Courtly love was a game, a game in which figures of the Tudor court would happily indulge in, despite sometimes failing to recognise its pitfalls, one key example being Anne Boleyn herself. But what was courtly love, what were the rituals, where did it all begin as a concept? Well to discuss this very topic, I am honoured to have historian, author and broadcaster Sarah Gristwood onto the podcast for a discussion based on her book, The Tudors in Love!

Kings and Queens are undoubtedly one of the most fundamental aspects of British history. A question we often ponder is who was the best and who was the worst, but what if we approached it differently and asked which monarchs are grossly overrated and which for various reasons are repeatedly underrated? Well to discuss this question precisely, I am thrilled to welcome Dr Tim Hames onto the podcast to discuss his book, Measuring Monarchy, The Most Overrated and Underrated British Kings and Queens. Was King Stephen really all that bad? Why should we not throw so much love Richard I’s way and was Gloriana, Queen Elizabeth I herself, all that she's cracked up to be?

Elizabeth I famously never married or produced children. The subject of her succession was an almost constant conversation and concern for her councillors and courtiers, made more problematic by factionalism, for there were actually a great many people with a strong claim to the throne of England. To discuss these very people, I am pleased to welcome historian and author Beverley Adams onto the podcast. Her upcoming book is The Race for Elizabeth I’s Throne and acts as the basis for our conversation today. Who were the younger grey sisters and why did Elizabeth so clearly dislike them, what of their cousins, the Clifford's, who was the seldom discussed but fabulously named Ferdinando Stanley, one of the few men alive at the time with a strong claim, and why, in the end was James VI of Scotland always going to be the inevitable successor?