Podcast appearances and mentions of stephanie merritt

Journalist Siân Pattenden & critic Stephanie Merritt join Tom to discuss Self Esteem's third album A Complicated Woman, which features collaborations with Nadine Shah and Moonchild Sanelly. Ahead of the release, Self Esteem AKA Rebecca Lucy Taylor showcased the album by staging a five-night theatrical presentation at London's Duke of York theatre. Tom and guests also talk about the Belgian film Julie Keeps Quiet, where a star player at a top tennis school deals with the aftermath of her coach being suspended. And they review the RSC's Stratford-upon-Avon contemporary production of Much Ado about Nothing which is set in the world of elite football. Plus, presenter Tom Service talks about the line up for the 2025 BBC Proms.Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Claire Bartleet

Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake 425 years ago this month. His crime? Radical thinking which clashed with the ideas of the Roman Catholic church. But his extraordinarily colourful life, ideas and tragic fate continue to resonate in our modern understanding of the universe and the ongoing tension between scientific inquiry and religious authority.Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by best-selling author S.J. Parris - pen-name for journalist Stephanie Merritt - who has written a series of novels with Bruno as the main protagonist. Together they delve into the life of a revolutionary and engaging character who took on the church in the 16th century and paid the ultimate price.Presented by Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. The researcher is Alice Smith, audio editor is Amy Haddow and the producer is Rob Weinberg. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.Theme music from All3Media. Other music courtesy of Epidemic Sounds.Not Just the Tudors is a History Hit podcast.Related episodes:Shardlake and its Creator C.J. Sansom: https://podfollow.com/not-just-the-tudors/episode/9da9830fbb5f8145748d9dbfe2f5baf03637989c/viewElizabeth I's Spymaster Walsingham: https://podfollow.com/not-just-the-tudors/episode/ffbad5666898e744e85314aa57727d74048cc467/viewSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. You can take part in our listener survey here: https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on

Discussing the Woven Charm event on Saturday nightAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Stephanie Merritt of Woven Charm joins the showOur Sponsors:* Check out MyBookie and use my code THEDRIVE for a great deal: www.mybookie.agAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Kara is joined by Stephanie Merritt, founder and CEO of Woven Charm, a nonprofit organization dedicated to thoughtfully supporting NICU families with essential resources, services and community. She shares the inspiration behind starting Woven Charm and we both share stories of when we've taken a leap of faith. Learn more about Woven Charm at wovencharm.org. Like what you heard? Join Kara and Stephanie at the next Spark Retreat Sept. 8 at Glacial Till Vineyard. Whether you come solo or with friends, it's an opportunity to invest in yourself and reconnect with what truly matters. Learn more and register at www.karmicleader.com/spark.

Was SJ Parris's protagonist, Giordano Bruno, really a spy? What was his relationship with top Elizabethan spymaster Francis Walsingham? To buy Alchemy, click here. For more on SJ Parris, the pseudonym of writer and journalist Stephanie Merritt, click here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Paddington director Paul King returns with Wonka starring Timothée Chalamet in the title role. He talks with Samira about exploring the backstory of Willy Wonka and Roald Dahl's surprising vision for fiction's greatest confectioner.Front Row rounds up the best non-fiction books of 2023 with Caroline Sanderson - non-fiction books editor for The Bookseller and chair of judges for the Baillie Gifford Prize in 2022, Stephanie Merritt - critic and novelist, and John Mitchinson - cofounder of Unbound, the independent crowdfunding publisher and co-presenter of literary podcast, Backlisted.The extraordinary work of the artist Pauline Boty (1938 – 1966) is explored by the curator of a new exhibition, Mila Askarova, and the art historian Lynda Nead.Presenter Samira Ahmed Producer: Paula McGrathFront Row non-fiction recommendations for 2023Toy Fights: A Boyhood by Don Patterson published by Faber and Faber Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art, Life and Sudden Death by Laura Cumming published by Chatto & Windus How To Say Babylon: A Jamaican Memoir by Safiya Sinclair published by Fourth Estate Twelve Words for Moss by Elizabeth-Jane Burnett published by Allen Lane The British Year in 72 Seasons by Kiera Chapman, Rowan Jaines, Lulah Ellgender and Rebecca Warren published by Granta Rural: The Lives of the Working Class Countryside by Rebecca Smith published by William Collins High Caucasus: A Mountain Quest in Russia's Haunted Hinterland by Tom Parfitt published by Headline Eve: How The Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution by Cat Bohannon published by Hutchinson Heinemann Shakespeare's Book: The Intertwined Lives Behind the First Folio by Chris Laoutaris published by Williams Collins

