Podcast appearances and mentions of lesley pearse

Bestselling writer Lesley Pearse never stopped looking for her son.An agent once told Lesley Pearse to "write what you know", but her own story is more extraordinary than any of her bestselling novels. In this, the second episode of two, Lesley makes a selfless decision on behalf of her baby son Warren, and spends the six decades that follow searching for him. Presenter: Asya Fouks Producer: Laura Thomas & Edgar MaddicottGet in touch: liveslessordinary@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784

Bestselling writer Lesley Pearse's own story is wilder than any romance.An agent once told Lesley Pearse to "write what you know", but her own story is more extraordinary than any of her bestselling novels. In this, the first episode of two, we follow her from playground storyteller to lost teenage girl in 1960s London, to brave single mum determined to go it alone. Presenter: Asya Fouks Producer: Laura Thomas & Edgar MaddicottGet in touch: liveslessordinary@bbc.co.uk or WhatsApp: 0044 330 678 2784

Ten Seconds by Robert Gold  After a tense birthday celebration in Haddley, journalist Ben Harper watches his boss, Madeline, get into the car that has come to collect her. He walks home, never imagining that by the next morning, Madeline will be missing.  To find Madeline, Ben will have to return to the now infamous murder case that made her journalism career over a decade ago. A case which, Ben quickly discovers, was never as simple as it seemed.  But time is of the essence, and soon it's not just Madeline's life on the line . . .    The Long and Winding Road by Lesley Pearse  Lesley Pearse didn't publish her first novel until she was 48. Now she has sold over ten million books around the world and is a constant presence on the bestseller chart. A writer of heart-stopping stories, Lesley's books are filled with heroines struggling to make it in a difficult world. Yet this description could apply to Lesley herself. In this, her first ever autobiography, she tells of growing up in an orphanage after her mother's death, her racy twenties in London during the swinging sixties and working as a bunny girl and dressmaker. Packed full of Lesley's signature warmth, wit and poignancy, this is the story of a woman and a writer fighting against the odds to achieve her dreams.    LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves is today delivering a speech in which she'll promise to ‘reform the Treasury'. If Labour were to win the next General Election, she would be the first female Chancellor the UK has seen. But what would her economic plans mean for women? And how do they compare to the current government's? Economic Adviser Vicky Pryce and Journalist Lucy Fisher join Emma Barnett to discuss. Bestselling novelist Lesley Pearse has written 31 books and sold over 10 million copies worldwide. But she didn't start writing until her mid-30s, and it would be another 13 years before her first novel was published. Now Lesley has written an autobiography of her extraordinary life – from a difficult childhood to making shepherd's pie for David Bowie. She joins Emma to tell her story. Denmark is set to become the latest country to extend military conscription to women. This comes as Russia has warned the war there could spin out of control and expand geographically. What's it like for women living in the Nordic countries, three of whom have now introduced female conscription? Emma speaks to The Guardian's Nordic Correspondent Miranda Bryant and Nora Tangseth from the Organisation of Representatives of the Norwegian Conscripts who is in the Norwegian Army.The new film Silver Haze is based on recollections of real events in actor Vicky Knight's childhood, including when she survived an arson attacked aged just eight. Vicky talks to Emma about blending her real childhood experiences with the narrative of the film, and why she wanted to tell her story. Presenter: Emma Barnett Producer: Lottie Garton

