Stories from our collections In 'Stories from our collections' Stories from our collectionsThe Mystery of Hawthorn House: persistence pays off when researching using primary sourcesBlack theatre makers working in twentieth-century BritainWhat links Velázquez's 'The Toilet of Venus', Just Stop Oil, women's suffrage and disability?Birmingham's first PrideThe Birmingham Riots of 1791The Mary Ashford Case Back to 'Libraries and opening hours' Our librarians tell local and national stories from gems in our collections, from rare archive books to online databases. The Hawthorn House Mystery: persistence pays off when researching using primary sources Black theatre makers working in twentieth-century Britain What links Velázquez’s ‘The Toilet of Venus’, Just Stop Oil, women’s suffrage and disability? Birmingham's first Pride, 1997: from banning newspapers to thriving festival Birmingham Riots of 1791: anti-revolutionary violence erupts on the city's streets The Mary Ashford case: the local murder trial from 1818 which changed the nation's law