Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

Unlike some other reproductions of classic texts (1) We have not used OCR(Optical Character Recognition), as this leads to bad quality books with introduced typos. (2) In books where there are images such as portraits, maps, sketches etc We have endeavoured to keep the quality of these images, so they represent accurately the original artefact. Although occasionally there may be certain imperfections with these old texts, we feel they deserve to be made available for future generations to enjoy.

The publications of the Hakluyt Society (founded in 1846) made available edited (and sometimes translated) early accounts of exploration. The first series, which ran from 1847 to 1899, consists of 100 books containing published or previously unpublished works by authors from Christopher Columbus to Sir Francis Drake, and covering voyages to the New World, to China and Japan, to Russia and to Africa and India. This volume contains six narratives by Venetian diplomats of travel to Persia in the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries. Barbaro's account is given in a sixteenth-century translation; the others were made for this edition. These stories of travel, by land and by sea, to distant destinations are full of engaging detail about the customs of the countries visited, and also about the negotiations by which the Venetian Signoria and Uzun Hassan, the ruler of Persia, tried to form an alliance against the Ottoman Turks.

Originally written for private circulation among the Royal Family, this book, written by Lieutenant-General Charles Grey (1804-70), was first published in 1867. It details Prince Albert's life from his birth in 1819 through to his wedding to Queen Victoria and the first year of their married life. The Queen commissioned Grey, who had been secretary to both Albert and herself, as her husband's biographer, and the book was granted a wider publication, so that all who read it would 'tend to a better and higher appreciation of Prince Albert's great character'. Sourced from letters and memoranda, the book traces the development of Albert from an intelligent and gentle boy to the intellectual and moral compass of a nation. It records Albert's first visits to England, the wedding, his love for his adopted country and life in London, and includes details such as an attempted assassination of the Queen.

With Sean Connery returning to the role after sitting out one instalment, James Bond is ready for his latest mission. And what does M want of him this time? To infiltrate a worldwide diamond smuggling operation. The action - which moves between Amsterdam, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and the desert - sees Bond encounter Plenty O'Toole (Lana Wood), steal a moon buggy, get beaten up by a couple of female karate experts known as Bambi and Thumper, before finally bringing him face-to-face with a Howard Hughes-type recluse who is intent on nuclear blackmail and world domination.

A collection of five Hammer horror films from the 1960s. In 'The Nanny' (1965), a nanny (Bette Davis) is hired to look after a ten-year-old who has just returned from a mental institution. The boy's mother has just been poisoned and he believes the nanny is to blame. When his aunt arrives and hears the boy's accusations she sides with the nanny, claiming the boy is making it all up. 'Dracula: Prince of Darkness' (1965) is the sequel to the 1958 film 'Dracula'. Four English tourists are holidaying in the Carpathians when they meet the unconventional Father Sandor (Andrew Keir) at an inn. He warns them to avoid the local castle if they value their lives, but the next day the quartet find themselves stranded in the mountains after their driver abandons them. When a driverless carriage arrives they board it, intending to travel to the nearest village. However, the carriage instead takes them to the very castle which Sandor warned them against, where they are welcomed by Klove (Philip Latham), sinister manservant of Count Dracula (Christopher Lee). 'Quatermass and the Pit' (1967) is the Hammer version of the popular TV series. When prehistoric skulls and the remains of an alien spaceship are discovered in the bowels of London's Underground during an excavation, a weird and powerful force is unleashed, and Professor Quatermass (Keir) is called in to investigate. 'Frankenstein Created Woman' is the sequel to the 1964 film 'Evil of Frankenstein'. The Baron (Peter Cushing) has taken up residence with well-meaning inebriate Doctor Hertz (Thorley Walters). When Hertz successfully revives Frankenstein after freezing his body, the latter deduces that the human spirit does not leave the body after death, and can therefore be transmuted into another form. He gets the chance to prove his theory when his young assistant, Hans, is hanged for a murder he did not commit, and Hans' disfigured lover, Christina, commits suicide in despair. After performing cosmetic surgery on Christina, the two scientists successfully transfer Hans's spirit into her body. However, Hans now sets out to take revenge on those responsible for his death. Finally, in 'The Devil Rides Out' (1967), the Duc de Richleau (Lee) is concerned by the disappearance of his young friend Simon (Patrick Mower) from the social scene. Accompanied by former army colleague Rex (Leon Greene), de Richleau discovers that Simon has joined a group of Devil worshippers, led by the evil Mocata (Charles Gray). Through de Richleau's attempts to wrest Simon from Mocata's influence, Rex becomes romantically involved with Tanith, another member of the cult.

James Bond (Sean Connery) is sent to Japan to keep the peace between the superpowers when a SPECTRE rocket intercepts an American space capsule carrying a nuclear warhead. In between visits to the geisha house and flights in his Little Nellie, 007 manages to track down SPECTRE's secret base and its evil mastermind Blofeld (Donald Pleasence). Will he be able to stop Blofeld's evil plans or is this really the end of Bond and the world as we know it? After this fifth entry in the series, Connery took a break from the title role, only to return in 'Diamonds Are Forever' (1971).

Made-for-TV fantasy horror based on the ghost story by Irish writer Sheridan Le Fanu. Would-be young artist Godfried Schalcken (Jeremy Clyde) is in love with Rose (Cheryl Kennedy), the niece of his benefactor Gerrit Dou (Maurice Denham). However, a mysterious stranger appears and buys Rose's hand in marriage. They get married in a Rotterdam church but when Schalcken later goes to check on Rose's well-being he learns that the couple have not been seen since their wedding day...

A selection of BBC plays and observational pieces written by celebrated playwright Alan Bennett. The collection includes: 'A Visit From Miss Prothero', 'Sunset Across the Bay', 'A Day Out', 'A Woman of No Importance', 'Our Winnie', 'An Englishman Abroad', 'Dinner at Noon', 'The Insurance Man', '102 Boulevard Haussman', 'A Question of Attribution' and 'Portrait Or Bust'.

In 1714 Parliament offer a £20,000 prize for anyone who can provide an accurate means of measuring longitude at sea. John Harrison (Michael Gambon) flies in the face of popular opinion by saying that the stars do not provide the answer, and provides his own solution with the invention of a mechanical clock. However, it takes Harrison forty years to prove his theory, and he is eventually forgotten in the mists of time. Centuries later, Robert Gould (Jeremy Irons) attempts to restore Harrison's reputation by tracking down and repairing the four clocks he originally constructed.