Award-winning Scottish author and editor at large at the ‘London Review of Books’, Andrew O’Hagan has spent the past decade working on his state-of-the-nation novel, ‘Caledonian Road’. Employing the traditions of Victorian writing, his research took him to the homes of Russian oligarchs, the Old Bailey and even a ship from Venice to Trieste. Here, O’Hagan ta ... Show More
Nov 2023
A Word in Your Ear – The Half-Blood
Texas-based Bulgarian writer Miroslav Penkov wasn’t sure if anyone would pay attention to his first English-language novel, Stork Mountain. However, when the Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative paired him with The English Patient author Michael Ondaatje, it gave him the boos ... Show More
24m 12s
Nov 2023
A Word in Your Ear – Disquiet
Winner of Pulitzer and Nobel prizes, the late Toni Morrison was one of the all-time great American novelists. For the inaugural Rolex Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative, she was paired with Australian writer Julia Leigh, who was busy writing her second novel, Disquiet. Hear Kerry ... Show More
19m 11s
Sep 2023
Review: ‘The Fraud’, Zadie Smith
In more than two decades since Zadie Smith burst onto the literary scene with her debut novel, ‘White Teeth’, her books, essays and short stories have continued to enjoy commercial and critical success. Her latest novel brings to life the story of the Tichborne case – one of the ... Show More
29m 39s
Sep 2023
Andrew O’Hagan Reads Donald Antrim
<p><span>Andrew O’Hagan joins Deborah Treisman to discuss “An Actor Prepares,” by Donald Antrim, which was published in </span><em>The New Yorker</em><span><span> </span>in 1999. O’Hagan is the author of six novels, including “The Illuminations” and “Mayflies,” which was publishe ... Show More
1h 16m
Feb 2022
380 Ian Fleming | PLUS The Black James Bond
Ian Fleming (1908-1964) always wanted to be a writer. Not an "author," as he put it, and not someone in the "Shakespeare stakes," but someone who wrote for money and pleasure. In developing his enduring character James Bond, he managed to accomplish both. In this episode, Jacke t ... Show More
48m 52s
Oct 2021
Elizabeth Strout with Isy Suttie
<p>The Pulitzer Prize-winning author Elizabeth Strout joins Isy Suttie to discuss the third book in her Lucy Barton series, ‘Oh, William!’.</p><br><p>Using objects like a ring gifted to her by a great aunt and a postcard of the writer F. Scott Fitzgerald as a starting point, Stro ... Show More
38m 10s
Aug 2023
D. J. Taylor, "Orwell: The New Life" (Pegasus Books, 2023)
A fascinating exploration of George Orwell--and his body of work--by an award-winning Orwellian biographer and scholar, presenting the author anew to twenty-first-century readers.
We find ourselves in an era when the moment is ripe for a reevaluation of the life and the works of ... Show More
46m 29s