Suzannah Lipscomb

Shining a Light on Darkness

February 22, 2018March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

Sexual exploitation by powerful men has a long history. Will it ever end? Suzannah's bimonthly 'Making History' column for History Today: The revelations about Harvey Weinstein and those of other men who used their privilege for the sexual exploitation of women – and men – with less power than themselves, feels…

A Rich Harvest of Formats

December 22, 2017March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

In a diverse field, expertise should remain at the heart of history on television. [caption id="attachment_4370" align="aligncenter" width="620"] ENGLAND - JUNE 14: A photograph titled 'Machine Reaping in Sussex', taken by Colonel Joseph Gale (c 1835-1906) in 1887. A farm worker ties bundles of wheat newly reaped by his colleague…

A Kinder, Gentler History

December 22, 2017March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

The past can seem like a timeline of horrors. But might it also remind us of our own failings – and help to put them right? Suzannah's bimonthly 'Making History' column for History Today: [caption id="attachment_4367" align="aligncenter" width="450"] PFA166246 The Lovers' Tiff, 1872 (oil on panel) by Mei, Paolo (19th century); 34.5x26…

Playing with Fire

December 14, 2017March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

A review of Anders Lustgarten's 'The Secret Theatre' in The Times Literary Supplement: At 40 by 55 feet, the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse is just a little smaller than the hall playhouse established by James Burbage at the Blackfriars in the 1590s. Otherwise, this vertiginous, intimate, almost claustrophobic little theatre, playing…

Silenced Voices

December 5, 2017March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

An article for The Times Literary Supplement. Most of the women who have ever lived left no trace of their existence on the record of history. In sixteenth-century Europe, it is likely that no more than 5 per cent of women – at most – were literate; ordinary women left no…

Clime, complexion and degree

November 1, 2017March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

A review of Miranda Kaufmann's Black Tudors: The untold story for The Times Literary Supplement. In August 1600, Abd-al-Wahid bin Masoud bin Muhammad al-Annuri arrived in England as an ambassador from Morocco and stayed in the Strand in London for six months, having his portrait painted as he waited to meet Queen…

Something More Than An Art

October 22, 2017March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

Both history and historical fiction depend on a combination of imagination and rigorous research. The difference is found in the balance of these ingredients. Suzannah's bimonthly 'Making History' column for History Today: Hilary Mantel, in her formidably brilliant Reith Lectures, has set out to remind us of the unknowability of the past:…

Elizabeth I, Anne Boleyn, and the Ashbourne Charter of 1585

September 23, 2017September 23, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

On 17 July 1585, the people of Ashbourne in Derbyshire were granted a charter by Queen Elizabeth I for the founding of a Free Grammar School. [caption id="attachment_4330" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Charter 1585 f.1[/caption] The Queen, via Sir Francis Walsingham, had been petitioned two years earlier for the founding of…

Moving on up

August 30, 2017August 30, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

I'm delighted to announce some big and exciting news. As from 1 September 2017, I will join the University of Roehampton as a Reader in Early Modern History. For those unfamiliar with the British system, there are four rungs of the academic ladder in the UK - Lecturer, Senior Lecturer,…

University of London: Senate House Keynote Address

August 27, 2017August 28, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

On 26th August I gave the Keynote Address on the Senate House Library's four key themes for their latest exhibition entitled Reformation - Shattered World, New Beginnings. Below is a short film detailing some of themes I discussed. [embed]https://vimeo.com/221439832[/embed]

The Hardest Word?

June 22, 2017March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

Is it ahistorical for public figures to say sorry for events that took place before they were born? The issue cuts to the heart of the relationship between the living and the dead. Suzannah's bimonthly 'Making History' column for History Today: There is nothing like an apology to make people angry. I…

Public History

June 21, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

I was kindly invited to give the keynote lecture at the University of Reading's recent Public History day and, afterwards, I discussed authenticity, heritage, and the potential tensions with academia, with Prof. Kate Williams: https://youtu.be/EgfK6Myn3m8

The Great Fire: Behind the Scenes

May 29, 2017May 30, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

The Great Fire - a three-part series - airs this Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday at 8pm on Channel Five. I'm really proud of it, and was delighted to work with Rob Bell and (again) with Dan Jones. Do tune in! [gallery size="full" columns="1" ids="4227,4228,4229,4235,4231,4233,4230,4244,4241,4232,4242"]

The Great Fire

May 28, 2017May 30, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

In this new stripped three-part special Dan Jones, Suzannah Lipscomb and Rob Bell take a fresh look at the Great Fire of London by walking the actual route the fire took across London, hour-by-hour, street-by-street and in the process uncover what really happened in Britain’s worst inferno. In this revelatory…

Elizabeth I

May 27, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

In May 2017, Suzannah Lipscomb and Dan Jones presented their new three-part docudrama on Elizabeth I. Co-written by the presenters and director Christopher Holt, the show starred Lily Cole and Felicity Dean as Elizabeth I. It reached 2.2m viewers in its first week It was Pick of the Week in…

Remembrance of Things Past

April 22, 2017March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

'Making History' for History Today The maxim ‘show don’t tell’ is often forgotten when film-makers confront historical horrors, argues Suzannah Lipscomb, as two recent cinema releases demonstrate. David Lowenthal’s review of David Rieff’s book, In Praise of Forgetting, in the March edition of History Today is rightly scornful of the practicality…

Jaipur Literature Festival

February 14, 2017May 30, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

It was such a delight to attend and speak at the Jaipur Literature Festival, JLF, in January 2017. It is a joyous tumult of people, ideas, and music. I learnt so much at the sessions, and I laughed so much at the parties. For those who don't know JLF, it is…

No Island is An Island

January 22, 2017March 22, 2018 by Suzannah Lipscomb

The world does not influence Britain’s native culture, the world is its culture, as anyone with a grasp of the country’s history will understand, argues Suzannah Lipscomb. Suzannah's bimonthly 'Making History' column for History Today : Lars Kjær gave a lecture last November at my college to mark a largely…

Insert Name Here

January 16, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

... is on tonight, at 10pm on BBC Two. There's something about MARY...

Insert Name Here

January 12, 2017January 16, 2017 by Suzannah Lipscomb

Comedy panel show Insert Name Here returns in 2017 for a second series, and Suzannah was delighted to appear in two episodes, which air on Monday 16th January and Monday 30th January, both at 10pm on BBC Two. [gallery columns="4" size="medium" ids="4178,4175,4176,4177,4181"]

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