Josephine Bonaparte

Matthew Parris invites a fellow Radio 4 presenter into the studio to nominate a Great Life. Dr Sian Williams, who as well as a broadcaster is a counselling psychologist chooses Anna Freud, daughter of Sigmund and considered by many to be the founder of psychoanalytic child psycho ...  Show more

Matthew Paris is joined by the pianist and broadcaster Keelan Carew, who nominates the Great Life of the early 20th century composer Nicolai Medtner.It’s often the case that in a world of strong contenders, there are 'Great Lives' hidden by the scale and success of their contempo ...  Show more

Josephine went from the daughter of a Caribbean plantation owner to the wife of a prominent French aristocrat. After her husband was guillotined during the revolution, she caught the eye of an up and coming soldier named Napoleon. He wrote her romantic letters while conquering mu ...  Show more

Anne-Marie-Louise d’Orleans has been described by historians as having been one of the richest heiresses in history, as an insurgent, as unaccomplished, as an Amazon, as a writer, and as a fool. And she was sort of all of those things. 

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Greg Jenner is joined by historical expert Dr Michell Chresfield and comedian Desiree Burch to travel to 1920s Paris and meet the phenomenal Josephine Baker. Josephine Baker was a renowned performer and entertainer, a civil rights activist and even a spy during the German occupat ...  Show more

Lenormand was a fortune-teller in France in the 19th century. She was hugely influential, because despite her work being illegal, very important and powerful people consulted her for cartomancy readings.

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