Does the name Jack Broom indicate the hero of a new children’s book is one of the princes…?

Well, my title is guesswork, of course, but surely Broom is a reference to Plantagenet (a name taken from planta genista, the Latin for the yellow broom flower). The story (the first in a series by author Andrew Beattie) is about the boys in the Tower, but is Jack Broom one of them? Or is he an illegitimate Plantagenet? Richard III’s son, perhaps? Whatever, I have to hope that the book is favourable toward Richard – and as both the author and the publisher are based in Leicester, I sincerely hope so! I certainly wish it every success. You can read more about it here

PS: Coincidentally, I once wrote a novella (a comedy called A Cautionary Tale, under the author name Joanie Swift)  featuring a certain Dickie Broom. It was set in 1950s London and concerned a modern “Bosworth” with a very different outcome. Those of you really “in the know” will identify the various characters, ancient and modern. Judging by the reviews people either loved it or hated it, with nothing much in between!