Petula Clark has been famous since she was a child, when she was discovered on a wartime BBC radio show, and she has been on the radio, film and television ever since. In this episode she talks to Gyles about her remarkable and long career, about what it was like to grow up as a child star and about her complex relationship with her father. She talks about finding fame in France, and about Downtown, Don't Sleep in the Subway and working with Fred Astaire. She talks about her mother's early death from tuberculosis, and the death last year of her husband, Claude Wolff. This is a fascinating, poignant and intriguing conversation with one of our most enduring stars. Petula Clark's new book, "Is That You, Petula?" is out now and available here. Thank you Petula for taking the time to talk to us at Rosebud. Cue the music. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Another great episode of diaries for you, featuring another special appearance from Michèle, Gyles's wife. In this episode we discuss whether you can have too much of a good thing, we find out what one word we'd each use to describe one another, and we read a listener email from Claire Gammon in Sydney. Gyles's diaries are from the second half of 1970, in which he and Michèle rent their first flat, in Muswell Hill, north London. Gyles meets lots of people from the BBC and, at the end of the year, Gyles and Michèle go on a memorable trip to Israel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The actor Samuel West is our guest today, and we recorded this episode earlier this month, not long before his mother, Prunella Scales's death on 27 October, and not long after his father, Timothy West's memorial service in London (Timothy West died in November 2024). In this conversation, Sam talks about his parents, Timothy West and Prunella Scales, and what it was like to grow up immersed in the theatrical world. Timothy was often away on tour, and Sam talks about missing him - but being inspired by his work ethic and by the life of the classical touring actor. He talks about his mother's talent and about her famous portrayal of Sybil Fawlty. He talks about his own university days, and how winning a bottle of champagne in a first year drama competition was a turning point. He talks about Stanislavsky and the craft of acting. And finally he talks about his parents' love of barge holidays, and the joy their TV barging brought to so many.This episode is a celebration of a great theatrical family, and we're delighted and honoured that Sam recorded a Rosebud conversation with Gyles. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Gyles speaks to the novelist and writer Sebastian Faulks, who tells him about his childhood growing up in Berkshire and his clear memories of being left at boarding school when he was seven. He talks about his rebellious streak, drawn out by rock and pop music, which manifested itself in periods of instability at school and university. He talks about the close friends he made at Cambridge, and going on University Challenge. He talks about writing his first novel and how he had his breakout moment. Sebastian's new book, a collection of autobiographical essays called 'Fires Which Burned Brightly: A Life in Progress' is out now, and available here. Many thanks to Sebastian for coming to talk to us on Rosebud. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
This week's guest is Charles Spencer: the writer, broadcaster, and heir to the Spencer family title and estate at Althorp, where his sister, Diana, is buried. In this unmissable conversation, Charles talks to Gyles about his childhood, the breakdown of his parents' marriage, and his mother's sudden and shocking departure from the family home. He talks about his three sisters, and his close relationship with Diana. He talks about his schooldays, and in particular his harrowing experience at Maidwell Hall prep school - this episode does include Charles's account of the corporal punishment that took place there and his own experience of serious sexual abuse by a staff member. He talks about his happier time at Eton. And finally, he talks about the eulogy he gave at Diana's funeral and the extraordinary effect it had. This is a fascinating, unflinching, and deeply moving conversation. Many thanks to Earl Spencer for being our guest on Rosebud. Charles Spencer's book, A Very Private School, is available here Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
