Gwulo
gwulo.bsky.social
Gwulo
@gwulo.bsky.social
Hong Kong history website
www.gwulo.com
Preview of my talks in Glasgow (1 Nov) and Exeter (8 Nov). Links to details and how to book:

- Glasgow - gwulo.com/node/61694

- Exeter - gwulo.com/node/61695

#gwulo #hongkong #oldhongkongphoto #oldhongkong #hongkonghistory @exeterlibrary.bsky.social
October 26, 2025 at 2:40 PM
If you're in the UK, it'd be great to see you at one of my talks next month. I'll be in Glasgow on 1st November, and in Exeter on the 8th. Details and booking:
- Glasgow 1 Nov - gwulo.com/node/61694
- Exeter 8 Nov - gwulo.com/node/61695
October 20, 2025 at 5:35 PM
If you’ve ever struggled to work out when an old Hong Kong photo was taken, Gwulo’s new map tool can help: www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WZb...

In the video I show the map in action, working out which year an old photo postcard was taken.

#gwulo #hongkonghistory #GIS
October 13, 2025 at 11:08 AM
1930s Hong Kong from the harbour: www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-Ii...

Join me to explore the 1930s seafront, what’s special about that Star Ferry, and what happened in Statue Square in WW2.
#gwulo #hongkonghistory
September 25, 2025 at 1:33 PM
How to convert handwritten / typed / printed pages into text for free with AI: gwulo.com/node/61673

#gwulo #hongkonghistory
September 2, 2025 at 6:01 PM
Three Vintage Photos from 1902 Reveal Hong Kong's Hidden History: www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnXw...

Join me to explore three historical photos of Hong Kong, visiting Central, Wanchai, Tsim Sha Tsui, the bustling harbour, and more!

#gwulo #hongkonghistory
August 19, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Sewers & sanitation, dwellings & disease in 1880s Hong Kong. Plus colourful maps and sketches, and rare views inside Hong Kong’s early tenement housing, all in the latest Gwulo video: youtu.be/vdOGaijApFg

#gwulo #hongkonghistory @nationalarchives.gov.uk.web.brid.gy
July 24, 2025 at 3:20 PM
To celebrate the launch of 老照港古:香江華洋舊事相中尋, you can save 20% and get the new book for just HK$126.40.

The offer is available:

- in person (16-22 July 2025) from publisher 非凡出版 on stand 1D-C02 at the Hong Kong Book Fair, or ...

- online (14-31 July 2025) on the 一本 My Book One website.
July 14, 2025 at 3:09 PM
Gwulo goes NICAM !

The first copies of the Chinese Volume 1 arrived today.

I rushed to see how the photos look. The paper, printing, and binding work really well together, so I’m very happy with how they’ve turned out.

And a bonus: today’s my birthday, so this was the perfect birthday present!
July 7, 2025 at 6:25 PM
First photos of the finished book show how its binding lets it open flat on the table. The double-page photos look great displayed this way.

I’ll have to wait another 1-2 weeks for my copies to arrive here in the UK – can’t wait to see them!
July 4, 2025 at 10:40 AM
Here’s the cover for the Chinese translation of my first book.

I like that publisher 非凡出版 made the cover photo much larger than I did for the English book. This cover is more eye-catching, especially when seen on a small screen.

It will launch at the Hong Kong Book Fair on 16 July.

15 days to go!
July 1, 2025 at 11:36 AM
New @ Gwulo.com :
- 1900s postcards
- Baginton Fields Hostel near Coventry, where many ex-internees from Hong Kong stayed on arriving in the UK in 1945
- East Point industries
- Army school, 1901-4?
- Jimmy's Kitchen pre-WW2
+ lots of old Hong Hong photos.

Full details: gwulo.com/node/61521
New on Gwulo: 2025, week 26 | Gwulo
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 y...
gwulo.com
June 30, 2025 at 10:34 AM
Printing the new book:

老照港古
香江華洋舊事相中尋

The photos were taken yesterday, so we’re on track to launch the Chinese translation of my first book at the Hong Kong Book Fair (16-22 July 2025).