The Hunter by Tana French. Sequel to her earlier book, The Searcher though can easily be read on its own. Cal is a retired Chicago detective who's moved to a small Irish village looking for a quiet life. He befriends Trey, a young girl who's long lost Dad suddenly turns up with a get rich scheme for the locals which he desperately needs them to fall for. He reckons though without his daughter who has ideas of her own and some big motives for revenge which she is meticulously planning. This is a very fine novel from a writer at the top of her game. The Long and Winding Road by Lesley Pearse, She's known for her novels – she's written more than 30 – all of which have strong female lead characters who have challenges to be overcome and she's beloved by millions of readers. This new one though is nonfiction – it's her memoir, and reading it it's very easy to see where she gets both her ideas and her empathy from. She's really lived a life – spent time in an orphanage as a child before going to live with her father and stepmother; scrounged for survival doing a number of dead end jobs; gave up a child at the age of nineteen; was at the heart of the swinging 60's in London and eventually published her first book at the age of 48. Anyone who loves her novels will also love this – it reads just like they do. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Betrayal by Lesley Pearse. She's really good at writing about the lives of women and this is another one about a woman who manages to get herself and her kids away from an abusive husband and starts to rebuild a new life for them all, when tragedy strikes again. Several themes in here to which women in particular will relate.  The Art of Winning by Dan Carter. The publisher says that this is ten timeless truths on leadership, purpose and potential - from the unique culture of the All Blacks, and the mind of a living legend. But it's much more than that - he writes about his vulnerabilities and self doubt and it's a very insightful book into how one can overcome that and strive for greatness.  LISTEN ABOVE  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Deborah Moggach joins Nikki Bedi and Richard Coles. The novelist and screenwriter talks about relationships, why it's never too late to have adventures and the forthcoming play based on her novel These Foolish Things. The first adaptation resulted in The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel film. Listener Nick Bunker was listening to Saturday Live a few weeks ago when the writer Lesley Pearse told us how she'd been reunited with the son she'd given up for adoption. He was moved to write to us – as he was adopted as a baby in 1963. Fast forward 54 years later, he received an email and discovered he had a whole family in Australia where they'd emigrated as Ten Pound Poms! From a working class upbringing in post-war Sheffield to creating some of the most famous songs and bands of all time – The Human League and Heaven 17 – Martyn Ware has been at the forefront of music for decades. Jules Buckley shares his Inheritance Tracks: Sweet Soul Music by Arthur Conley and Music for 18 Musicians by Steve Reich. Samantha Renke is an actress, broadcaster and disability campaigner. She was born with brittle bone condition and uses her own experiences to advise and empower people, to overcome difficulties in their own lives. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel opens at Richmond Theatre on Monday 5th September 2022, and is then touring until Sat 3 June, ending in Festival Theatre, Edinburgh. Electronically Yours: Vol 1 by Martyn Ware is out now. You Are the Best Thing Since Sliced Bread by Samantha Renke is out now. Producer: Claire Bartleet

Actor James Purefoy joins Nikki Bedi and Richard Coles to talk about Fisherman's Friends One and All. From Mark Antony in Rome to The Black Prince in A Knight's Tale, James talks about his long and wide-ranging career. The Singh Twins are visual artists whose colourful and acclaimed work draws on traditional Indian techniques, Western medieval illuminated manuscripts and contemporary Western culture. They talk about their close bond and identifying as 'twindividuals'. Adeline Vining found a vintage Dior dress belonging to her grandmother in a suitcase in the attic. When she posted a TikTok of herself wearing the dress, she went viral. Fashion historians got involved, suggesting the dress was made by Christian Dior himself, and estimating its worth at £35,000. The discovery also helped Adeline uncover the story of her grandmother's life. Lesley Pearse has been a bestselling novelist for many years, and has lived an extraordinary life. After spending time in an orphanage, she found herself working as a bunny girl in Soho in her teens. When she became pregnant she was forced to give her son up for adoption. Years later she has reconnected with her son, and discovered the huge family she never knew she had. Also we have the Inheritance Tracks of producer and DJ Paul Oakenfold, who chooses Elvis Presley's Rubberneckin' and Marvin Gaye's What's Going On. Fisherman's Friends: One and All is in cinemas from 19th August. The Singh Twins' exhibition ‘Slaves of Fashion' is on at FirstSite in Colchester until 11th September. Lesley Pearse's latest novel Deception is available now. Producer: Tim Bano

The Dinosaurs Didn't Read Team are joined by the remarkable Lesley Pearse as part of Libraries Connected Libraries From Home Live tour. Lesley is a British novelist, with global sales of over 10 million copies. David, David and Sarah speak to Lesley about her new book Liar, her love of books, becoming an author, Boob Tubes, Gin and Cork Floors! You don't want to miss this!