A momentous time for the young GDB in this week's diaries, as he prepares to take his finals and to leave Oxford. The three years have flown by, as they do for all undergraduates - but Gyles has packed more in than most. And, despite the fact he's in the middle of his exams, he continues to do so this term. No sooner has the ink dried on his last history exam paper, he's off up to London to get his hair cut and appear as a talking head in a BBC election broadcast. All this, plus some vintage, and slightly hysterical, Gyles and Harriet chat. Enjoy this. You can find Rosebud on Instagram @therosebudpodcast and our new Facebook group "Rosebud Reflections" is fun too. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Sir David Hare is one of the UK's most prolific and successful playwrights, and in this episode he talks to Gyles first about theatre, about great actors, and about the sensitivity necessary to writing drama; he also talks about his unusual childhood - his father was in the merchant navy and was rarely at home, his mother was resourceful and talented but also fearful and anxious. He talks about the teachers who helped inspire him to read and broaden his horizons. He talks about his relationship with the fashion designer Nicole Farhi, and about his new play Grace Pervades, which is about the Victorian actor Sir Henry Irving and his relationship with the great actress Ellen Terry. This is a wide-ranging conversation, bristling with honesty and self-awareness. Thank you Sir David for your time, energy and brilliant stories - we really were honoured to speak to you on Rosebud. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this long-awaited episode, Gyles (and Harriet) talk to the psychotherapist, writer and broadcaster Julia Samuel about bereavement. As regular Rosebud listeners will know, bereavement - whether in childhood or adulthood - is a recurring theme on the podcast, and we have received and shared many heartfelt and deeply moving emails from listeners who lost parents and family members when they were very young, and in difficult circumstances. We also know that we're listened to by lots of recent widows, and others who are grieving. This special episode is for you, and for anyone else who knows the pain of grief... which is probably most of us, let's be honest!Julia Samuel is the founder of Child Bereavement UK, an experienced psychotherapist, and the writer of the best-selling book Grief Works (which is also an app and a podcast). She is one of the UK's foremost experts on bereavement and grief, the ways it affects us, and the ways we can heal and grow through it. In this long and fascinating conversation, she talks to Gyles about the importance of "jumping in the puddle" of grief, and not denying or ignoring it. She talks about the best ways to support someone who has lost a loved one. She talks about her own family history, and the way her family story, with its secrets and buried feelings, led her to work in this field. And the podcast ends with Julia talking to Harriet about her experience of the death of her mother, Patience, who took her own life when Harriet was 13. (This episode does contain references to suicide).We would love to hear your thoughts and stories that arise from listening to this edition of Rosebud. Email us any time at hello@rosebudpodcast.com and Harriet will try her best to reply! You can also chat to fellow listeners on our Facebook page, Rosebud Reflections. Lots of people are sharing their stories on there.Julia's book, Grief Works, is available here. We're honoured to have Julia Samuel with us today. And we're honoured that you're listening to us. Cue the music... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Ben Elton was instrumental in the transformation of British comedy that took place in the 1980s. His scripts for The Young Ones and Blackadder were fresh, anarchic, rude, clever and hilarious. The people that worked alongside Ben - Richard Curtis, Stephen Fry, Hugh Laurie, Rik Mayall, Ade Edmondson, Dawn French, Jennifer Saunders - to name but a few - are legendary. In this episode of Rosebud, Ben talks to Gyles about his parents, his father's family story - they had escaped persecution in Germany at the start of the war - and how he became interested in comedy as a young boy. He talks about the process of writing Blackadder, which was sometimes tortuous, and what it felt like to be slated by the critics when We Will Rock You first opened in the West End.Ben's autobiography, "What Have I Done?" is out now and available here. Rosebud has a new website www.rosebudpodcast.co.uk and a new Facebook group - just search "Rosebud Reflections". Enjoy this! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We've got a very special guest joining Gyles and Harriet in this episode of the diaries - and this is a really fun edition of the podcast as a result. Stay tuned to find out who it is... Gyles starts his third year at Oxford, and puts on a debate at the Union with Fanny Craddock. Meanwhile, he is stood up by Barry Humphries, gets a new history tutor who is fond of red wine, and tries to help his father through a financial crisis. Enjoy this, diary fans! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We're excited to present the multi-million selling author and creator of Jack Reacher, Lee Child, as our guest today. And this is a brilliant episode. Lee is a master storyteller - painting a vivid picture of his childhood in Birmingham, his well-meaning but cold parents, his early forays into relationships with girls, and his days working at Granada Television. He also tells Gyles about his writing routine. This is a funny, fascinating and evocative episode with one of the best selling writers of all time.If you're a Rosebud fan, you can join our new Facebook community: just search Rosebud Reflections on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/782397874458836. You can also follow us on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/therosebudpodcast/. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
