Question History: What If Everything You've Been Told Is Wrong?
History has a funny habit of becoming comfortable.
Over time, stories become accepted as fact. They get passed down through generations, retold in books, dramatised on television and woven into our culture until nobody stops to ask one simple question...
What if we've got it wrong?
That's exactly why we're so excited to welcome bestselling true crime author Carol Ann Lee to Matinees of Murders & Mysteries this October.
Because Carol doesn't simply tell history. She questions it.
In her latest book, “The Pendle Witches: The Lives, Crimes and Deaths of the Pendle Witches” Carol really examines what was happening at the time and who the women and men who stood trial really were.
Mention the Pendle Witches and most people immediately picture dark magic, curses, broomsticks and one of Britain's most infamous witch trials. It's a story that has inspired novels, documentaries, television dramas and countless ghost stories.
But behind every legend were real people.
People with families.
People living through fear, poverty and suspicion.
People whose lives were changed forever by accusations that would ultimately lead many of them to the gallows.
So how much of the story do we actually know?
And perhaps more importantly...
Who told us that story in the first place?
Every famous historical event has one thing in common.
Someone recorded it.
Someone interpreted it.
Someone decided what future generations would remember.
That doesn't necessarily make it untrue.
But it does make it worth questioning.
For over 400 years, the Pendle Witch Trials have been viewed through official records, folklore and retellings that have grown richer with every generation.
This October, Carol Ann Lee invites us to look again.
Not through the lens of myth.
But through evidence.
Through meticulous research.
Through the lives of the people at the centre of one of Britain's most enduring mysteries.
Question History.
At Matinees of Murders & Mysteries, we're not interested in simply retelling famous stories.
We're interested in asking better questions.
What have we accepted without challenge?
Which voices have been forgotten?
What happens when we revisit history with fresh eyes?
That's what makes afternoons like these so fascinating. You may arrive believing you already know the story...
...and leave with an entirely different perspective.
Join Us
Whether you're fascinated by true crime, social history, folklore or simply enjoy discovering the stories behind the headlines, this promises to be a thought-provoking afternoon with one of Britain's most respected historical and true crime authors.
Because perhaps the most interesting question isn't whether the Pendle Witches existed...
It's whether history has been telling us the whole truth.
A Matinee of Murders & Mysteries presents Carol Ann Lee
📍 Arnold Bonington Theatre, Arnold📅 Sunday 18th October🕑 2.00pm – 4.00pm
Question History.
Isn't it time you knew the truth?
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