Heyer Today

Fable Gazers Season 2: Heyer Today takes a deep dive into the life and work of Georgette Heyer, plus a book club, a cinematic investigation and amazing guests like Stephen Fry, Joanne Harris, Mary Jo Putney and more.

Welcome to Heyer Today, the ultimate Georgette Heyer podcast. This Regency romance queen has been ignored by critics and film fundis alike for too long. Join us as we explore her life and work with fabulous guests, a book club and a cinematic investigation. In this episode you'll tickle your ear holes with the dulcet tones of national treasure, Stephen Fry as he reveals the inception of his Heyer obsession. Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

Heyer Today is the ultimate podcast on Regency romance queen, Georgette Heyer. This week is the first of our biweekly book club episodes, featuring two potential converts, Sonali and Genna, audio drama on Heyer’s life and a juicy historical contextualisation segment giving an insight into Heyer’s world around the time she wrote this week’s book: These Old Shades. Awesome vocal talent from Helen Davidge as young Heyer, Thomas Golding as young Boris, Cathy Tuson and Karim Kronfli (https://www.podchaser.com/creators/karim-kronfli-107ZzkFiMb). Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts Fablegazers.com

Heyer Today is the ultimate Georgette Heyer podcast. This week we talk to Emma Darwin. She's the only author to be simultaneously listed for the Commonwealth Writers' Best First Book, AND the Romantic Novelist's Association Book of the Year. And she has one other small detail about her ancestry that people tend to fixate on… yes, she is Charles Darwin’s great-great granddaughter. But she’s so much more than that; an accomplished novelist and teacher, as well as a judge on several writing awards (the Crowns in particular). So we were delighted to be able to chat to her about all manner of things relating to Heyer’s craft, how to write historical fiction and the importance of forgetting your research in order to make a story sing. Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

  Heyer Today is the ultimate Georgette Heyer podcast. This week bass player and teacher, Khalid Ham, joins us to talk about one of Heyer’s most popular books: Devil’s Cub. As he’s the same age as Vidal, Sara-Mae quizzes him on the similarities between himself and the hot-headed hero. Plus, we journey to 1920s Africa, as Georgette and Ronald visit Tanganyika on one of Ronald’s ill-fated mining excursions. As a rhino crashes into camp, Georgette rushes into the danger zone… Our fantastic voice talent includes Sarah Golding (sites.gravyforthebrain.com/website/sarahofgolding/), Helen Davidge and Karim Kronfli (podchaser.com/creators/karim-kronfli-107ZzkFiMb). Suzy Buttress’ brilliant pod is The Casual Birder. Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

This week we look at Heyer’s treatment of her heroes and heroines and unpick why she was largely ignored by the literati. Our guests are two people who could definitely fall into that category: Alison Bonomi of the LBA literary agency and poet and novelist Jane Holland. With Charlotte Lamb as her mum, Jane knows all about the impact of a literary legacy. Join Sara-Mae as she talks to them about Heyer’s lasting impact on the Regency romance genre, as well as what it’s like to live in the shadow of a famous author... Show notes: We reference Laurel Ann Nattress' article for Austenprose: 'Heyer’s Heroes: Immutable Romance Archetypes' We also discuss a host of Heyer's books, including: Venetia, Faro's Daughter, The Tollgate, The Unknown Ajax, The Quiet Gentleman, The Convenient Marriage and more. Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

Our third book club episode sees Sara-Mae discussing Faro’s Daughter with uni mate Geraldine Minuk-Eliot. Is she taking a gamble in trying to convert Geraldine? Meanwhile, Georgette fends off enquiries from her publisher friend, Frere, as to her progress with writing Faro’s Daughter… Our fantastic voice talent includes: Helen Rose-Davidge as young Heyer (https://uk.linkedin.com/in/helen-davidge-2572a157), and John Grayson as Frere (https://johngraysonvoiceartist.com). Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts    

Heyer Today is the ultimate Georgette Heyer podcast. This week, we’re interviewing Sunday Times best selling author Harriet Evans. She’ll be sharing her top 10 favourite Heyer’s. We also chat about the perils of being a woman writer, comparing Austen and Heyer, plus dream up new rules for being a romantic hero/heroine. Stay tuned for the Stephen Fry appearance! Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/   Books discussed are: Black Sheep Friday’s Child Devil’s Cub Lady of Quality Faro’s Daughter Arabella Venetia The Nonesuch Bath Tangle The Convenient Marriage   And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

