Dr. Judy Hill lectured in history at the University of Surrey. She was elected a member  of the Royal Historical Society and wrote many articles for academic historical journals. She lectured in Canada, USA, Sri Lanka and Great Britain and now gives a wide range of talks on the 16^th to 20^th century, from the wives of Henry VIII to Gertrude Jekyll and Edward Lutyens .

At the start of Queen Victoria’s reign, the public had a long habit of self-medicating due to poverty and a lack of public health facilities. Illnesses were managed rather than cured. Laudanum was sometimes used but medicines frequently contained high levels of highly toxic substances which left patients debilitated or addicted. The growth of cities resulted in overcrowding, squalid conditions and epidemics. Pollution and contaminated water were also factors with high levels of soot produced annually. Consumption (TB) and cholera were prevalent.