Book reviewer Catherine Raynes has been reading Liar by Lesley Pearse and Flash Crash by Liam Vaughan. LISTEN TO AUDIO ABOVE 

Welcome to the Wise Not Withered Podcast, Season 2! Over the next 25 weeks, I will be showcasing each of the characters in the Wise Not Withered project. I decided to do this showcase right now because it has been exactly one year since I sent my first cold emails to recruit writers and illustrators for the project. All twenty-five characters have at least a story draft and/or one or two illustrations done. A handful of the characters have a complete story AND complete set of illustrations, and today’s character is one of them!“Trust and Betrayal” is a story written by Julie from Nigeria. It’s about a retired cyborg engineer named Nero, whose calm evening is interrupted by two droids that urgently need her to travel to the MTA, or Multinational Technology Authority complex, which she herself had designed and built decades prior alongside Master Juan, leader of the droids. Once she returns, she finds Master Juan in critical condition. He warns that her humanoid son Oliver plans to destroy all of humanity, though we later find out who the real antagonist is…In just five pages, Julie created an entire world from scratch, launching readers into the action straight away, including details that brilliantly developed the backstory while also propelling the current story forward. As someone that’s not too familiar with science fiction, I didn’t have that many ideas about the cyborg story at the beginning. I knew that in terms of character, I wanted her to have been a cyborg for most of her life, after a near-fatal accident that happened when she was a teenager. I wanted her to be incredibly smart and resourceful, but also a bit slow-witted; kind and generous, but sometimes too much so!Julie did an amazing job of incorporating all of those traits and writing a character that was intelligent but gullible, strong and authoritative but also soft. Julie created the rest of the characters: Master Juan (leader of the droids), Oliver (Nero’s ambitious humanoid son), Doctor Eddie (the mechanic who had worked on Nero after her accident; some unresolved romantic tension included!), and Majors Xi and Li (high-ranking officials that also work at MTA).When I found Julie on Instagram, I was intrigued by the beautiful imagery and syntax in her poems. I was honestly surprised when she picked the cyborg character as her top choice to write about, since I hadn’t seen anything remotely related to sci-fi on her page. But I trusted, and she delivered! I was absolutely blown away by the descriptions of the MTA complex, and a variety of different technological devices.“Now, to the normal eye, Captain Nero’s bed was simply for rest. This was not the case, however, for just like the rest of MTA, there was more to the bed than meets the eye. Underneath at the right edge was a switch which converted the bed to a gurney table the moment she flicked it. Chromium wound up around Master Juan until it formed a cocoon: secure but not too tight. This chromium served as a body scan and was connected to Nero’s computer which would help her determine the problem spots in her friend’s body before she could push for a cure. Approaching footsteps made her whip her head around.”Make sure to check out Julie’s Instagram page!—The illustrator for Nero is Carolina from Mexico. I also found her on Instagram, and was very interested in her sketchy, somewhat gritty, very detailed illustrations. She did a wonderful job creating the look of Nero, with her gray afro, pink scarf, and robotic body parts. Carolina actually made a few illustrations for the look of her hair. While I preferred the gray afro and ultimately decided to stick with that look for the rest of the illustrations, I really liked these pink cornrows as well!Please check out more of Carolina’s work on her Instagram page!—Julie graciously took some time to introduce herself and tell us a bit about her background and interests. So without further ado, here is Julie!