Thackeray's comic masterpiece, 'Vanity Fair', is a Victorian novel looking back to Regency England as an object both of satire and nostalgia. Thackeray’s disdain for the Regency is present throughout the book, not least in the proliferation of hapless characters called George, yet he also draws heavily on his childhood experiences to unfold a complex story o ... Show More
Jun 25
The Best-Paid Woman in NYC
As J.P. Morgan's personal librarian, entrusted with building his collection, Belle da Costa Greene could ‘spend more money in an afternoon than any other young woman of 26’, as the New York Times put it in 1912. In the latest LRB, Francesca Wade reviews a new biography of Greene ... Show More
40m 2s
Dec 2024
Sex Life & Scandal of Charles Dickens
Like it or not, there's no escaping Charles Dickens at this time of year.
But who was the man behind classics such as A Tale of Two Cities, Oliver Twist and of course, A Christmas Carol?
His life is as rich as many of the characters' stories in one of his books, including a bruta ... Show More
48 m
Jul 2024
893. The Mystery of Lord Lucan (with Alastair Budge)
Talking about the story of Lord Lucan, the British aristocrat who disappeared in 1974 after the murder of his nanny and attempted murder of his wife. Lord Lucan is an infamous name in Britain, and the story of his disappearance is a compelling glimpse into a life of privilege, hi ... Show More
1h 41m
Mar 2025
Douglas Stuart on Shuggie Bain, Storytelling, and the Human Condition (Part Two)
This event is part of Conversations at the Kiln, a new event series at Kiln Theatre programmed by Intelligence Squared. For more events with speakers from the worlds of literature, art, poetry and politics, click here.
Douglas Stuart, Booker Prize-winning author of Shuggie Bain a ... Show More
37m 8s
Aug 2024
Featuring: Betwixt the Sheets Podcast
This taster episode is taken from the Betwixt the Sheets podcast, created by our friends over at History Hit. Betwixt the Sheets looks into the history of sex, scandal and the weirdest, most fascinating areas of society - from the history of cosmetic surgery, to the Profumo Affai ... Show More
55m 10s
Dec 2024
Book Club: "Small Things Like These," by Claire Keegan
Clare Keegan's slim 2021 novella about one Irishman's crisis of conscience during the Christmas season, which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, has also been adapted into a film starring Cillian Murphy. In this week’s episode, MJ Franklin discusses the book with his colleague ... Show More
51m 41s
Dec 2024
Paula Byrne on Thomas Hardy’s Women, Jane Austen’s Humor, and Evelyn Waugh’s Warmth
Donate to Conversations with Tyler Give Crypto Other Ways to Give What can Thomas Hardy’s tortured marriages teach us about love, obsession, and second chances? In this episode, biographer, novelist, and therapist Paula Byrne examines the intimate connections between life and lit ... Show More
54m 42s
Apr 29
The power and the pitfalls of narrative | Matthew Beaumont, Ruth Padel, and Theodore Dalrymple
Lost in storiesIs life a story or a sequence of events?Our narratives enable us to make sense of the complex, often confusing, world that we live in. And yet there is a risk that rather than helping us to truly understand this world, narratives can hide reality from us, providing ... Show More
42m 34s
Nov 2024
Society Girl - the book! ft. Sanam Maher
Announcing: Society Girl -- A Tale of Sex, Lies and Scandal, the new book by Saba Imtiaz & Tooba Masood-Khan (Roli Books, 2024). The book explores the circumstances around the death of the poet and former civil servant Mustafa Zaidi in October 1970, and the ensuing scandal that b ... Show More
1h 1m