Steve Kershaw has two personas .... he is Steve the musician and Dr Stephen the classics tutor. He is involved in two new projects. One is a magnificent illustrated childrens encyclopedia of gods, monsters and mortals from ancient Greece. The other is a jazz trio recording. Steve is the Oxfordshire based bass player. The pianist and saxophonist Leo…

Bitter Crop is a superb biography of Billie Holiday who was probably the very best jazz singer there has ever been. The book title is takes from one of Billie's signature songs, 'Strange Fruit'. There have been films and many books about Billie's career but not all of them came close to telling the whole truth of a remarkable life. True there were …

Colin Dexter was a splendid writer. His creation Inspector Morse is superb on the page and just as gripping on television. I used to meet Colin in the pub on Banbury Road in Oxford, The Dew Drop. He was great company and almost completely unaware of his success and star quality. I recorded this conversation in his house after the publication of The…

Historian Simon Sebag Montefiore explains the mythic status of this eighteenth century Russian statesman, and military leader. In this conversation recorded in London in 2000 the historian Simon Sebag Montefiore tells David Freeman about practical politics in 18th century Russia and how Potemkin made his way in society with the help of the love of …

Taylor Swift attracts huge interest in her song lyrics. They are studied as poetry. Rowland Bagnall is a different sort of poet. Near - Life Experience, his new collection is just published When I spoke to him we talked about his poetic motivation and the process of writing these concentrated nuggets of observation. His replies are thoughtful and e…

Tim Coulson talks about his book which tells the amazing story of 13.8 billion years of history from the Big Bang to you! It is a wonderful read - inspiring, gripping and fascinating. And just a thought .... did a deity have a hand in the story? Tim explains his view!By David Freeman

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted on December 10th 1948. We now live in a world where the rights agreed in that document are widely ignored and some politicians openly seek to remove the UK from enforcing them. Plus racial intolerance is on the march . The horrible spectre of antisemitism is looming over the news as is denial of…

This glorious popular science books tells the story of how black holes that were thought to be too ridiculous to exist in 1916 had by 1971 been proved to exist. Einstein thought they were impossible but in 1971 Paul Murdin and Louise Webster discovered the very first black hole, Cygnus X-1 Marcus tells the story of these extraordinary people who di…

Truddi Chase lived with dissociative identity disorder a condition that used to be called multiple personality disorder. On the cover of her book the author was named as 'The Troops' - the name she gave to her 90 plus identities. When I interviewed her she was with her therapist Robert Phillips. The whole story was very difficult to assimilate as y…

It's Bafta time again. The winner of the BAFTA for best actor went to Timothy Spall for his performance in 'The Sixth Commandment'. Timothy played Peter Farquar, a gay Christian teacher who was murdered by a student, Ben Field. The horrific murder actually happened in the normally peaceful village of Maids Moreton in Buckinghamshire. The true story…

This interview is one I remember with huge affection. Mostly I would talk to an author for 20 minutes or so but this conversation is twice that. It was recorded in the spring of 1984 when 'Oranges are Not the Only Fruit' was first published. I was very fortunate because I was one of the very first broadcasters to interview Jeanette. I had been read…

This new book is terrific - its a revelation. Catherine has studied texts written around the same time as the writings we know as the gospels. Some of these ancient documents tell the story of the bible characters we are familiar with in a totally different way. Listen to Catherine talk about her research and you will be surprised ..... probably ve…

Ashley Mullinger is a commercial fisherman. She used to work in an office but found it dull and stressful. She decided to go on a half day fishing trip with a couple of her friends just to make a change. The friends sort of liked it but Ashley REALLY liked it and now does it as a full time job. She is so good at it she was awarded the title of 'Fis…

There is an article in the Culture section of The Sunday Times about father and daughter Michael and Rebecca Frayn. Rebecca is a farmer and environmental activist and writer who lives in the north of Ibiza. Her new novel 'Lost in Ibiza' is coincidentally, about a young environmental activist who travels to Ibiza to meet her biological father for th…

Eric Bibb remembers his introduction into music via his dad Leon and the musical luminaries who visited the family home. Paul Robeson was his Godather, and a very young Bob Dylan gave him some sound advice. Now 72 Eric is still touring, playing, and writing songs. He is one of lifes gentlemen!By David Freeman

This novel is set in the 1960s with a backdrop of The Beatles and other music of the time. It tells the story of Daisy Shoemaker who is 15 in 1964. She was born into a fundamentalist Mormon community on the US - Canada border. In a ceremony called Placement she is given as a teenage wife to a much older man. She finds this intolerable and runs away…