SJ PARRIS chats to Paul Burke about ALCHEMY, Giordano Bruno, religion, heresy, politics,  science and alchemy in the sixteenth century world, Hilary Mantel & Sophia 1599. ALCHEMY: Prague, 1588.A COURT IN TURMOILThe Holy Roman Emperor, Rudolf II, wants to expand the boundaries of human knowledge, and his court is a haven for scientists, astrologers and alchemists. His abiding passion is the feverish search for the philosopher's stone and thus immortality. The Catholic Church fears he has pushed too far, into the forbidden realm of heresy – and the greatest powers in Christendom are concerned about the imperial line of succession.A MURDERED ALCHEMISTGiordano Bruno is sent to his court by Sir Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth I's spymaster. His task: to contact the famous English alchemist and mystic John Dee, another of Walsingham's spies. But Bruno's arrival in Prague coincides with the brutal murder of a rival alchemist – and John Dee himself has disappeared.AN UNFORGIVING ENEMYOrdered by the emperor to find the killer, Bruno's investigations bring him face to face with an old enemy from the Inquisition. But could the real danger lie elsewhere? Amidst the jostling factions at court and the religious tensions brewing in the city, Bruno has to track down a murderer as elusive as the elixir of life itself.SJ PARRIS is the pen name of Stephanie Merritt who began reviewing books for national newspapers while she was reading English literature at Queens' College, Cambridge. After graduating, she went on to become Deputy Literary Editor of The Observer in 1999. She continues to work as a feature writer and critic for the Guardian and the Observer and from 2007-2008 she curated and produced the Talks and Debates program on issues in contemporary arts and politics at London's Soho Theatre. She has appeared as a panelist on various Radio Four shows and on BBC2's Newsnight Review, and is a regular chair and presenter at the Hay Festival and the National Theatre. She has been a judge for the Costa Biography Award, the Orange New Writing Award and the Perrier Comedy Award. She lives in the south of England with her son.RecommendationsThe Name of the Rose Umberto EcoHilary Mantel A Perfect Spy John le Carré THE FRAUD ZADIE SMITHPaul Burke writes for Crime Time, Crime Fiction Lover and the European Literature Network. He is also a CWA Historical Dagger Judge 2023.Produced by Junkyard DogMusic courtesy of Southgate and LeighCrime TimeCrime Time FM is the official podcast ofGwyl Crime Cymru Festival 2023CrimeFest 2023&CWA Daggers 2023

Musician Corinne Bailey Rae performs live in the studio and discusses the inspiration for her new album, Black Rainbows. Writer Peter Arnott on his new play about the 2014 Scottish Independence Referendum, Group Portrait In A Summer Landscape, opening at Pitlochry Festival Theatre on Friday. Plus short stories: critics Stephanie Merritt and Suzi Feay on two new collections - by Kate Atkinson and by US 'flash fiction' writer Diane Williams. Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Emma Wallace

Octavia Bright talks to Ann Patchett about her captivating new novel. Tom Lake is the story of a young actor Lara under the spell of a future Hollywood star, but it is also about how she retells that story in later life to her adult daughters, and the power of storytelling itself. Two masters of historical fiction, Laura Shepherd-Robinson and S. J. Parris (aka Stephanie Merritt) discuss the allure of magic and mysticism in their latest books set either side of the Enlightenment. Plus Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah recalls the enchanting tale behind the book he'd never lend. Producer: Ciaran Bermingham

Georgina Godwin meets the author, journalist and critic, also known by her pen name SJ Parris. She's penned a historical thriller series and a memoir about her experience of living with depression, and also writes for ‘The Guardian' and ‘The Observer' newspapers. Her latest novel is ‘Storm', a psychological thriller about a party at a grand French chateau that ends in a murder.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Georgina Godwin meets the author, journalist and critic, also known by her pen name SJ Parris. She's penned a historical thriller series and a memoir about her experience of living with depression, and also writes for ‘The Guardian' and ‘The Observer' newspapers. Her latest novel is ‘Storm', a psychological thriller at a grand French chateau that ends in a murder.

