Archaeology can offer us new discoveries into the Tower of London's medieval past, as well as insights into the lives of the community that lived and worked there. In 2019, and in the summer of 2025, we undertook one of the most important excavations at the Tower for a generation, just outside the Chapel of St Peter Ad Vincula.

Now for the first time ever, we have detailed information about the ordinary people who lived, worshipped, and died at the Tower, but what more can we learn from these excavations? To find out more, we join Alfred Hawkins, Curator of Historic Buildings.

Read about the recent archaeological digs at the Tower of London in our blog posts:

Life, death and worship in the Tower of London, Part I | Historic Royal Palaces

Life, death and worship in the Tower of London, Part II | Historic Royal Palaces

What was on the table for a Tudor Christmas dinner? From the lavish feasts of Henry VIII to the sugar delicacies gifted to Elizabeth I, Christmas at court was a spectacle to behold and to taste! But for ordinary people, the preservation of meats, cheese, fruit and vegetables was essential to even last the winter.

In this episode, Hampton Court Palace's Historic Kitchens Team discuss the culture and festivities of the Christmas period in 16th Century England, and share their experimental approaches to researching Tudor life through food.

Watch the team recreate the traditional Boar's Head as a desert on our YouTube channel!

The lie that started the Stuart Dynasty in England, also shaped the end of the Tudor era. But how can we better understand how this fiction was created, and ultimately who it benefitted?

In this final episode of our Stolen Tudor Crown series with Chef Historian Tracy Borman, we delve into the end of Elizabeth I's reign, and the manuscripts written by William Camden that document it. What is truth and what is fiction, and how would the consequences of it all turn into a bitter civil war within decades?

For a signed copy of Tracy Borman's new book The Stolen Crown, visit our online shop.

Read about the reign of James VI & I.

Watch our YouTube video about the death of Charles I.

Today Arbella Stuart is Elizabeth I's forgotten heir, yet during her lifetime she was raised in the belief that she might one day be Queen.

Her life can be viewed as tragically romantic, but is there much more to her story then that? What agency did Arbella wield, or was she completely controlled by the forces around her?

In this episode, Chief Historian Tracy Borman is joined by historian Sarah Gristwood to explore the forgotten story of Arbella Stuart.

Learn more about the life of Arbella Stuart.

Guy Fawkes, the man behind the iconic rhyme has just failed to light the fuse of the Gunpowder Plot, one of the most notable plots in British history.

In this second episode of our two-part series, Curators Charles Farris, Brett Dolman and Alden Gregory talk through the failure of the plot and what relevance this has to us today. Why do we still celebrate it?

In November 1605, a group of religious radicals attempted to assassinate King James I, the man they deemed responsible for their oppression. Guy Fawkes was meant to light the fuse, bringing the Houses of Parliament down in a catastrophic explosion. He failed.

But what drove him and the other plotters to this drastic action?

In this re-released episode, hear from curators Charles Farris, Alden Gregory, and Brett Dolman, as they discuss the context of religious persecution and political discontent that led to the Gunpowder Plot.

Discover more about Guys Fawkes and the Tower of London.

Who were the many uncrowned heirs to Elizabeth I, and how did their role as unnamed successors shape their lives? In this second episode of the series, we're back with Chief Curator Tracy Borman, as she follows the Tudor family tree back to Henry VII, to unpick the complicated web of successors to Elizabeth I's throne. Find out more about the claimants to the Tudor Crown. Read about the tragic story of Lady Katherine Grey. Learn more about Edward VI's nursery at Hampton Court Palace.

What is the story we think we know about the Elizabethan succession? Was it a smooth transition to the Stuarts, or was it a stolen Tudor crown? In this first episode of our four-part series, Chief Historian Tracy Borman will talk us through why Elizabeth I never named an heir, and what repercussions that had for the end of the Tudor dynasty. Find out more about Elizabeth's brush with death in 1562. Read more about the reign of Elizabeth I. For a signed copy of Tracy Borman's new book The Stolen Crown, visit our online shop.

The story of the end of the Tudor dynasty is well known. With the death of Elizabeth I, the accension of James VI & I saw the Stuarts take the English throne. But the truth behind the succession is much darker than a peacful transition, it's a tale full of treachery and deceit.

In this four-part series, Chief Historian Tracy Borman will explore the Stolen Tudor Crown. Who were the front runners to win the race to the throne after Elizabeth I's death, and ultimately how did James Stuart win?

What might have been different had the Tudor crown gone to another?

Join us next Thursday for the first episode of The Stolen Tudor Crown series.

The Chapel Royal at Hampton Court Palace is a melting pot of architectural styles from across history, reflecting the era-spanning life of the palace itself.

But step away from the grandeur of the Chapel's interior, and this amazing space holds hidden evidence of how the Tudors would have experienced it, and how the palace has been renovated into what we see today.

In this re-released episode from series two of A Space I Love, join Head of Historic Buildings Dan Jackson to take a closer look at a piece of history many of our visitors might never notice.

Have you enjoyed this series of A Space I Love? Which historic places are you longing to be transported to? Let us know by leaving us a comment or review.

Take a virtual tour of the Chapel Royal and other amazing Tudor spaces on Google Arts & Culture.