Heyer Today, the most epic literary podcast ever made, continues with our 4th book club episode. Our convert tally is 3/4 so far, but will this week’s victims, Robert (Global VP of Finance at Impact) and the very right Reverend Caroline Risdon, say yay or nay to our Regency queen? Meanwhile, Georgette and her son Richard are in the Albany cellars as the doodle bugs fall on London. Luckily, they’re in good company: no less personages than JB Priestley, GB Stern, Graham Greene, Margery Sharp, Harold Nicholson and Edith Evans huddle beside them. Surely, if a bomb destroyed their apartments, London’s literary elite would be decimated! Voice talent includes: Hedley Knight (JB Priestley and Graham Greene), Cathy Tuson (Margery Sharp), Helen Rose-Davidge (Georgette Heyer), Holly Golding (young Richard Rougier) and Fiona Thraille as Dame Edith Evans Remember there are spoilers so do read the book before listening… Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

This week we chat to film producer Andy Paterson and agent for Georgette Heyer’s estate Peter Buckman, as we try to unravel the mystery of why Heyer’s books haven’t been adapted for the screen. Andy, who has produced such luminous hits as Girl With A Pearl Earring and The Railwayman, chats to us about his latest project, and Peter Buckman elaborates on the more frustrating elements of metamorphosing a book into celluloid… Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

In this week’s book club episode on The Quiet Gentleman, we try and convert ‘corporate misfit’, competitive power lifter and comedian, Dom Patmore, as well as Sara-Mae’s cousin Talitha, who is also a digital strategy mogul and yoga teacher. But will they fall for the charms of this romantic Regency thriller? Also this week, we find Georgette having the difficult task of breaking off her relationship with long-time father figure and agent, LP Moore… Remember there are spoilers so do read the book before listening… Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

This week Sara-Mae chats to Heyer biographer and novelist, Jennifer Kloester. As a world-renowned expert on Heyer, they discuss the mysteries of Heyer’s life, her relationship with Ronald, plus Jen’s journey to creating her great work - and the friendships she made along the way. Listen, as Jen regales us with fascinating stories about fellow Heyer biographer Jane Aiken Hodge and Georgette’s son, Sir Richard Rougier, as she widens the aperture through which we get to see Heyer’s life.  Articles cited:  Heyer Films: Mythconceptions - All Things Georgette: https://jenniferkloester.com/2-heyer-films-mythconceptions-things-georgette/ Take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

It’s another book club episode! This week Sara-Mae talks to Jojo Thomas – a trained Co-Active coach, and master hypnotist, plus Aiden Truss. He’s a novelist and copywriter, who is into sci-fi and edgy post-modern literature. Will either of them fall for Heyer’s delightful, frothy classic? The score so far is six yays to two nays. Also this week, Georgette faces the media at a Tatler party. She and Pat have a gossip about the literati, and to her chagrin, Georgette is mistaken for Dame Edith Bagnold… Remember there are spoilers so do read the book before listening… Join in the fun by checking out our book list here: https://fablegazers.wordpress.com/heyer-today-reading-list/ And take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook: fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts fablegazers.com

We’re taking a wee break to work on the second half of the season and make it as good as it can possibly be. We’ll be back in a few months’ time with episodes 13-25 to finish telling Georgette’s story and solve the mystery of why her books have yet to be made into films. In the meantime, read the books on our reading list, and rate, review and recommend! Find all 13 books here. Take part in our conversation here: Twitter: @fable_gazers Insta: @fablegazers Facebook fb.me/fablegazerspodcasts Fablegazers.com Find out how to support us here.  

Joanne Harris reads her charming short story especially for Fable Gazers in this special bonus episode. Enjoy this delicious, tongue-in-cheek take on Georgette Heyer's style. A kerfuffle in the farmyard causes figurative feathers to fly - will Daphne, the dowdy hen, win her reluctant rooster? Get Joanne's latest book, ORFEIA, now. An exquisite fey fable, it tells of a mother's journey to find her daughter, no matter what the cost.

Welcome to the second half of Fable Gazers' Season 2: Heyer Today, in which I interview knowledgeable experts and fans about underappreciated Regency romance queen Georgette Heyer This week, we’ll be talking to the President of the Jane Austen Society of Australia, Susannah Fullerton. She’s also an OAM recipient (Order of Australia) as well as a member of the Royal Society of New South Wales. Added to this, she’s a marvellous author and literary historian who is an expert on both Austen and Heyer. Together we discuss people's perceptions of Heyer (a poor man's Jane Austen? Pah!), the future of Heyer critique and what makes Heyer great. Our second guest is book blogger Eleanor Turner, who’s website ‘Jane to Georgette’ is really informative about Heyer and her works, as well as the comparison between Heyer and her idol, Austen.  