RHLSTP Book Club 16 - Storm - Richard chats with journalist and author Stephanie Merritt about her brilliant, dark thriller Storm, where the inspiration came from, how she managed to do field research during Covid, whether men buy books written by women, how men and women react to a beautiful stranger in their midst and whether privilege means you can get away with anything.Buy the book here https://www.amazon.co.uk/Audible-Storm/dp/B09XWLYDKF/ and also check out her brilliant historical crime novels written under the name SJ ParrisSUPPORT THE SHOW!Watch our TWITCH CHANNELBecome a badger and see extra content at our WEBSITE See details of the RHLSTP TOUR DATES See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Become a member at https://plus.acast.com/s/rhlstp.

Writer and literary critic Stephanie Merritt (The Observer, S.J. Parris historical novels) praises the home-cooked comforts of the travel-and-food shows of TV chefs the Hairy Bikers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, thriller writer Stephanie Merritt discusses her latest novel Storm, and her alter ego S.J. Parris talks us through the life of her historical crime series protagonist Giordano Bruno, philosopher and cosmologist. We also discuss the world's worst teachers.

Writers Okechukwu Nzelu and Stephanie Merritt join Tom Sutcliffe to review Hanya Yanagihara's novel To Paradise, eagerly awaited by fans of her Booker-shortlisted A Little Life. Over three distinct time settings it tells a vast story about the United States, Hawaii, love and responsibility, taking in climate change and pandemics along the way. And we'll be looking ahead to a few of the book titles our critics are looking forward to this year. Tracey MacLeod, one-time restaurant reviewer and critic on Masterchef, joins us to review Boiling Point, the one-take, fast-paced film set in a professional kitchen, starring Stephen Graham Following the attack on the sculpture of Prospero and Ariel outside BBC Broadcasting House, art historian Dr Chris Stephens, Director of the Holburne Museum, gives us an insight into Eric Gill and the problem of bad people making good art. Manjeet Mann joins us to discuss her Costa Children's Award winning novel The Crossing. Written in verse, it tells the story of Natalie and Sammy, two teenagers from opposite worlds, who are both overcoming their own grief.

The designer Henry Holland and writers Stephanie Merritt and Tahmima Anam review House of Gucci, The Every by Dave Eggers and Adele's new album 30. In the run up to the Turner Prize, Front Row is hearing from the artists' collectives nominated for the award. Tonight, we hear from Array, a Belfast based collective who use their art to draw attention to social and political issues in Northern Ireland. Array tell Marie-Louise Muir what the nomination means to them. Sound and music from Array Collective's Turner Prize installation The Druthaib's Ball including 'The Hard Border' Poem by Seamus O' Rourke and music by Cleamairí Feirste, activist storyteller Richard O'Leary and performance of The Mother Within by Dani Larkin. Presenter: Tom Sutcliffe Producer: Laura Northedge

After the stop comes the start. After the dark; the light. This is not a drill.In this special podcast interview accomplished novelist and journalist Stephanie Merritt discusses the eponymous debut album from Afterlight (the artist we once knew as Thea Gilmore, with 19 albums to her name), out on 1st October. Written, produced and performed by Afterlight, the album spans the brutal truth of the opening track – an account of all the damage wrought upon one small life – through the slow, painful realisation that her entire world was built on control and lies, on to the emergence of a woman learning for the first time who she really is, making new connections and, finally, finding her own voice.Afterlight, the album, by Afterlight is available via afterlightsings.com on 1st October.Presented by Stephanie MerrittProduced by Jasper Waller-Bridge for Mighty Village LimitedEdited by Gareth IlesRecorded at Spiritland Studios, LondonSupport the Show.

Kenya and Stephanie Merritt join us with their All-American track children Austyn, Karsen and Keagen and discuss how they got into track, how their children got so good so fast and what the Junior Olympics experience is like. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We're joined by Beastmode Track Club (Houston) coaches Roderick Boyd, Devin Noel and Stephanie Merritt. They tell us about the secrets to their program's success and how they've developed into one of the best track programs in Texas and the country.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this episode, Andrew speaks to English critic, feature writer, and novelist, Stephanie Merritt about what she believes, from freethinking, cultural interchange, cosmopolitanism and unity, to shared values, and the telling of stories.

