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Culture / Podcast

Meet the Writers

Want to know more about the authors behind your favourite books? Tune in to discover the methods of – and inspiration behind – some of the world’s most exciting writers. Every Saturday, Georgina Godwin hosts an in-depth discussion with the person behind the prose.

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Gavin Plumley:

The British cultural historian and writer speaks to Georgina Godwin. Gavin’s first book is ‘A Home for All Seasons’, published earlier this year to wide acclaim. Part-memoir, part-history, the book recounts how Gavin and his husband Alastair bought a rural English building after falling in love with it at first sight. Then Gavin began exploring its past.

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35625 Sep 2022
30 min

Gavin Plumley: 

The British cultural historian and writer speaks to Georgina Godwin. Gavin’s first book is ‘A Home for All Seasons’, published earlier this year to wide acclaim. Part-memoir, part-history, the book recounts how Gavin and his husband Alastair bought a rural English building after falling in love with it at first sight. Then Gavin began exploring its past.

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★22 Sep 2022
23 min

Monocle Reads: Why We Play: 

Joanna Fortune is a psychotherapist and a trauma and attachment repair specialist. She speaks to Georgina Godwin about her latest book, ‘Why We Play: How to Find Joy and Meaning in Everyday Life’. It looks at the importance of play in adult life and shares advice on how to stay playful.

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35518 Sep 2022
30 min

Felix Francis: 

Before Felix Francis became a novelist he spent many years as a physics teacher, helping his father, crime writer and jockey Dick Francis, with research in his spare time. After his father’s death, Francis became a full-time author in his own right. His 16th novel is ‘Hands Down’, about a conspiracy in the world of horse racing. Here he speaks to Georgina Godwin about his life and work.

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★15 Sep 2022
22 min

Monocle Reads: ‘All the Knowledge in the World’: 

Georgina Godwin speaks to British journalist and non-fiction author Simon Garfield about his latest book, ‘All the Knowledge in the World’. It looks at the fascinating history of the encyclopaedia and asks what value there is in old knowledge.

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35411 Sep 2022
30 min

Jill Dawson: 

The bestselling author on her extensive writing career and latest novel, ‘The Bewitching’. Based on the 16th-century case of the witches of Warboys, the story follows Alice Samuel who accuses a neighbour of witchcraft and sets in motion a shocking train of events. Dawson has written 11 novels, many of which draw on true historical tales. She is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and has been a Costa judge.

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★8 Sep 2022
25 min

Monocle Reads: ‘Survival of the Richest‘: 

Douglas Rushkoff is an award-winning writer and media theorist who was named as one of the world’s 10 most influential intellectuals by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He speaks to Georgina Godwin about his latest book, ‘Survival of the Richest: Escape Fantasies of the Tech Billionaires’.

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3534 Sep 2022
30 min

Michael Arditti: 

The award-winning English author and literary critic talks to Georgina Godwin about his 30-year career. His latest novel, ‘The Young Pretender’, is about the rise, fall and attempted comeback of long-forgotten child actor William Henry West Betty in Georgian Britain. Arditti often deals with spirituality and sexuality in his work and was described by Philip Pullman as a ‘chronicler of the rewards and pitfalls of present-day faith’.

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★1 Sep 2022
20 min

Monocle Reads: ‘Let’s Talk’: 

Nihal Arthanayake is an award-winning broadcaster and presenter who has won several accolades for his conversational skills, including Interview of the Year at the 2019 BBC Radio and Music Awards. He speaks to Georgina Godwin about his new book ‘Let’s Talk: How to Have Better Conversations’.

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35228 Aug 2022
30 min

Alex Harvey: 

The British author, director and producer tells Georgina Godwin about his latest book, ‘Song Noir: Tom Waits and the Spirit of Los Angeles’, a gritty account of Waits’ formative first decade in LA. Harvey has produced and directed several films, including ‘Enter the Jungle’, a feature documentary on mixed martial arts fighting in Brazil. He formerly worked on Panorama and The Late Show for the BBC and is a contributing writer for the ‘London Review of Books’ and the ‘Los Angeles Review of Books’.

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★25 Aug 2022
20 min

Monocle Reads: 'My Family and Other Enemies': 

Mary Novakovich is an award-winning travel journalist who has written and edited numerous European guidebooks over the past 30 years. She speaks to Georgina Godwin about her latest book, ‘My Family and Other Enemies’, which is part travelogue, part memoir, which dives into the hinterland of Croatia.  


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35121 Aug 2022
30 min

Margie Orford : 

South African writer Margie Orford is an award-winning journalist, film director and author. She is an honorary fellow of St Hugh’s College, Oxford, and the president emerita of Pen South Africa. She talks to Georgina Godwin about her new book, ‘The Eye of the Beholder’, a dramatic story of lies, trust and love.

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★18 Aug 2022
24 min

Monocle Reads: ‘Social Warming’: 

Charles Arthur is a writer, journalist and speaker who has been reporting on science and technology for more than 30 years. He speaks to Georgina Godwin about his latest book ‘Social Warming’. It is an insightful and important exploration of the pervasive effects of social media on politics and society, and a call for us to pay attention to the world’s most compelling addiction.

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35014 Aug 2022
30 min

Shehan Karunatilaka: 

The award-winning Sri Lankan writer talks to Georgina Godwin about his highly anticipated new book, ‘The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida’. Long-listed for the 2022 Booker prize, the satirical novel follows his critically acclaimed debut, ‘Chinaman: The Legend of Pradeep Mathew’, which established Karunatilaka as one of Sri Lanka’s foremost authors.

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★11 Aug 2022
21 min

Monocle Reads: ‘Under the Skin’: 

Georgina Godwin speaks to journalist, educator and author Linda Villarosa. They discuss her latest book ‘Under the Skin’, which gives a detailed account of racialised health disparities in the US, as well as her Lambda Literary award-nominated first novel ‘Passing for Black’.

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3497 Aug 2022
30 min

Louis de Bernières: 

At this year’s World of Words Gstaad Literature Festival, Georgina Godwin speaks to the award-winning British novelist about his circuitous route to becoming a writer and his bestseller ‘Captain Corelli’s Mandolin’.

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