What's new and updated on the Gwulo website:

General

• Robin Bottomley-Smith has uploaded copies of the postcards his grandfather sent from Hong Kong to his fiancée back in Yorkshire between 1924 and 1928. There's an example below, then see the full set here.
   

  

  
   

• The 1887 Jurors List was finished in record time and is now online to view. We've started work on typing up the list for 1886, so if you can spare around half an hour, please join in and type up a page.
   
• Memories of “Fred Brown” and Far East Farm in 1970s Stanley.
   
• Readers ask:
  • Which year was this nighttime view of Hong Kong island taken?
     
  • When were palm trees first planted in colonial HK, and where did they come from?
     
  • Has anyone seen any photos of the construction of the Peak Tram?
     
  • Where was Club Germania first located?
     

  • Where is the foundation stone that Prince Philip laid at Queen Elizabeth Hospital?

    

    
     

  • Was this photo of Robin's mother taken on the balcony of Havelock Terrace, with the Whampoa Foundry in the background?

    

     

The Chinese version of Gwulo's book

If you bought a copy of the Chinese translation of my first book, or let a friend know about it, thank you! The publisher's website was showing 'sold out' a few days ago, but is now taking orders again, with 20% off any orders placed in July and delivery expected in mid-August. I'm waiting for their confirmation, but I'm hoping that this means the first print run sold out, and that the book is now being reprinted. 

It's a great start, so thank you all very much for your help.
 

Places

[19 July update: If the 一本 My Book One website shows 'out of stock', another option is to order direct from the publisher's website (it shows the full list price on the first page, but it applies a 20% discount when you checkout).] 

To celebrate the launch of 老照港古:香江華洋舊事相中尋, you can get the new book for just HK$126.40 if you buy in July. That's a saving of 20% off the list price.

Buy in person (16-22 July 2025)

Visit publisher 非凡出版 on stand 1D-C02 at the Hong Kong Book Fair to buy a copy in person.

Buy online (14-31 July 2025)

[If the 一本 My Book One website shows 'out of stock', another option is to order direct from the publisher's website (it shows the full list price on the first page, but it applies a 20% discount when you checkout).] Visit the 一本 My Book One website to buy your copy online. 

Questions & Answers

Q1. Is this a new book, or a compilation of your English books, or ... ?

A1. This is the Chinese translation of my first book, Volume 1 of Old Hong Kong Photos and The Tales They Tell.

Q2. Are Chinese translations of Volumes 2-5 available too?

A2. Not yet, but I hope that if this first book gets a good response, then the later volumes will also be translated.

Q3. Can I order a copy if I live outside Hong Kong?

A3. Yes, both My Book One and the publisher ship orders to countries outside of Hong Kong.

Q4. Can I see a sample?

A4 Yes, please click here to see a PDF with several sample pages from the book. 

Q5. What happens after 31 July?

A5. After 31 July the book's price will be the regular list price of HK$158. The book will still be available to order online at the My Book One website, and it will also be available in Hong Kong bookstores.

Q6. Are the English-language books still available to buy?

A6. Yes, all five English-language books in the original Old Hong Kong Photos and The Tales They Tell series are still available to buy - please click here for details.

What's new and updated on the Gwulo website:

General

• Please can I ask a favour? In the next few days I'll send out a newsletter email with the launch offer for the Chinese translation of my first book. Please could you take a moment to forward that email to a friend who reads Chinese and who you think might enjoy the photos and stories of old Hong Kong? It will be a great help to me.
   

• If you went to Quarry Bay School around 1981, while it was in temporary premises at Victoria Barracks, you might be able to find yourself in this photo. (Click on the 'Zoom' tab to see the photo's full detail.)

  

   

• It looks as though the fabled Japanese sword buried under Hong Kong's Japanese war memorial has finally been unearthed.
   
• Recordings of appx. 200 interviews from the 1960s and 70s are available in the archive of the Time to Remember show by RTHK.
   
• The recent updates I made to the website broke the wartime diary emails for several days. If you ever have trouble viewing a wartime diary email (or you'd like to look up the diary entries for a given date), please use this page: Diary pages from this date
   
• The 1888 Jurors List is now online to view, and we've started work on typing up the list for 1887. This is all done by volunteers, so if you can spare around half an hour, please join in and type up a page.
   
• New memories of the Baginton Fields Hostel, Coventry, UK have been added in the comments to that page.
   
• A report from 1898 on Bicycling on Bowen Road.
   
• Detection of the 1953 New Year's Eve murder at the Peak firing range
   

• David Donaldson has kept these football lineup sheets from when he was serving in the military in Hong Kong with the King's Own Scottish Borderers in 1949-1951 and 1952. He was the goalkeeper.
   

  

  

  

   

• Readers ask:
  • Where was the Murray Army School in the early 1900s?
     
  • Does anyone remember any details about the murder / robbery-gone-wrong that took place in Paradise Gardens in the mid-1970s? 
     
  • Any ideas of the type & origin of the British cannon barrel found buried 3m below Mody Road, Tsim Sha Tsui?
     
  • Trying to contact Carol Jean Sloan.
     
  • His son is looking for any recollections of HK footballer, Yuen Kuen Yick.
     
  • What are good resources about the history of Swire, and what should be included in a video about their history?
     
  • Does this c.1915 photo show a Manila Jockey Club badge?
     

The Chinese version of Gwulo's book

On Monday I received the first samples of the new book. Monday also happened to be my birthday, so it was the perfect birthday present! 

Here is Volume 1 of my books, available in English and Chinese for the first time:

The Chinese book, 老照港古: 香江華洋舊事相中尋, will be launched on Wednesday at the Hong Kong Book Fair (16-22 July 2025). You'll find it on stand 1D-C02, just look for publisher 非凡出版.
 

Places

What's new and updated on the Gwulo website:

General

• Nicholas Kitto has uploaded a collection of postcards his great-grandfather mailed from Hong Kong and Canton in 1908. There's a sample below, and you can see the full collection here.
   

  

   

• The Baginton Fields Hostel on the outskirts of Coventry was the initial home of several Hong Kong internees who were repatriated to the UK in 1945 but didn't have a place to stay. I've added the few mentions we have of the hostel to that page, but if you can add any memories of what it was like, please leave a comment there.
   
• The new land of the East Point reclamation [c.1865- ] was home to several different industries, identified by their large chimney stacks. No traces of those old chimneys remain, as East Point is now part of the busy Causeway Bay shopping and entertainment district.
   

• If you're trying to work out when a photo was taken, it helps to have a collection of landmarks in mind. The extension of St John's Cathedral during 1869-72 is a good example. If we can see the east end of the cathedral, we can check the appearance of the large window to tell if the photo was taken before or after the extension was completed:
   

  

   

• Thank you to everyone who attended the recent talk I gave in Cheltenham. Thanks also to Martin for organising the event, to Alastair for his support, and to Nat at The Chapel for his help on the day. (If you need a venue in Cheltenham, The Chapel is well worth a look.)
   

  

   

  

   

• Readers ask:
  • Can anyone help find a British Army school operating on HK Island, 1901-1904?
     

  • Does anyone have any ideas about these photographs. Uniform, car and location? Not sure if the date might be 1930s?
     

    

    

     

The Chinese version of Gwulo's book

I received this photo earlier in the week, showing that printing is underway. 

The book will be launched at the Hong Kong Book Fair (16-22 July 2025), under the title:

老照港古
香江華洋舊事相中尋
 

Places