In the first podcast of edited highlights from this year's Wigtown Book Festival we feature two award winning authors whose very different books look at our interconnected lives. Conservationist and nature writer Dara McAnulty, winner of the Wainwright Prize at the age of just 16, talks to Rachel Plummer about his book Diary of a Young Naturalist. Multi-award winning author Maggie O’Farrell speaks to Stephanie Merritt about her fictional account of Shakespeare's son, the eponymous Hamnet, who died at the age of 11 in 1596.

Mexican documentary Midnight Family follows a family-run private ambulance in Mexico City racing to the scenes of accidents in order to earn a living Masculinities:Liberation Through Photography, is a new exhibition at The Barbican in London, about how masculinity is experienced, perfomed, coded and socially constructed. Actress is the latest novel from Irish author by Anne Enright. A daughter looks back at her sometimes fractious relationship with her famous mother A revival of Caryl Churchill's 2000 play Far Away has just opened at London's Donmar Warehouse Teenage existence is never easy and having superpowers can only make it even more so. I Am Not Okay With This on Netflix is a new series with an adolescent female lead... Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Blake Morrison, Amber Butchart and Stephanie Merritt. The producer is Oliver Jones Podcast Extra recommendations: Stephanie: The Laramie Project Amber: We Will Walk at Turner Contemporary in Margate. And the sauna on Margate Beach Blake: When Time Stopped by Ariana Neumann Tom: Midsommer Main image: Taliban portrait. Kandahar, Afghanistan. 2002 © Collection T.Dworzak/Magnum Photos

Chris Morris's film The Day Shall Come, is a very dark comedy about a genuine FBI operation to deal with potential domestic terrorists in the USA. Man In The White Suit was one of the highly-successful Ealing Comedy films. Released in 1951, it told the story of a man who invents a revolutionary fabric. Now adapted for the stage starring Stephen Mangan in the role originally played by Alec Guinness. Zadie Smith has published a collection of short stories called Grand Union. Hogarth exhibition - Place and Progress. All of the paintings and engravings in Hogarth's series are united for the first time at the Sir John Soanes Museum in London Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Bob and Roberta Smith, Naima Khan and Stephanie Merritt. The producer is Oliver Jones. Podcast Extra recommendations: Bob and Roberta Smith - Kara Walker at Tate Modern Stephanie: Rachel Cusk - Coventry, Zadie Smith - In Defence Of Fiction, Rebecca Solnit - Whose story is this , Sinead Gleeson -Constellation, Emilie Pine - Notes to Self. Also Brooklyn 99 Naima: The Guilty on Netflix Tom: The Politician on Netflix and Jonathan Coe - Sinking Giggling Into The Sea in the LRB Main image: Marchánt Davis, The Day Shall Come Courtesy eOne / IFC Films

As part of our launch night for Dean Burnett’s latest Book, Why Your Parents Are Driving You Up the Wall, we held an in conversation and audience Q an A event with Dean and Stephanie Merritt at the RI in London. This is that conversation and QnA session as Dean and Stephanie delve into the psychology and neuroscience of teenagers and parents of teenagers. Support the podcast at https://patreon.com/bookshambles

Quentin Tarantino's 9th offering to the world (he's said he'll only do 10, then retire from directing) is Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, part fable, part historical love letter to LA in the 60s. It deals with the point when The Manson Family drove a stake through the heart of the 1960s peace and love movement. Actually is a play by Annie Ziegler at London's Trafalgar Studios, dealing with the aftermath of an accusation of rape on a college campus Dora Maurer was born in Hungary in 1936 and has a retrospective exhibition at Tate Modern, looking at more than 70 years of diverse creativity Tea Obreht won a slew of the most prestigious literary prizes for her previous (debut) novel. Her latest, just published, is Inland, a story about pioneers in America and the camel corps Andrew Davies is well known for his highly-acclaimed TV adaptations of classic literary works. He has just made Sanditon for ITV, based on the barely-begun work Jane Austen was writing when she died. He has said that he said all her material in the first half of the first episode, but the series runs to 8 episodes; how Austen-esque can it be? Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Stephanie Merritt, Ryan Gilbey ad Karen Krizanovich. The producer is Oliver Jones Podcast Extra recommendations: Karen: Dearly Departed podcast Ryan: The work of Horace Ove Stephanie: Pericles at London's Globe Theatre Tom: Tom Holland's Dominion and Peter Sedgley's Colour Cycle 3

