Paul D. Goring

October 18 this year marks the 200th anniversary of a bizarre series of events at Rye Town Hall which led to the birth of true democracy in England. Since the 1720’s, Rye had been a “Rotten Borough”- ruled by a powerful oligarchy led by the Lamb family, of Lamb House, who controlled the town, embezzled its finances, unfairly administered justice, and were the sole voices in choosing Members of Parliament.

Colloidal semiconductor nanocrystals have been hailed as the building blocks of next-generation nanotechnology. These solution-processed nanocrystals exhibit size-tunable optical and electronic properties, making them valuable for applications ranging from high-performance quantum dot displays to advanced biomedical imaging and even in photovoltaics.

The recent court case involving “The White Witch of Rye” evokes memories of earlier trials in Rye’s history, says town crier Paul Goring. There are some graphic stories in his report. In 1561, an elderly lady, known as Mother Margery, who lived in almshouses near the Landgate in Rye, was arrested on suspicion of witchcraft. Various people against whom Margery bore a grudge had fallen ill with a horrific, flesh-eating disease – clearly some form of necrotising fasciitis.