Ellen Walker

The Rokeby Venus, by Diego Velázquez, as it appears today in the National Portrait Gallery. Diego Delso/delso.photo (CC-BY-SA).

Deeds Not Words: Slashing the Rokeby Venus

On 10 May 2024 the National Gallery reaches its 200th anniversary. From the suffragettes to Just Stop Oil, the gallery – specifically Diego Velásquez’s Rokeby Venus – has been a magnet for activists. Why?

Jackie Coogan signing a contract with MGM vice president Nicholas Schenck, with his parents looking on, 1925. Evertt Collection Inc/Alamy Stock Photo.

Jackie Coogan and the Fall of Hollywood’s Child Stars

Hollywood adored child stars like Jackie Coogan and Diana Serra Cary, but failed to protect them

Vile Verse and Desperate Doggerel

Was the worst poet in history a hidden visionary?