Josie Rourke returns to the work of Cy Coleman, who wrote the music for City of Angels; with the Broadway classic Sweet Charity. With choreography from the world-renowned Wayne McGregor, Rourke reunites with Anne-Marie Duff as Charity, and Arthur Darvill makes his Donmar debut as Oscar, for her farewell production as Donmar Artistic Director. During Sweet Charity, multiple guest actors will play the role of Daddy Brubeck including Shaq Taylor, Adrian Lester, Le Gateau Chocolat, Beverley Knight and Clive Rowe. Ian McEwan’s subversive and entertaining new novel Machines Like Me poses fundamental questions: what makes us human? Our outward deeds or our inner lives? Could a machine understand the human heart? Machines Like Me occurs in an alternative 1980s London, where Britain has lost the Falklands war, Margaret Thatcher battles Tony Benn for power and Alan Turing achieves a breakthrough in artificial intelligence. The novel's narrator Charlie drifts through life making his money by playing the stock market when he becomes involved in a menage a trois with a difference - one of the three is one of the first synthetic humans. It is not long before this strange love triangle inhabiting an even stranger alternate reality have to confront some profound moral dilemmas. Smoke and Mirrors The Psychology of Magic at the Wellcome Collection in London explores how magicians have achieved astonishing feats of trickery by exploiting the gap between what we think we perceive and what we actually perceive. Recently scientists have begun to appreciate this ability as a powerful tool for the study of human psychology. This research has emerged from an extraordinary history that stretches back to the 19th century, where a fascination with the paranormal coincided with the birth of science as a profession and the flourishing of the entertainment industry. Italian writer/director Paolo Sorrentino’s new film Loro - which means "them" - focuses on the controversial life of the former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi around the time of the “bunga-bunga” parties and the earthquake in L’Aquila. Tom Sutcliffe is joined by Geoffrey Durham, Naima Khan and Stephanie Merritt. The producer is Hilary Dunn. Podcast Extra Selections: Naima recommends Banthology: Stories from Unwanted Nations Geoffrey recommends the Swedish fantasy film Border and movie Leave No Trace Stephanie recommends the following Kate Atkinson 'Jackson Brodie' novels: One Good Turn, Case Histories, Started Early Took My Dog, When Will There Be Good News, Big Sky Tom recommends the Jon Ronson podcast 'The Last Days of August'

In Spring, the third instalment of her seasonal quartet, Ali Smith continues her unique investigation into our country’s past present and future, uniting Katherine Mansfield, Charlie Chaplin, Rilke, Beethoven, Brexit, the present, the past, the north, the south, the east, the west, a man mourning lost times and a woman trapped in modern times by means of an extended riff on Shakespeare’s least read and most troubling play Pericles. The second book in the series Winter was described by Stephanie Merritt as ‘luminously beautiful.’ She read from its sequel, and discussed it with author and critic Erica Wagner. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Mary Poppins returns to the silver screen with Emily Blunt in the title role and Lin-Manuel Miranda as Jack the lamplighter. It's a sequel not a remake with all new songs very much in the style of The Sherman Brothers' originals. Is it unfair to compare it with the much-loved Disney original? or is it impossible not to? The screenwriter of Black Panther, Danai Gurira's play The Convert at London's Young Vic stars Letitia Wright and Paapa Essiedu. Set in late 19th century Africa, a young woman is working for a devout Catholic priest who wants to spiritually mould her. John Lanchester's novel The Wall is about why the young are correct to distrust the old Dead Poets Live is about putting poetry on the stage, drawing together the most exciting performers to bring our greatest poets to new audiences, creating theatre out of poems and poets BBC1 has some BIG Christmas drama offerings. And it includes a 3 part adaptation of Andrea Levy's award-winning novel The Long Song, set in Jamaica during the final years of slavery and the transition to freedom. Tom Sutcliffe is joined by Andrew O'Hagan, Rowan Pelling and Stephanie Merritt. The producer is Oliver Jones. Main image: Emily Blunt as Mary Poppins in Mary Poppins Returns. Credit: Disney Pictures. Podcast Extra Andrew recommends The Life of Saul Bellow, Vol II - Love and Strife, 1965-2005 by Zachary Leader. Rowan recommends Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake. Stephanie recommends The Affair, ITV. Tom recommends James Joyce's Letters to Nora.

