What, you may well ask, am I doing running a website in my eighties? First proving age is no barrier to blogging. Secondly, it’s a wonderful way to reflect on six decades of weaving a love of travel, horses and Kent into my work as a journalist, photographer and guidebook writer. The result: essentiallyjohnruler.co.uk, which looks at these seemingly diverse subjects in depth.
Essentially Horses
See how a lucky break led me into riding some 600 horses in 48 countries. Read, too, about rare breeds, carriage driving, working horses and a host of other equestrian topics.
Essentially UK
As a former chief reporter and district editor, expect a local newspaper emphasis on characters, customs, history and gardens with essentially Kent/Greater London. A history of Bromley and eight years as a magazine columnist helped establish me as a specialist writer on the region.
Essentially France
Essentially Northern France: A cross-Channel booze cruise, some 20 years ago, and a growing nosiness for what lay beyond Calais led to my love of Nord-Pas de Calais – and writing the Bradt guide, the first of its kind to a region too often missed by motorists on their mad dash south.
Essentially World War One
In 2014 Bradt’s guide to the World Wars One Battlefields jointly written with fellow travel Emma Thomson became an instant success; published in 2018, a second and larger edition continues to be a big seller. I was also a consultant for the 2018 North American Michelin guide to The Battlefields of the Somme, Amiens, Peronne, Albert.
Commissioned features are welcome either on a specific topic or of a more general nature as are comments, good or bad, photos or personal accounts.
See: Essentially World War One
See: Essentially Travel Articles