“My name is Julie Onoh from Nigeria. I’m an author and poet. I’m really passionate about the girl child and women’s rights, and this came due to my experience growing up here in my society. Women do face a lot of discrimination; although lucky for me I come from a wonderful family. I have wonderful parents who have never been partial to both sexes; among their children they shared love. There was nothing like, ‘Oh, the boy is more important than the girl’ and all that. I’m so happy to have that kind of background.I’ve always loved books. Sometimes I like to think I was born with an unseen book in my hands. I’ve always been drawn to books, from an early age. I love stories, reading, and then creating something from those thoughts rolling around in my head. I have an overactive imagination, you see.But I want to say I [didn’t take] writing seriously until 2017. I had to do some soul-searching, and then while reading the Bible, there was a scripture spoke to me. God would bless the work of my hands. I had to do an inward search, you know, like what works? What exactly works? And my books were just staring at me. (laughs) This is you, Julie. I have not looked back since then!To be honest, I read a lot of genres. I enjoy reading the books of Jane Austen, Charlotte Bronte, Buchi Emeceta, Maya Angelou, Julie Garwood, Danielle Steel, Chimamanda Adichie, Lesley Pearse, Rupe Kaur, George R.R. Martin, Titilope Sonuga… You know, I could go on and on. So long as the plot is well-written, you’ve got me hooked!Nero!! Okay, as a writer, I send submissions for different competitions that come up. And one of such cases was the Drucker Challenge, where we wrote about the impact of artificial intelligence in our world. And I was really fascinated while doing research on it, and I got to discover the advancements we’ve actually made. I think getting to watch movies like Star Trek, you know, they forge thoughts in my mind. When the Wise Not Withered project came up, I was instantly drawn to the cyborg character. Remember I told you I have an overactive imagination, yeah. (laughs) Nero is the result of what I was researching on the AI essay!Our illustrator is Mexican, so we tried to infuse our roots, you know: the Nigerian and Mexican mix into the story, while being careful not to allow it detract from it. And while creating the story, initially Oliver was supposed to be the villain. But I realized I was feeding into this irrational fear of humanoids that we seem to have, and that made me change the narrative.”I also asked Julie about what kinds of qualities she’d want in a voice actress and also the music for the story.“Oh yeah, I want a voice actress whose voice is bold and assertive. As you can see, Nero is not a simple nilly; it should reflect in her voice too! Music… Definitely not blues. (laughs) I think I see Nero as this loud, fast-tempo music lover. She probably loves hard rock, R&B, Afro beats, that kind of thing… Something with a swing to it!”And finally, I asked Julie about her experience working on the project, and any other parting words she had.“The Wise Not Withered project is a wonderful one, and I’m grateful to God for placing such an idea in Juliana Russell. I mean, who says older women can’t be cool too? So we’re trying to change that narrative where the young ones view the elderly as weak and useless, and I’m hoping we can shift that perspective. Soon, we’ll have more representation of the elderly in media, hopefully. I’m just blessed to be part of this project!It was nice participating in this project. I got to meet lots of people from different areas of the world. I commend the organizer of this project for putting up something this huge, and getting folks all over the world to connect with each other. We got to know each other a bit more, exchange ideas… It has been an eye-opening experience for me, and I wouldn’t trade it for anything else. So, I’m grateful, I learned… IT’s been wonderful! Thank you, Wise Not Withered family! *mwah* (laughs)”—Stay tuned for more showcases of the Wise Not Withered characters, releasing every Sunday until the end of April, 2020!