CRIME FOR THE MASSES Just what does it take to write a page-turning bestselling crime novel? Dumbarton-born, Aberdeen-raised Stuart MacBride can offer plenty of advice on that front, given his Logan McRae series keeps on hitting the heights of popularity. Fellow writer Stephanie Merritt joins him to delve into The Blood Road, his 11th Logan mystery, out now. It’s time to get on board and see what the fuss is about.

Alex & Laura talk to Stephanie Merritt, the captain of the QUB team on University Challenge, about her experiences on the show. Theme is "The Greatest Television Show On Earth" by Electric Mirrors

The Miseducation of Cameron Post is a new film set in the US in the 90s; Cameron (played by Chloe Grace Moretz) is a teenage lesbian sent to a gay conversion centre but not really motivated to try and change Humans has transferred from an award-winning run on Broadway to The Hampstead Theatre in London. An American family gather together for Thanksgiving supper and all the worries and fears bubble to the surface. But it's not all grim soul-searching Phoebe Waller Bridge is the name behind Killing Eve on BBC3; a new slick female assassin TV series starring Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer as the detective tracking down the killer and the ruthless killer herself respectively Miriam Toews' novel Women Talking is set in a Mennonite settlement in rural Canada where a series of rapes has torn their world apart when it is discovered that the rapists come from within their own community I Object, Ian Hislop's Search for Dissent is at The British Museum, tracing the history of dissent subversion and satire hidden within the Museum's vast collections Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Meg Rosoff, Francis Wheen and Stephanie Merritt. The producer is Oliver Jones.

Just what does it take to write a page-turning bestselling crime novel? Dumbarton-born, Aberdeen-raised Stuart MacBride can offer plenty of advice on that front, given his Logan McRae series keeps on hitting the heights of popularity. Fellow writer Stephanie Merritt joins him in this event recorded live at the 2018 Edinburgh International Book Festival to delve into The Blood Road, his 11th Logan mystery, out now. It’s time to get on board and see what the fuss is about.

Disney Pixar's latest release is their first with an all-Latin cast. Coco explores the Mexican tradition of The Day of The Dead and a young boy's coming to terms with his heritage The new novel from Tim Pears is the second in his proposed trilogy. The Wanderers is the story of two young people in pre-WW1 England and the horses that are part of their lives All's Well That Ends Well has opened at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse at London's Globe Theatre Hauser and Wirth Somerset has opened a new exhibition "The Land We Live In- The Land We Left Behind" that deals with attitudes to the countryside BBC Radio 4 has dramatised Elif Shafak's novel The Bastard of Istanbul as part of the Reading Europe season of programnmes Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Tom Holland, Stephanie Merritt and Kathryn Hughes. The producer is Oliver Jones.

The Valois Tapestries are a series of eight tapestries depicting festivities or 'magnificences' at the Court of France in the second half of the 16th century. The tapestries were worked in the Spanish Netherlands, probably in Brussels or Antwerp, shortly after 1580. Stephanie Merrit @thestephmerritt is an English critic and feature writer who has contributed to various publications including The Times, The Daily Telegraph, the New Statesman, New Humanist and Die Welt. She was Deputy Literary Editor of The Observer from 1998 to 2005 and currently writes for The Observer and The Guardian, in addition to writing novels. View this episode's image here. Subscribe, rate and review on iTunes and follow Janina on Twitter. Follow History... See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Ruth Wilson plays the lead in Ivo van Hove's production of Hedda Gabler at London's National Theatre, Son of Joseph (a French film with religious overtones) takes on the overwhelming might of the latest Star Wars Rogue One. Blockbuster vs indie might not be an equal fight but thank goodness there's something else out this week! How good is it? Nadeem Aslam's latest novel The Golden Harvest is set in modern Pakistan, with the resilience of the human spirit fighting corruption and international interference Roger Hiorns was brought up in Birmingham and his latest exhibition at the city's IKON Gallery looks at his career-long fascinations with human corporeality and its meeting with the mechanical and he proposes a new pathway into how artists can continue to make and behave And we cionsider a couple of the big crime dramas on TV over Christmas - ITV's Maigret (starring Rowan Atkinson) and Agatha Christie's Witness For The Prosecution on the BBC Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Alex Preston, Stephanie Merritt and Jamila Gavin. The producer is Oliver Jones.

