More Rosebud - Gyles's Diaries episode 35

In the first of our Rosebuds in the week of International Women's Day, Gyles meets Dame Mary Archer, the scientist and former Chairs of Addenbrooke's Hospitals Trust and the Science Museum Group, made a Dame for her service to the NHS. Gyles talks to Dame Mary about her childhood, nurtured by a father who was highly ambitious for his daughters, who gave her a lifelong love of music. They talk about her interest in science, which began at primary school, and she and Gyles discuss whether scientists think differently to other people. They talk about Mary's time at Oxford University, where she studied chemistry and met and married Jeffrey Archer - and Gyles asks Mary about their relationship, and what drew these two apparently very different characters to each other. Mary and Gyles talk about some of the challenges she and Jeffrey have faced as a couple and about Mary's career as a scientist, and in public life. This is a long and in-depth conversation which gives a different, scientific, perspective on life. It's fascinating. Our thanks to Dame Mary Archer. Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube here. Join The Rosebud Family here. And visit our website here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gyles talks the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and as this is a Rosebud conversation, we begin by hearing about Justin's fascinating family story. We hear about Justin's father - the charming, but alcoholic, Gavin Welby. About his mother, Jane Portal, who had worked as Winston Churchill's secretary and also struggled with alcohol addiction. About how, in the midst of chaos at home, Justin found solace in books, school, his grandmother, and eventually, in God. We hear about Justin's spiritual journey, about reading the Bible from cover-to-cover by the light of an oil lamp, about 'coming to faith' and about meeting his wife, Caroline, through the church. We hear about the birth of their first daughter, Johanna, and her tragic death in a road accident at only seven months old. We hear about Justin's career - first in the oil industry, and later in the Church of England. We hear about becoming the one hundred and fifth Archbishop of Canterbury, and some of the high points of that job. We hear about the shocking discovery Justin made about his family history in 2016.Gyles also talks, in some detail, to Justin about his resignation in 2024 - about his regrets, his learnings, and how that chastening experience has affected him. This is a long, thought-provoking and we hope, interesting conversation about failure, humanity and the possibility of redemption.Our thanks to Justin Welby.Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube here. Join The Rosebud Family here. And visit our website here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is a one-off episode, in which Gyles and Harriet discuss the British royal family and their future, in light of the recent scandal surrounding Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and his arrest last week. Gyles has known and been involved with the family for many years, since he first met the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Phillip, when they both worked for the charity Fields in Trust. In this conversation, Gyles talks about the late Queen and Prince Phillip, and what they were like as parents. He talks about the Queen's close relationship with Andrew, and about the lengths to which she went to stand by him. Gyles gives us his views on the future of the monarchy, and whether or not this serious setback has affected his own loyalty to The Firm. Don't worry, if you're not a fan of royal news, normal Rosebud service will resume on Friday! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this special edition of Rosebud, we celebrate the late, great, self-proclaimed cult that is Kenneth Williams - on what would have been his 100th birthday. One of the greatest British entertainers of the twentieth century, Williams was revered for his unique voice, his impeccable timing, his virtuoso storytelling and his brilliant appearances on Parkinson, in the Carry On films, and in series from Hancock's Half Hour to Round the Horne to Beyond our Ken.In this conversation, Gyles talks to the actor David Benson, who has been performing shows about Kenneth Williams for thirty years. Gyles and David talk about their own relationships with Kenneth - and they each give their own unique perspective about this complicated and gifted man. We find out about his childhood, his difficult relationship with his father, and his tortured relationship with his own sexuality. We hear about his working life, and the end of his life. Interwoven with this story are anecdotes from David Benson's life - whose life in some ways mirrors that of Kenneth Williams. This is a fascinating and unusual edition of Rosebud which we hope gives you a fresh insight into a household name.David's show, My Life with Kenneth Williams is currently touring, tickets are available here.Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube here. Join The Rosebud Family here. And visit our website here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Julian Fellowes, the creator and writer of Downton Abbey, Gosford Park, The Gilded Age - among other brilliant television series and movies - is our guest today. You'll know Julian's work - because he is one of the most popular, and prolific, screenwriters of our times. What you may not know is that he and Gyles lived under the same roof as toddlers, and shared a bath on a number of occasions; Gyles's family rented the basement flat from the Fellowes family in the early 50s, and the boys played together and have known each other ever since. So this is a friendly conversation filled with warmth, intelligence, humour and great stories. Julian tells Gyles about his family, his first night at boarding school, and his days as a Debs' Delight at Cambridge. He talks about his somewhat unpopular decision to become an actor, and meeting and marrying his wife, Emma. This is a brilliant edition of Rosebud, thank you so much to Julian Fellowes for his time, energy and fabulous conversation.We're back this Sunday, with a special edition to celebrate the late, great Kenneth Williams. And we're releasing a special royal edition of More Rosebud on Tuesday next week, with Gyles reading from his diaries.Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube here. Join The Rosebud Family here. And visit our website here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's 1973, and Gyles is still working hard: putting on his star-studded son-et-lumières, appearing on Opportunity Knocks and... getting married. Yes, in a low-key and very private ceremony in London, Gyles Brandreth and Michèle Brown become husband and wife. They have a delicious lunch out and then go to Rome for their honeymoon, where they see the Pope. This is another fun, revelatory and nostalgic dip into the unmissable diaries of GDB.Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube here. Join The Rosebud Family here. And visit our website here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gyles meets one of his teenage idols: the French-born ballet dancer and film star Leslie Caron. In this conversation, Caron tells Gyles about her childhood in Paris, under Nazi occupation, (and gives Gyles her unvarnished opinions of German soldiers). She tells Gyles about her father's pharmacy, where the local hookers would go to get their supplies. Leslie talks about dancing for the Ballet de Champs-Elysée, with the choreographer and director Roland Petit, and about being discovered by Gene Kelly. She talks about going to Hollywood for An American in Paris, and working with Fred Astaire, Orson Wells and Cary Grant. She talks about coming up with the idea for Gigi, and the making of that classic film. She talks about her marriages, most notably to the great director, Sir Peter Hall, and about the deaths of her parents.This is a fascinating conversation, full of names and memories from the Golden Age of Hollywood.Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube here. Join The Rosebud Family here. And visit our website here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's almost Valentine's Day - Gyles's favourite day of the year (the old romantic...) - and we've got a special episode for you: all about love letters. We start off with some romantic Gyles and Harriet chat, featuring bunk beds, stolen glances from train carriages, and a case of mistaken identity. Then, Harriet takes Gyles to the National Archives at Kew, to visit their exhibition: Love Letters, and to talk to two of their expert historians about some of the exhibits. We meet Dr Sean Cunningham, who tells us about a letter from Robert Dudley to Queen Elizabeth I, and about a letter from Henry VIII's fifth wife, Catherine Howard, to Thomas Culpepper, which was part of the incriminating evidence which led to her eventual execution. Then we chat to Vicky Iglikovsky-Broad, the Chief Curator of the exhibition, who tells us about a romantic WWI letter and about a letter to the courts from the father of the Kray twins. We hope this gets you in the mood for love... and learning something along the way, too!"Love Letters" is on at the National Archives at Kew until April 12. It's free - and you can find out more information here.Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube here. Join The Rosebud Family here. And visit our website here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gyles has been an admirer of this guest since the 1960s: it's the great actor, Sir Derek Jacobi. Ever since he was recruited into Sir Laurence Olivier's bold new National Theatre at the Old Vic, Jacobi has been at the forefront of British acting talent. Gyles has seen him on stage many times - in Olivier's famous production of Othello, in Much Ado About Nothing, in Cyrano de Bergerac. You may also know Derek from his brilliant TV work - in I, Claudius and Last Tango in Halifax... he's also the voice of In The Night Garden. In this warm and rambling conversation, Derek tells Gyles about his young life in Leytonstone in East London, where his father owned a confectioners shop. He tells him about his childhood love of dressing up and his early exposure to theatre, when he was picked to go up on stage at the Palladium. He tells Gyles about his experience of stage fright and about his happy marriage. This is a wonderful episode with a great, and charming, man. Enjoy this. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is an extraordinary edition of Rosebud - from the first memory to the last, it is peppered with legendary names, great artists and wild stories. Which isn't surprising, as our guest is Antony Penrose, the son of the celebrated photographer and model Lee Miller and the Surrealist artist, writer and historian Sir Roland Penrose.Antony tells Gyles about his mother, Lee Miller: how she was discovered on the streets of Manhattan and became one of the supermodels of the 1930s, trained as a photographer, and then moved to Paris to become a student and muse of the photographer Man Ray. He describes her independent spirit, her adventurous love life, and her first marriage to the Egyptian businessman Aziz Eloui Bey. He talks about Lee's life in Cairo, her second marriage to Roland Penrose, and her extraordinary war years, when she used her camera to take fearless and unforgettable pictures of the aftermath of WW2. Antony talks about his mother's descent into alcoholism and his own chequered relationship with her, and their eventual reconciliation. This really is one of the most brilliant interviews we've ever recorded for Rosebud and is well worth your time.A brilliant exhibition of Lee Miller's work is currently showing at Tate Britain in London until February 15. Kate Winslet's film Lee, which is discussed by Antony and Gyles, is also well worth watching. Antony Penrose's book The Lives of Lee Miller is fascinating and is available here. Farleys House, Miller and Penrose's house in East Sussex, is open to the public - tickets are available here.Don't forget to subscribe to our YouTube here. Join The Rosebud Family here. And visit our website here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.