[1] Dido, Queen of Carthage is a short play written by the English playwright Christopher Marlowe, with possible contributions by Thomas Nashe. It was probably written between 1587 and 1593, and was first published in 1594. The story focuses on the classical figure of Dido, the Queen of Carthage.
[2] Battledore and shuttlecock, or jeu de volant, is an early sport related to that of modern badminton.
[3] Life’s Little Ironies is a collection of tales written by Thomas Hardy, originally published in 1894.
[4] Eugène-Auguste Ysaÿe (1858 – 1931) was a Belgian violinist, composer and conductor. He was regarded as “The King of the Violin”, or, as Nathan Milstein put it, the “tsar”.
[5] Dame Clara Ellen Butt, DBE (1872 – 1936) was an English contralto. Her main career was as a recitalist and concert singer. Her voice, both powerful and deep, impressed contemporary composers such as Saint-Saëns and Elgar; the latter composed a song-cycle with her in mind as soloist.
The Diaries of my Great-Great-Aunt Kate 