In his new film Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Sam Neill stars as a grumpy New Zealand farmer forced to go on the run with a Maori kid who thinks he's a gangster. He discusses the film, his acting mentor James Mason and starring in one of the lowest grossing feature films ever. Frederick Forsyth has announced he's stopping writing, partly because he's now too old to travel to the settings of his thrillers. Sharon Bolton, who researched the Falkland Islands from Britain for her novel Little Black Lies, and Stephanie Merritt, who visited Paris and Prague for her historical fiction thrillers, discuss whether writers must travel to their books' settings to really capture the feel of a place. Nicholas Marston, Professor of Music Theory and Analysis at King's College, Cambridge talks about a recently discovered musical 'doodle' by Beethoven which might tell us more about his most celebrated works, the Emperor Concerto. Writer Michael Bird has written a book called Vincent's Starry Night which sets out to ignite young people's imagination through storytelling. Teacher Caroline Osborne believes a proper understanding of art history is a life skill which is as important as literacy and numeracy. Both join Samira to discuss how best to teach children about the history of art. Presenter: Samira Ahmed Producer: Rachel Simpson.

Emma Watson plays an air stewardess who gets caught up in the Chilean politics of early era Pinochet. The Colony explores a little-known side of the regime Faith Healer is Brian Friel's play about the fallibility of remembering, revived at London's Donmar Warehouse Libyan writer Hisham Matar tells the story of how the disappearance of his father led his own exile from his homeland and political awakening during Ghadafi's dictatorship David Hockney's work created on iPad and a collection of 82 portraits are on show in 2 new exhibitions ITV's Brief Encounters is a drama about the founding of the Ann Summers' retail outlets Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Stephanie Merritt, Dreda Say Mitchell and Pat Kane. The producer is Oliver Jones.

Stephanie Merritt is a graphic designer, former Broista, and a true optimist! We sat down with her to have an in depth discussion on what strategies are useful to maintain such a positive outlook on life. "To look at the sunny side of everything, and make your optimism come true."

Jonathan Franzen's latest novel Purity deals with the intrusiveness of the internet and social media though a mysterious family history and hacking and whistleblowing. People Places and Things at The Dorfman Theatre is Duncan Macmillan's latest play, dealing with addiction, recovery and an individual's identity Me and Earl and The Dying Girl, is a film which sort-of delivers what the title says. It's a teenage cancer weepy, but does it have anything new to say or a new way of saying it? Lady Chatterley returns to the small screen in a new BBC adaptation. Modern sensibilities are less likely to be offended by some aspects than others. Should we let wives and servants watch this version? We visit Dulwich Picture Gallery's permanent collection - the world's first purpose-built public art gallery founded in 1811. Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Meg Rosoff, David Olusoga and Stephanie Merritt. The producer is Oliver Jones.

Kristin Scott Thomas plays the title role in Electra at The Old Vic. It's a millennia old play in a modern translation by Frank McGuinness and directed by Ian Rickson. David Fincher's film version of Gillian Flynn's best seller Gone Girl stars Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike. Howard Jacobson's Booker-nominated novel J imagines a dystopian world where a Holocaust-type event might happen again. Gothic Imagination at The British Library explores 250 years of a public predilection for horror and terror. BBC4's new Australian drama The Code deals with a corrupt government dealing ruthlessly with cyber skulduggery. Tom Sutcliffe's guests are Stephanie Merritt, Dea Birkett and Sarfraz Manzoor. The producer is Oliver Jones.

With John Wilson. Daniel Radcliffe's latest project is playing the young Allen Ginsberg in Kill Your Darlings. Based on a true story, the film follows a 17-year-old Ginsberg as he starts at Columbia University in 1944. A murder draws him together with Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs and leads to the birth of the Beat Generation. Writer and critic Michael Carlson gives his verdict. Writers Alex Clark and Danny Kelly discuss which of this year's best-selling autobiographies have the X-factor, judging the works of Morrissey, Sir Alex Ferguson and Jennifer Saunders by artistic impression, revelations, scores settled and sexual content. Singer John Newman first attracted attention for his vocal on Rudimental's hit single Feel the Love last year. He followed that success this year when both his debut single Love me Again and debut album Tribute topped the UK charts. He reveals where the raw emotion on his album comes from and discusses the challenge of writing a follow-up. This year's National Theatre Christmas show is an adaptation of Erich KÃstner's classic children's novel Emil and the Detectives. Detective novelist and critic Stephanie Merritt was at the first night and gives her response. Producer: Jerome Weatherald.