Back to London and the drive this time was uneventful. For this, I am thankful. In London, we ditched the car and opted for an easier, less stressful mode of transportation, the subway.

It took about 45 minutes to get to the National Archives. A 30 minute train ride and then just a short walk to a large modern-looking building that seemed almost out of place.

The National Archives hold some of most important and oldest documents in England's history. It was like the Stratford Record office but much, much larger. We were taken into a very business-like room where boxes of papers had been set out on the table waiting for us. The documents were from Shakespeare's time and were more than 400 years old. It was hard to believe that I was looking at something that old.

I was most impressed by the care and attention that goes into the preservation of these documents. David Thomas, who is an expert in documents from Shakespeare's time period, explained each one and how they are cared for. They are stored in the repository until someone requests to view it.

As Jackie started the interview she had to put on special white gloves to protect the documents. Hands with dirt, oil, lotion, and other substances may ruin the documents or wear down the ink on the paper. I know what you're thinking, and no, Jackie wasn't particularly messy. Everyone has oils on their fingers naturally.

We looked at Guy Fawkes' signed confession of the Gunpowder Plot. This is one of the more famous documents in the collection. While looking at papers that included William Shakespeare's name, including the famous will, I understood why they are so careful with these important documents. So much of England's history is recorded on these fragile pieces of paper.

All the best,

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