The Queen of Romance

The Florentine Diamond was one of the crown jewels (sorry) of the Habsburgs—a 137-carat diamond that had come from the court of the Duke of Tuscany. But after World War I, when the Austrian Empire collapsed, the royal family fled to Switzerland, taking the diamond with them. From ...  Show more

Antoine Lavoisier was a French chemist, who gave us the name for oxygen and other terminology that we still use today. But he was also a wealthy man who collected taxes and served the Ancien régime, and when the revolution came, the elements were ripe for explosion. Support Noble ...  Show more

With James Naughtie.Donna Tartt discusses her cult debut novel The Secret History, first published in 1992."I suppose at one time in my life I might have had any number of stories, but now there is no other. This is the only story I will ever be able to tell."In a rare visit to t ...  Show more

Margaret Atwood talks to John Wilson about the formative influences and experiences that shaped her writing. One of the world’s bestselling and critically acclaimed authors, Atwood has published over 60 books including novels, short stories, children’s fiction, non-fiction and po ...  Show more

Today’s guest is journalist and author, Wendy Moore. Her new book, No Man’s Land: The Trailblazing Women Who Ran Britain's Most Extraordinary Military Hospital During World War I (Basic Books) explores the WWI British military hospital known as Endell Street. A hospital run by tw ...  Show more

This month World Book Club visits Paris, France to be guests of the iconic bookshop on the Left Bank of the River Seine, Shakespeare & Co. There Harriett Gilbert and a bookshop audience talk to acclaimed French writer Marie Darrieussecq about her extraordinary novel Pig Tales.Pig ...  Show more