Margaret Cavendish: scandalous 17th-century w...

The 18th century was an age of industrialisation, scientific exploration and ‘progress’, but what happened when those rational foundations were shaken? Cultural and art historian Madeleine Pelling – whose latest book is Hoax: Truth and Lies in the Age of Enlightenment – speaks to ...  Show more

The Hotel Lutetia in central Paris lived several lives in the tortured times of the 1930s and 1940s. Before the war, it was the hub of dissenting activity from anti-Nazi German exiles. During the war, it was the HQ for German military intelligence – and after the war, it was a de ...  Show more

Cavendish was a prolific poet, playwright, and natural philosopher. She published multiple works under her own name before that was common for a woman, and she published at least five major works on natural philosophy.

Research:

In preparation for International Women's Day this Wednesday, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb takes a look at a Queen whose reputation has largely been shaped by her husband's midlife crisis. History does not see much further than Katherine of Aragon's so-called failure to provide ...

Margaret Tudor - daughter of King Henry VII, sister to Henry VIII - was married at 13 to James IV of Scotland, learning the skills of statecraft that would enable her to survive his early death and to construct a powerful position in Scotland. 

In this episode o ...

*This episode contains very strong language and adult content*

A semi autobiographical account from a conflicted man? An ode to a wife’s sexual desire? A criminally obscene novel?

Lady Chatterley’s Lover is one of the most famous texts from the past century ...