A moving and important true story is the subject of More Rosebud today, featuring the writer and social justice campaigner Lee Lawrence. Lee's mother, Cherry Groce, was wrongfully shot by a police officer in a dawn raid on their house in Brixton, south London, on the 28 September 1985 - 40 years ago this weekend. Cherry was paralysed in the incident, and spent the rest of her life in a wheelchair, until her death in 2011. Her son, Lee, was just 11 at the time, and witnessed everything. Lee then spent the rest of his teenage years caring for his mum, and most of his adult life fighting for a proper investigation into what went wrong during the planning and execution of the raid, and for an apology and some accountability from the metropolitan police. This is a gripping, shocking and sobering story.Lee's books 'The Louder I Will Sing' and 'The Colour of Injustice' are highly recommended, and 'The Colour of Injustice' is available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Sir John Major, British Prime Minister from 1992 - 1997, is our guest today. In this deeply interesting, personal and touching conversation, Sir John talks to Gyles about his childhood in South London and about his unusual and inspiring family. Sir John's background is unconventional. His father had been a successful music hall artiste, and was a great storyteller, much older than the fathers of John's friends. His mother had been a balletic dancer, and was an extremely kind and selfless wife and parent. Both of them were role models to John; his love and admiration for them shine through in this conversation, and will move you. Sir John talks about their extremely humble home and lifestyle - the family fell into hard times and were poor - and about the anger he felt at his family becoming a subject of ridicule by the press in later years. Sir John talks about how he got into politics, about what he believes is missing from today's Westminster scene, and about how he met and married Norma. We're extremely grateful to Sir John for speaking to us with such candour, and for his delightful company, and hope you enjoy this. It really is worth your time. Sir John Major's book, My Old Man, which Gyles mentions, is available here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Join us for the further adventures of the young Gyles Brandreth, as he continues his impressive career at Oxford - in this episode Gyles finally has the success he's been hoping for in the Union elections - but finds it strangely unsatisfying. He also carries on seeing Michele, despite the fact she has now left university and is starting her first job. Gyles makes his first appearance on Women's Hour, and meets the outrageous writer Beverley Nicholls. Plus Gyles and Harriet have a fun chat which will make you laugh (we hope - it's not intended to be taken seriously!). Cue the music. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
We're honoured to have Jung Chang, the celebrated author of the international bestseller Wild Swans, as our Rosebud guest today - and her story will astonish you. In this remarkable episode, Jung tells Gyles the story of her family - and through that, the story of China over the past 100 years. This episode takes us from the tale of her grandmother, who grew up in pre-Communist China and was subjected to the cruel custom of foot binding, to her mother and father, who were committed Communists but who were eventually denounced and imprisoned by the Party, and eventually to Jung's own story, her move to the UK, and her fears for the future - which she tells brilliantly in her new book 'Fly Wild Swans: My Mother, Myself and China'.Jung's latest book is out now and available now from here. It is riveting, and highly recommended.For this week only, Rosebud are collaborating with Project Everyone as part of the "Be Hope" movement - and we've asked Jung a special question about hope at the end of the episode. And you'll definitely want to listen to to the end of this one! Cue the music. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Julia Bradbury talks to Gyles about her life, upbringing and her new book "Hack Yourself Healthy". As Gyles finds out in this conversation, from the moment she began working her way up through the TV industry, Julia had led a stressful, action-packed and "high cortisol" life. Was this one of the contributing factors in her breast cancer diagnosis of 2021? Understandably, the discovery of her cancer led Julia to reassess her lifestyle, and ultimately to research and write the book she's talking about today. She tells Gyles about the things we can all do to increase our health and longevity: from simple steps such as making sure we spend time in the open air to breathing more deeply, to more radical ideas like walking backwards and using a copper tongue scraper.This is also a Rosebud chat - so we also hear about Julia's early memories, her family, and her schooldays.We hope you enjoy this fascinating chat. Julia's book, "Hack Yourself Healthy", is available to buy here.Rosebud's new Facebook group "Rosebud Reflections" is up and running, you can find it here. It's a place to meet, discuss and digest all things Rosebud. Have fun!Rosebud's new website is also live and is a thing of beauty - it's www.rosebudpodcast.co.uk - click here to go straight there! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
