On 29 May, Oak Apple Day, it’ll be 396 years from Charles II’s birth in 1630 and 366 since his restoration. To mark the occasion, Historia spoke to Claire Hobson, whose biography marks those 30 turbulent years that formed the future king. Your book, Charles II: From the Cradle to the Crown, looks self-explanatory from […]
Historia interview: Carolyn O’Brien
Carolyn O’Brien’s new novel Rose & Renzo is set in 1930s Manchester and is deeply entwined with the radical politics of the time, the backdrop to a passionate coming-of-age story. Carolyn O’Brien talks to fellow novelist Carolyn Kirby about the inspirations for her book. CK: Rose & Renzo is a wonderful read! Tell us about […]
Historia interview: Ben Kane
As his new book, Napoleon’s Spy, takes Ben Kane into a new era, we talk to him about his latest novel, researching historical fiction, and his next project. Ben also offers some tips for new writers. King, your last book, saw the end of your Richard I Lionheart trilogy. Is it a wrench to leave […]
Historia interviews: 2022 Non-fiction Crown Award winners Clare Mac Cumhaill and Rachael Wiseman
Clare Mac Cumhaill and Rachael Wiseman won the 2022 HWA Non-Fiction Crown Award for Metaphysical Animals, their portrait of the ‘Wartime Quartet’: four women who, as undergraduates at Somerville College, Oxford, bought a new approach to philosophy during the war years and created a way of ethical thinking that remains with us to this day. […]
Historia interviews: Minette Walters
The award-winning, bestselling author Minette Walters speaks to Frances Owen for Historia. I was delighted to talk to Minette Walters by phone recently to discuss her latest novel, The Swift and the Harrier, set in her home county of Dorset during the English Civil Wars of 1642–51, which is out in paperback today. This is a […]
Historia interviews: 2021 Non-fiction Crown Award winner Alan Allport
Alan Allport won the 2021 HWA Non-fiction Crown Award for Britain at Bay, a fresh take on the Second World War which “changed our perspective, not just on Britain in the war but on British national identity and the way that we deploy history more generally,” as Clare Mulley, who chaired the judging panel, commented. […]
Historia interviews: Diane Setterfield
Diane Setterfield’s outstanding novel Once Upon a River won the HWA’s Gold Crown Award for best historical fiction in 2019. Based on and around the River Thames, it is a story rich in folklore, mystery and romance and has deservedly been a Sunday Times bestseller. Three journalism students from Bath Spa University caught up with […]
Unforgettable legacies of the East India Company
Historian William Dalrymple’s profile is high at the moment, with an acclaimed book about the East India Company published recently and an exhibition he curated opening this month. We’re delighted that Vayu Naidu has interviewed him for Historia and writes here about Dalrymple’s wide vision, as shown by his writing and his selection of paintings. […]