This brand new book examines the astonishing extent of American ownership in UK business. Whether you are interested in 'taking back control' or how much of our day to day financial transactions happen via the US, you will find this fascinating and possibly horrifying.By David Freeman

Sunken Lands is about a journey through flooded kingdoms and lost worlds. Gareth tells of places he has visited to see history and extrapolates forward to imagine the world we are leaving for future generations. There is anger, poetry, myth .... and David Bowie.By David Freeman

In the spring of 2024 clashes driven by different religious beliefs and identities seem frighteningly threatening. Robin Dunbar is Professor of Evolutionary Psychology at the University of Oxford. From his academic standpoint he charts the evolution of religion in all its many guises and forms. Does the professor's analysis explain the enduring but…

Succession is one of the great TV events. Brian Cox, Jeremy Strong. Kieron Culkin and Sarah Snook are rightly lauded for their acting ability but don't forget Harriet Walter who portrays the mother of Shiv, Kendall and Roman, Lady Caroline Collingwood. David Freeman talked to the actress Harriet Walter when her autobiography 'Other People's Shoes' …

The year 2024 is proving as troubled as it's immediate predecessors. Why is this? Is there any cause for optimism? Where do non rational beliefs and convictions fit in the conflicts? This conversation with the activist and thinker Tariq Ali was recorded soon after the outrage of 9/11. There is a plan for the future in what Tariq was saying but I wo…

This conversation was recorded in 2000 when Robin Eggar's biography of Tom Jones was first published. At this time Tom's wife, Linda, was still alive and Tom himself was a mere 60 years old. It emerges from this interview that the man born Thomas Woodward was driven by two passions. What they are is revealed in this Author Archive episode.…

Nina Simone was born on February 21st 1933' There has been news recently of a plan to buy Nina Simone's childhood home in Tryon North Carolina and make it into a museum celebrating the life and work of the girl who was born Eunice Waymon. I interviewed Nina in December 1998 just before her last ever show at the Royal Albert Hall in London. She was …

Once again Meghan and Harry are juggling with their identities. They are clearly wanting to be royal having given up being 'royal'. If you decide to walk away from your royal identity just what are you left with? This book,'Traitor King', tells the story of an inglorious royal. It is a shocking example of what happens when inherited status is rando…

Lisa has written a new memoir 'Better Broken Than New' She has ploughed this furrow before and I interviewed her when 'Memory Maps' was published. Lisa has lived life to the full. She is a very beguiling woman and many men have fallen for her charms and married her. On the day I interviewed her she was in the mood for remembering her life and loves…

Jon Ronson was not so well known when this conversation was recorded in the early 2000s I was very taken with the subject of the book and the way Jon talked about it. Being a Jewish journalist getting involved with people money raising for Hamas seemed improbable. It's true of course, as was Jon's interest in the wilder fancies of David Icke. 'Them…

This conversation was recorded when the very last Maeve Binchy novel was published in paperback. Maeve was always an entertaining interviewee - getting her to talk was never a problem! Unsurprisingly her books continue to sell.By David Freeman

As more Brexit checks and red tape come into action it is illuminating to remember how we get to be in this sorry situation. Many of the leading players are only where they are because they are Brexiteers. Professor Grey has made it a personal mission to chronicle the drama and effects of Brexit. He writes a blog and now the latest edition of his b…

Magnus Magnusson died in 2007. He was 77. I spoke to Magnus when his history of Scotland was first published in 2000. Our conversation covered thoughts on Scottish independence, the film Braveheart, Shakespeare and whatever happened to the Picts. There was so much more to Magnus than being the chair .....I've started so I'll finish ..... of Masterm…

David Sedaris now fills arenas with enthusiastic fans but when David Freeman interviewed him in 2000 he was almost unknown. His book 'Me Talk Pretty One Day ' was just publishedBy davidjohnfreeman

Her sister died of breast cancer and Justine just couldn't accept that her much loved sister had gone. This is conversation about grief and loss but it also about the lengths the bereaved will go to to re establish a link with the departed loved one. Despite being a journalist Justine tried everything and everybody. Mediums, spiritualists and peopl…

By David Freeman

George Alagiah died on July 24 2023 Before George Alagiah was known as a BBC newsreader he was a working TV journalist. In this conversation recorded more than 20 years ago he recounts what Rwanda meant to him. Not a near perfect place to be deported to, but a country that had experienced the most horrendous genocide. He recounts the effect of cons…