22 days to go!
June 24, 2025 at 2:09 PM
Flogging was the harshest corporal punishment in colonial Hong Kong. Join me to explore letters from Governor Hennessy to London about this, along with details of prison life in 1870s Hong Kong: youtu.be/3fPpZGjhjNg

#gwulo #hongkonghistory #Taikwun @nationalarchives.gov.uk.web.brid.gy
May 19, 2025 at 11:20 AM
Learn to spot the little clues that help pin down a photo’s location, then see how we use them to show a century of changes along Pottinger Street:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=5avz...

#gwulo #hongkong #oldhongkongphoto #oldhongkong #hongkonghistory #Central #PottingerStreet #Taikwun #ThePottinger
April 8, 2025 at 12:56 PM
I’m giving a talk in London on Saturday 5 April, hope to see you there! We’ll explore a selection of my favourite old Hong Kong photos, look at how the Gwulo website came to be, and finish with some of the most touching stories we’ve been involved with. Details & booking: gwulo.com/node/60832
Friends of East Asia talk - April 5th 2025 - Photos of old Hong Kong | Gwulo
The Friends of East Asia are delighted to welcome back David Bellis, B.E.M., of Gwulo, on Saturday 5th April 2025 who will talk to us on more of his fascinating photos of old Hong Kong.  David has rec...
gwulo.com
March 13, 2025 at 11:39 AM
This week's video visits 1960 Hong Kong via twenty colour slides. As always, lots of clues to explore, plus a mystery with the Furama Hotel.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Md1...

#gwulo #hongkong #oldhongkongphoto #oldhongkong #hongkonghistory #Central #Aberdeen #RepulseBay #CausewayBay #ThePeak
February 24, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Thank you to Kate Whitehead for interviewing me about Gwulo and the BEM: hongkonger.world/2025/02/19/f...
Founder of Hong Kong history website honoured | The Hong Konger
History sleuth David Bellis to receive King’s award.
hongkonger.world
February 20, 2025 at 8:35 PM
Something unusual about this rickshaw will help us work out When the photo was taken, and other clues will shed light on the photo’s Who, What, and Where:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=BLMT...

#gwulo #hongkong #oldhongkongphoto #oldhongkong #hongkonghistory #sedanchair #rickshaw #pottingerstreet
February 9, 2025 at 10:12 AM
I bought this photo as a cheap & cheerful view of Hong Kong’s old City Hall, but once it arrived and I could take a closer look it’s the fountain that’s the star of the scene.

Full story at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKmN...

#gwulo #hongkong #oldhongkongphoto #oldhongkong #hongkonghistory
January 26, 2025 at 1:15 PM
UK readers: Gwulo's books are back in stock at Amazon UK, please see amzn.to/4h59wNa

(This is an affiliate link - it doesn't affect the price you pay but Gwulo earns a small commission from Amazon if you buy via this link.)
David Bellis: books, biography, latest update
Follow David Bellis and explore their bibliography from Amazon's David Bellis Author Page.
amzn.to
January 7, 2025 at 6:18 PM
Reposted by Gwulo
David Bellis, a British national who spent over 30 years in Hong Kong and founded Gwulo, has been awarded a British Empire Medal.

In full: https://buff.ly/4fL9mJT
Founder of HK online historical archive Gwulo recognised by UK gov't
David Bellis, a British national who spent over 30 years in Hong Kong and founded Gwulo, has been awarded a British Empire Medal.
buff.ly
January 3, 2025 at 12:15 AM
Revisit Hong Kong harbour in 1970 via this set of colour slides. It’ll be two more years before the first cross-harbour tunnel opens, so we’ll be travelling by sampan and ferry.

youtu.be/uIVVyqSWFiA

#gwulo #hongkong #oldhongkongphoto #oldhongkong #hongkonghistory #elephant
1970 Afloat on Hong Kong harbour
YouTube video by Gwulo
youtu.be
December 20, 2024 at 8:01 PM
83 years ago, Japanese troops were getting ready to attack Hong Kong. Subscribe to follow the battle via daily extracts from diaries written in Hong Kong in December 1941.

Subscribe: gwulo.com/node/60632

Sample: gwulo.com/83-years-ago

Project info: gwulo.com/wartime-diar...

#hongkonghistory
December 6, 2024 at 3:53 PM