PBS
Pbs: Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
Barber turned butcher is the tale of this musical by Stephen Sondheim. Is the character of Sweeny Todd based off a true person? This site from PBS confronts the issues of truth or tale as you explore the culture of 18th century Britian.
British Library
British Library: Discovering Literature: Newspapers, Gossip, and Coffee House Culture
This article explains how the coffee-house came to occupy a central place in 17th and 18th-century English culture and commerce, offering an alternative to rowdy pubs and more formal places of business and politics.