Emeritus Professor Sir Barry Cunliffe is an academic archaeologist who writes enthusiastically and engagingly about his passions. In this interview he talks to me about his book which tells the whole of African human history focussing on the Sahara. Sir Barry takes the story of us from our evolution through to the present day. Is he optimistic abou…

Although this account of the life lead by Henry VIII was first published at the turn of the century it is still selling well. Alison Weir thinks the key to understanding the famous Tudor King is to realise that he was never alone. Even a conjugal visit to his wife or a trip to the loo were attended by courtiers. Popular accessible history at it's e…

The King looked uncomfortable riding in a horse drawn coach and reading a speech he clearly didn't agree with. As a man of a certain age he is known for having an anarchic sense of humour which makes him a friend of, among others, Billy Connolly and the late Spike Milligan. In this episode Spike Milligan talks to David Freeman about his life in com…

The Beatles are chart toppers again. In this episode David Freeman talks to Beatles Historian Mark Lewisohn about his mammoth history of the Fab Four. Thomasina Lowe talks about her fathers photographs of the Kennedy presidential years and science writer Marcus Chown talks about his book "What a Wonderful World". that endeavours to explain almost e…

A brand new novel by first time author Clementine Taylor. It is the story of two young women Aisling and Maya and their love. Of course it isn't a simple story. The complications and obstacles are engagingly told. The book is a real page turner. Both women are charismatic characters and as a reader you are supporting both of them ...... so how does…

The Shakespeare First Folio was published 400 years ago. In this interview recorded in 2003 the Shakespeare scholar Sir Stanley Wells talks to David Freeman about Shakespeare the man and Shakespeare the writer. Russian history is all too relevant. Ellen Apsten tells David Freeman about the second novel in her series telling the stories of the power…

Jilly Cooper has every reason to be very jolly. Her football novel is out for Christmas and Disney have made a movie of one of her stories. I met Jilly when her novel Pandora was first published. She was jolly then too!!By David Freeman

This is a brilliant novel set in Leningrad in September 1941. It tells of love in a time of unimaginable hardship. The horrific reality of a siege is being played out again in the Middle East and Russian history is relevant to the war in Ukraine. Helen Dunmore was a major literary talent. Helen died of cancer in 2017.…

'Revenge - God's gift to women!' That's the message printed on the cover of this book. So does the author know what the desire for revenge feels like?By David Freeman

Sarah Waters burst onto the literary scene at the very end of the last century with her novel 'Tipping the Velvet' The story centered on the love between two women in Victorian England. Her next novel Affinity was again set in Victorian times and centres on the spiritualism beliefs of the time. In this interview Sarah talked to me about her novel F…

This novel was nominated for award when it was first published over 20 years ago. It has a message of acceptance and tolerance which, sadly, is still totally relevant. The novel was republished last year.By David Freeman

There is a thought that UK politics is still suffering from 'long Boris'. His attitudes and behaviour still cast a long shadow. How did it all come to pass in the first place? How did Johnson and his coterie ever make it to the top of the pyramid? In this detailed and depressing book FT journalist Simon Kuper traces the idea of Brexit back to toffs…

Once again transport is in the news. Is high speed rail the way forward? Should petrol and diesel cars be removed from sale by 2030? I moved over to an EV 8 years ago and have never been tempted to go back. In my experience the cars keep improving and much more slowly the charging infrastructure is getting marginally better. In Volt Rush Henry Sand…

By davidjohnfreeman

Anita Shreve was a very successful writer mainly focussing on love and romance. She died in 2018 but her books still sell very well. She wrote the stories and lived the life marrying four times. She talked to me about her novel which is about a love that lasted through life even though the couple hadn't spent their lives together. I remember her as…

The UFO and alien question is all over the TV news in the Uk and the US. Again. In this interview on the subject David Freeman, a UFO skeptic, met UFO true believer Timothy Good when his book Unearthly Disclosure was first published. The conversation was friendly but inquisitive! So are UFOs real? Are those little creatures with three fingers that …

It's autumn again which means it's time for the splendid Cheltenham Festival of Literature again. A few years ago as part of the festival I interviewed Sir Rannulph Fiennes on stage at the Everyman Theatre about his family history book 'Mad Dogs and Englishmen'. I remember shaking hands - a non standard formality for him. He told me how he had to a…