You might notice that this episode of Rosebud is slightly longer than usual - and that's because this story is so powerful. This conversation with the stand-up, writer, actor and TV star Alan Davies is virtually unedited - because it's unmissable. In it, Alan tells Gyles about the two most significant, and devastating, events of his childhood: the death of his mother when he was only six years old, and the sexual abuse he suffered at the hands of his father after she died. And he tells Gyles about how he has healed and gone on to have his own family, and experience unconditional love with his own children. This is a very sad, at times upsetting, episode, but also one full of hope, laughter and insight. It is well worth your time, and please get in touch with hello@rosebudpodcast.com with any thoughts you have on the themes Alan and Gyles discuss here. Alan Davies is on tour in the UK, Australia and elsewhere - get tickets here. His new book, White Male Stand-Up is also available now. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Yes, we know it's secretly your favourite part of Rosebud... it's Gyles's diary! And we know we say this every time, but it's another corker. Gyles does something unspeakable on Edward Heath's shoes. He has to chaperone an out of control drunk Irish poet. He meets Sir Gerald Nabarro, Malcolm Muggeridge and Leonard Woolf. We hear his sister Hester's fascinating account of working as a psychiatric nurse, and we hear Gyles's thoughts on turning 21 (clue: he's underwhelmed). Plus Gyles and Harriet discuss how to tell a good anecdote, childhood bereavement, and swearing. NB this episode, unusually, does contain a few swearwords, apologies. Enjoy this, diary fans... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Our guest today is one of the UK's best known and best loved public intellectuals, the classicist and expert on Roman history Professor Dame Mary Beard. Mary tells Gyles about her country childhood in Shropshire, playing on a disused railway track and trying to memorise Jane Eyre by heart. She talks about her interesting parents - a headmistress and a "raffish" historical buildings architect, and about the alarming visits up ladders into church belfries she made with her dad. She talks about Cambridge, sexism, and discusses interesting questions such as 'how to think' with Gyles. She talks about her early relationships with men and she describes the chain of events which led to her being raped in Italy as a student. She talks about the challenges of being a public intellectual, and about her aversion to risk aversion! As you can tell, this is a wide-ranging and fascinating discussion. Enjoy this. NB this episode contains some discussion of a rape, which is not graphic, but you may want to be mindful of this if listening with children. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
It's Rosebud's second birthday, and we're celebrating with another conversation with our very first guest: Dame Judi Dench. This time, it's been recorded in front of an audience, at the Concert Artists' Association in Covent Garden, London. Dame Judi treats us to some more stories from her amazing career. She tells Gyles about working with Tommy Steele, Johnny Depp and Clint Eastwood. She tells Gyles about having Eric Morecambe over for lunch. She talks about Macbeth and Twelfth Night and gives us some speeches from those plays - which will stop you in your tracks. We're extremely lucky to hear from this legendary actress once more. And we're extremely lucky to have been able to give you Rosebud for the past two years! Enjoy this. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Leigh Rumbelow
An excellent podcast. I know Sam through the football club we both support. An amazing tribute to his wonderful parents.
Lisa Delgrosso
I absolutely LOVED this episode. The story about the guns & not opening the new Bristol airport terminal was priceless!
Paul Williamson
Sir David. Dare I say you're wrong. Although many do always think of you as Del boy, I and many more also very much remember you for Frost, Porterhouse Blue etc. Your voice contributions to Wind in the willows and Danger Mouse are also an essential element in their enduring success. Thank you for all of this and more.
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