Inspired by extraordinary true events, this remarkable debut novel reveals the enduring power of love and the strength of the human spirit in one woman's quest to find her son, and a little boy's dream to be found. For listeners of The Letter by Kathryn Hughes, Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate, The Throwaway Children by Diney Costeloe, Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly and Remember Me by Lesley Pearse.

Bestselling author on books, bunnies and Bowie. Plus Grill Graham with Maria

Fine Music Radio — Andrew Marjoribanks, Wordsworth Books, brings you a bagful of the best, while Peter Soal gets your political pulse racing with The Republic of Gupta – a story of State Capture by Pieter-Louis Myburgh, and No longer whispering to power – the story of Thuli Madonsela by Thandeka Gqubule. We chat to million-dollar romantic writer Lesley Pearce about, well, her and her nuanced romantic novel: Dead to Me. Cindy Moritz finds Elizaeth Strout’s Anything is Possible a masterful book by a master chronicler. Philip Todres finds two inspiring reads in Song for Sarah - Lessons From My Mother by Jonathan Jansen with Naomi Jansen, and in Bending the Rules - From de Klerk to Mandela: stories of a pioneering diplomat by Rafique Gangat, both books reflecting on the impact of apartheid and the courage and determination to deal with those harsh realities and still be able to forge ahead. Two of South Africa’s best loved cooks, Ina Paarman and Phillippa Cheifitz come together as Ina discusses Phillippa’s new cookbook Make it Easy. As always, Mike Fitzjames meanly sets your nerves ajangle with three thrilling novels, while Beverley Roos Muller survived recent trains and aeroplanes by packing good old standbys: reliable, absorbing short stories by . W. Somerset Maugham, George Sanders and Roald Dahl. Finally Vanessa Levenstein was moved to tears as she read Raymond Suttner’s Inside Apartheid’s Prison, when she saw that one of Suttner’s letters was addressed to her parents. Do stay with us, we’ve an easy-peasy competition to win one of two R200 Wordsworth Books vouchers or a copy of Lesley Pearse’s Dead to Me. Andrew Marjoribanks, a bundle of good cold-weather reads!

Andrew Marjoribanks, Wordsworth Books, brings you a bagful of the best, while Peter Soal gets your political pulse racing with The Republic of Gupta – a story of State Capture by Pieter-Louis Myburgh, and No longer whispering to power – the story of Thuli Madonsela by Thandeka Gqubule. We chat to million-dollar romantic writer Lesley Pearce about, well, her and her nuanced romantic novel: Dead to Me. Cindy Moritz finds Elizaeth Strout's Anything is Possible a masterful book by a master chronicler. Philip Todres finds two inspiring reads in Song for Sarah - Lessons From My Mother by Jonathan Jansen with Naomi Jansen, and in Bending the Rules - From de Klerk to Mandela: stories of a pioneering diplomat by Rafique Gangat, both books reflecting on the impact of apartheid and the courage and determination to deal with those harsh realities and still be able to forge ahead. Two of South Africa's best loved cooks, Ina Paarman and Phillippa Cheifitz come together as Ina discusses Phillippa's new cookbook Make it Easy. As always, Mike Fitzjames meanly sets your nerves ajangle with three thrilling novels, while Beverley Roos Muller survived recent trains and aeroplanes by packing good old standbys: reliable, absorbing short stories by . W. Somerset Maugham, George Sanders and Roald Dahl. Finally Vanessa Levenstein was moved to tears as she read Raymond Suttner's Inside Apartheid's Prison, when she saw that one of Suttner's letters was addressed to her parents. Do stay with us, we've an easy-peasy competition to win one of two R200 Wordsworth Books vouchers or a copy of Lesley Pearse's Dead to Me. Andrew Marjoribanks, a bundle of good cold-weather reads!

From the author of the No. 1 Kindle bestseller The Letter comes a heartbreaking novel of tragedy, hope and second chances. Readers who treasure the novels of Lesley Pearse and Susan Lewis will adore this author. Mary has been nursing a secret. Forty years ago, she made a choice that would change her world for ever, and alter the path of someone she holds dear. Beth is searching for answers. She has never known the truth about her parentage, but finding out could be the lifeline her sick child so desperately needs. When Beth finds a faded newspaper cutting amongst her mother's things, she realises the key to her son's future lies in her own past. She must go back to where it all began to unlock...The Secret. (P)2016 Headline Digital

Grace Dent tells the story of a clash between a bestselling author and a millionaire hotel developer in the idyllic setting of Babbacombe Bay. Millionaire businessman Peter de Savary has applied to build a car park on the hill overlooking Torquay's picturesque Babbacombe Bay. The car park would service the expansion of the Cary Arms, a luxury hotel on the bay. The car park is opposed by million selling author Lesley Pearse along with a number of other local residents, who mount a vocal campaign against the plan. The decision will be made at an all-important meeting of the council's planning committee. As crucial vote approaches, which side will emerge victorious? Producer: Laurence Grissell.

Laura Lockington interviews authors Lesley Pearse and Susanna Quin. Lesley reads from her best-selling book Forgive Me and Susanna reads from her book The Glass Geisha. Listen to the interview on iTunes, SoundCloud and RSS.You can also find us on Facebook and Twitter.