Welcome to Heyer Today, the podcast all about Regency romance queen, Georgette Heyer. This is a book club episode in which host Sara-Mae Tuson hoodwinks two Heyer virgins into reading The Tollgate. Our guests are comedian Glen Tickle and Jaclyn Green-Stock. Glen is a comedian and writer from New Jersey. He's performed around the US at festivals and colleges, and has appeared on Amazon Prime, SiriusXM, Cozi TV, and The Travel Channel. He co-hosts the podcast Improvised Wikipedia. Jaclyn is a major Jane Austen fan, so Sara-Mae thought this would be a slam dunk. Hmmm, not so much. Our fabulous voice actors are Sarah Golding as Heyer and Karim Kronfli as her husband, Ronald Rougier. Check out their work here: https://sarahgoldingvoiceactorandmore.weebly.com and https://www.podchaser.com/creators/karim-kronfli-107ZzkFiMb The music used in this episode is from Emma Gattril’s wondrous album, Chapter I as well as Jerome Alexander’s luscious Message to Bears tunes. Original music was composed especially for the podcast, by myself and Tom Chadd. Comment and take part in our discussions on social media, we’re @fablegazers on Instagram and @fable_gazers on Twitter. Heyer Today is a Fable Gazers production. Don't forget to rate, review and recommend!

This week on Heyer Today, Sara-Mae is chatting to not one, but two fabulous authors of magic-inflected Regency fiction. Garth Nix (Old Kingdom, Seven Towers and Keys to the Kingdom books) discusses how his book Newt's Emerald was a homage to Heyer, as well as giving us his list of top Heyer-inspired fantasy works. Zen Cho, our other guest, is a UK-based Malaysian author. Her books Sorceror to the Crown and its sequel, The True Queen, are full of a Heyerian sensibility, but include magic, feminism, dragons and fairies. We also explore LGBT strands in Heyer’s work and fan fiction inspired by this sort of subtext, and as usual, both authors discuss their favourite and least favourite Heyers. Read our guests list of recomendations here. Get more info about our guests here: https://zencho.org http://www.garthnix.com Don’t forget to rate, review and recommend our podcast, it really helps others to find us. Also, please say hi on our social media channels, we’re @fablegazers on Instagram and @fable_gazers on Twitter.  

Welcome to Heyer Today, Fable Gazers’ epic podcast series all about Regency romance goddess, Georgette Heyer. This week, Sara-Mae attempts to convert two musical babes to Heyer’s work. Barbara Bartz is one of the most sought after fiddle players in the London Alternative Folk music scene, and Emily Lee is an up and coming singer songwriter – both of them could easily be Heyer heroines. Both ladies were kind enough to meet me at my home studio (before lockdown) and chat all about one of my favourite Heyer novels, Venetia. Barbara is also a masters graduate of literature, and an ardent reader of poetry, so Sara-Mae couldn’t wait to leap in and dissect this fab novel with them… Added to this we look at Heyer’s life at the time she wrote the novel, and learn more about her favourite book cover illustrator, Arthur Barbosa. Plus, we have audio drama magic as Sarah Golding and Karin Heimdahl play Heyer and her friend Carola Oman discussing Charlotte Bronte's heroes. If you’d like to join in on the action do check out our reading list, where you’ll find all the books we’re covering. Please rate, review and recommend our podcast, it really helps others to find us. Also, please say hi on our social media channels, we’re @fablegazers on Instagram and @fable_gazers on Twitter. We love to hear from you. https://www.basiabartz.com/ https://www.emilyleemusic.co.uk *Correction: we say Georgette was writing Venetia in the early 60s but she actually wrote it in 1957/8.

This is Heyer Today, a podcast exploring the life and work of Regency romance nonpareil, Georgette Heyer. Many of you will be familiar with this week’s guest; Mary Jo Putney, who hails from Baltimore, Maryland in the US. Host Sara-Mae has been dying to chat to her as, like Georgette, she’s also a best-selling author of Regency romances. Join us, as we pick her brains about the art of building a believable regency world. What are the pitfalls? Unlike Georgette, whom she loves, her work explores alcoholism, death, and domestic abuse as themes. A regular on the best seller lists, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USAToday, and Publishers Weekly, she’s well versed in the art of writing to deadline, just like Georgette. She’s also been showered in awards like the Romance Writers of America (RITAs), two Romantic Times Career Achievement Awards, four NJRW Golden Leaf awards, plus the NJRW career achievement award for historical romance. In 2013 she was awarded the Romance Writers of America Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award. Phew! Her mantelpiece must be groaning! Also covered in our conversation: Arabella, The Unknown Ajax, Venetia, False Colours and the use of twins in romance. “Romance is a girl thing, which means it never gets as much respect. Mystery is pretty respectable, people get killed, that’s respectable. But something that’s by and for women largely, is never going to get the same kind of respect.” - Mary Jo