The Essay Episodes Available now
Ian Kelly on David Garrick—Georgian Portraits
2/5 Actor and writer Ian Kelly explores the life and times of David Garrick.
Claire Tomalin on Dora Jordan—Georgian Portraits
1/5 Claire Tomalin on the life of actress Dora Jordan, lover of the future King William IV.
Patience—The Retreating Roar
4/5 Madeleine Bunting discusses the decline of faith in the UK and with it a loss of patience.
Salvation—The Retreating Roar
3/5 Madeleine Bunting on the decline of Christianity and the loss of the notion of salvation.
Sin—The Retreating Roar
2/5 Journalist Madeleine Bunting discusses the notion of sin.
The Loss of God—The Retreating Roar
1/5 Madeleine Bunting explores the loss of God as a defining feature of Western democracy.
An Intimate History of the Bed—Furniture - A Personal History of Movable Objects
5/5 Novelist Ian Sansom considers the symbolism of beds in literature, art and film.
Old Mother Hubbard and the Cabinet of Curiosity: The Story of Storage—Furniture - A Personal History of Movable Objects
4/5 Novelist Ian Sansom explores what cupboards and cabinets reveal about human nature.
Je suis un table—Furniture - A Personal History of Movable Objects
3/5 Ian Sansom explores the literary, philosophical and cultural history of the table.
Who's Been Sitting in My Chair? Our Shadow Selves—Furniture - A Personal History of Movable Objects
2/5 Ian Sansom examines our complex physical, mental and emotional relationship with the chair
