logo
episode-header-image
Mar 2023
59m 37s

Sarah Bernhardt

Bbc Radio 4
About this episode

Greg Jenner is joined by Prof Sharon Marcus and comedian Isy Suttie to learn about the actor Sarah Bernhardt, a global icon in the 19th and 20th centuries who died a century ago. Bernhardt was one of the most famous people on the planet, coming from humble beginnings as the daughter of a sex worker to dominate theatreland first in France and then across the Atlantic. Sarah’s life was almost as dramatic as her profession, with a love life that included marrying a soldier who may have inspired Dracula to a decades-long relationship with another woman.

Research by Caitlin Rankin-McCabe Written by Emma Nagouse, Emmie Rose Price-Goodfellow and Greg Jenner Produced by Emma Nagouse and Greg Jenner Assistant Producer: Emmie Rose Price-Goodfellow Project Management: Isla Matthews Audio Producer: Steve Hankey

You’re Dead To Me is a production by The Athletic for BBC Radio 4.

Up next
Yesterday
Medieval Irish Folklore (Radio Edit)
In this special live episode, recorded at the 2023 Hay Festival, Greg Jenner is joined by Dr Gillian Kenny and comedian Seán Burke to learn about medieval Irish folklore.Greg and his guests discuss the lore and stories from Gaelic Irish culture. Gaelic culture remained the domina ... Show More
28m 10s
Apr 10
El Cid: the life and legend of a medieval Spanish warrior
Greg Jenner is joined in medieval Spain by historian Professor Nora Berend and comedian Toussaint Douglass to learn about the colourful life and afterlife of the warrior known as El Cid. El Cid – real name Rodrigo Díaz – was a mercenary in eleventh-century Spain who fought for bo ... Show More
58m 16s
Apr 3
Empress Dowager Cixi: from concubine to ruler of China
Greg Jenner is joined in nineteenth-century China by historian Professor Yangwen Zheng and comedian Sophie Duker to learn about the Qing dynasty ruler Empress Dowager Cixi. A contemporary of Queen Victoria, Cixi rose from low-ranked concubine to de facto ruler of China for nearly ... Show More
58m 6s
Recommended Episodes
Oct 2021
Sarah Bernhardt: Queen of stage and screen
Whether photographed in a coffin or depicted on an Art Nouveau poster, the French actor Sarah Bernhardt knew exactly how to get maximum publicity. Although her first outings on the stage were unremarkable, she refined her skills and rose to become the leading actor of her generat ... Show More
39m 40s
Dec 2023
Comediennes: Ethel Hays
Ethel Hays (1892-1989) was one of the most successful women cartoonists of the 1920s. Her cartoons were featured in newspapers across the country, and often featured cosmopolitan, independent flapper women navigating the modern world – with sass. For Further Reading: Hogan’s Alle ... Show More
5m 37s
Dec 2023
Comediennes: Minne Pearl
Sarah Ophelia Colley Cannon (1912-1996) was better known by her alter ego, Minnie Pearl — a radio, television, and stage personality known as the queen of country comedy. She performed for fifty years in her trademark thrift store dresses and straw hat as a member of The Grand Ol ... Show More
6m 55s
Mar 2024
30. Difficult Women
Lucy Worsley and Rosalind Crone are joined by Helen Lewis, author of ‘Difficult Women: A History of Feminism in 11 Fights.’ They discuss what it means to be a difficult woman and why the airbrushing of feminist history can be problematic.Together they discuss four of the most dif ... Show More
28m 41s
May 2024
Workers: Rebecca Lukens
Rebecca Lukens (1794-1854) is known as the first female CEO in the United States. She ran Brandywine Iron Works and Nail Factory, successfully guiding it through a difficult economic recession and a rapidly industrializing workplace. For Further Reading: Rebecca Lukens: A woman o ... Show More
5m 16s
Feb 2024
Gwyneth Paltrow : l’étrange gourou venu de l’Upper East Side
<p>L’épisode que vous vous apprêtez à écouter n’est pas interdit aux moins de 18 ans, et pourtant, on va parler de “bains de vapeur vaginaux” et de “bougie senteur orgasme”. Ce chapitre est donc consacré à Gwyneth Paltrow, l’actrice hollywoodienne aux 45 films, certes, la comédie ... Show More
39m 44s
Dec 2023
Comediennes: Kitty Clive
Kitty Clive (1711-1785) was a well known English actress and singer at the famed Drury Lane Theater in London. Her career spanned many decades and took many forms over the years. She transformed from a dramatic lead to a comedic caricature of herself, evolving to win back public ... Show More
4m 35s
Aug 2023
Anne Boleyn part 1 for Tudor Week!
Who's that girl? It's Anne! Anne Boleyn is one of the most infamous figures in British history. Her short life is often defined by her marriage to King Henry VIII, her role in the English Reformation, and ultimately, her execution. However, in this episode (part of our Tudor Week ... Show More
58m 36s
Feb 2024
Jamie Dornan, actor
Jamie Dornan is an actor who first came to the attention of television audiences in 2013 when he played serial killer Paul Spector in the BBC series the Fall. Two years later he starred alongside Dakota Johnson in the film Fifty Shades of Grey and went on to play the same part in ... Show More
36m 23s
Oct 2023
Being Blonde
What links “the British Marilyn” Diana Dors, the last women to be hanged in Britain Ruth Ellis, the artist Pauline Boty and the soap and film star Barbara Windsor? Professor Lynda Nead is giving a series of lectures this Autumn exploring Blondes, attitudes to desire and technolog ... Show More
44m 46s