A look at inventions and developments during the Tudor and Stuart period, rather than the politics. Famous people abound - Edmund Halley, William Tyndale, Francis Bacon and the like, as well as the usual collection of odd-balls and forgotten heroes that you come to expect from Adam Hart-Davis. An enjoyable and amusing read, and a real eye-opener to the true world of the time. Excellent, even without the television programmes that go with it.