically inaccurate, as the badass Jewesses in my latest Substack prove. estherfreeman.substack.com/p/why-we-nee...

Why we need a Bechdel Test for movies about the Holocaust

How we need to fix the representation of Jews in historical dramas.

estherfreeman.substack.com

@gregjenner.bsky.social I'm currently writing about Amy Ashwood Garvey. Have you ever thought about doing an episode on her? Thought it would be a good one for @athenakugblenu.bsky.social as Amy was friends with Madam C J Walker (and also Ida B wells). Far less well known than them though, I think.

#OTD in 1860, Emily Hobhouse was born in St. Ives in Cornwall. From this sleepy costal town, she went on to became one of the biggest thorns in Lord Kitchener’s side, earning her the title of, “that bloody woman!” Find out why in my latest Substack. estherfreeman.substack.com/p/the-woman-...

The woman who exposed the British concentration camps

Lord Kitchener was considered a war hero, but a vicar's daughter took him on, exposing his role in one of Britain's most shameful moments in history.

estherfreeman.substack.com

Discover the real meaning of International Women's Day on my latest Substack. It has nothing to do with wellness workshops, craft markets or even celebrating women. estherfreeman.substack.com/p/this-is-th...

This is the TRUE meaning of International Women's Day

International Women's Day has been taken over by the capitalists, making it more like Mother's Day than its original concept.

estherfreeman.substack.com

Decades before the Women's Liberation Movement began their fight for reproductive justice, a poor Jewish woman in London's East End was advocating for women's right to bodily autonomy. Yet virtually nobody has ever heard of this trailblazer.

Milly Witkop: forgotten hero of women's reproductive justice

#OTD in 1877 Milly Witkop was born. Trade unionist, anarchist and feminist trailblazer, she was advocating for reproductive justice decades before Gloria Steinham put on a pair of aviator glasses

estherfreeman.substack.com

A recent trip to 1066 country left me thinking a lot about how we teach history in schools, and how the stories of ordinary people are often so much more relatable than Kings & Queens. My thoughts on my latest Substack.

To excite young people about history we need less kings and queens and more everyday people

As the numbers taking History GCSE continues to decline, it's time to rethink how we can make history feel relevant and interesting to young people again.

estherfreeman.substack.com

#otd in 1943, Sophie Scholl from the White Rose movement was executed for spreading anti-Nazi propaganda. Before her death she said: "Such a fine, sunny day, and I have to go, but what does my death matter, if through us, thousands of people are awakened and stirred to action?"

Our WW2 narratives have silenced all stories of German resistance, except one.

On this day in 1943, Sophie Scholl of the White Rose movement was executed for spreading anti-Nazi propaganda. But she wasn't the only German who resisted.

estherfreeman.substack.com

We're delighted to be working with The London Archives to run one of our women's writing circles for Women's History Month. Join us to explore stories from the archives related to fabulous London women, then free write, journal or use creative writing techniques to go deeper with the history.

Women’s Writing Circle with Share UK

Join us for a writing workshop during Women's History Month,

eventbrite.co.uk

I didn't mean for this week's Substack post to come out quite so gloomy. But with the release of the Epstein files - during Sexual Violence Awareness Week no less - that has been the overwhelming mood. estherfreeman.substack.com/p/from-17th-...

From 17th century rape victims to the Epstein files - when will men start believing women?

The release of the Epstein files shows we've made little progress in believing female sexual abuse victims since Artemisia Gentileschi's rape trial in the 17th century.

estherfreeman.substack.com

I heard the story of Funmilayo Ransome Kuti over Christmas and fell in love. She forced British colonial rulers to back down with the power of the sisterhood. If you thought Riot Women was a powerful representation of older women, wait til you hear this. estherfreeman.substack.com/p/vengeance-...

Vengeance of the Vagina Head

In the late 1940s, women in Nigeria gathered to resist an unfair tax, where they took the idea of the protest song to a whole new level

estherfreeman.substack.com

To celebrate International Day of Education, I'm sharing an abridged extract from my forthcoming book, Kitchen Resistance, about the free school meals pioneer, Margaret McMillan. #internationaldayofeducation estherfreeman.substack.com/p/kitchen-re...

Kitchen Resistance extract: Free school meals pioneer

To celebrate International Day of Education, I'm sharing an abridged extract from my forthcoming book, Kitchen Resistance, about the free school meals pioneer, Margaret McMillan.

estherfreeman.substack.com

There are so many anniversaries this year, some of them really important. Check out my latest Substack post for a round up, including events taking place to mark them. open.substack.com/pub/estherfr...

The year of the anniversary

There are a number of big anniversaries this year, with commemorative events across the country.

open.substack.com

Wet nurses at the Foundling Hospital were known for their compassion, upholding the highest levels of child welfare. So why does the boy on the right look like he's about to cry? Find out the story behind the photo with my talk @voicesofmotherhood.bsky.social on 5th Feb. bit.ly/voicesofmoth...

Excited to launch our new pilot project - The Writers Corner - a peer support community for under-represented writers. Join us if you want more time and space to write, get feedback on your work or to develop your craft. Book here: shareuk.eventbrite.com