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Referenced as 'the history of the church' that Bede wrote, which cast the Angles and Saxons as a holy people modeled on the Israelites. Also mentioned that Alfred translated 'Bede's Latin history into English.'

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Mentioned as 'the Bernard Cornwall novels adapted into TV series' when discussing the recent rediscovery of this period of history and why Athelstan may have become more popular.

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Referenced when explaining why Alfred is better remembered than Athelstan: 'one of the reasons why Alfred is remembered is that this bishop called Asser wrote a life of him.'

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Multiple references to William of Malmesbury's historical writings about Athelstan. Described as 'a great fan of Athelstan, an Anglo-English monk writing at Malmesbury' who recorded stories about Athelstan's childhood and physical description. Also mentioned that William drew on a now-lost 'life of Athelstan.'