Emily Brand – författare

An illustrated history of royal weddings, from Henry I to Prince William and Kate Middleton.Royal nuptials are always a cause for excitement both at home and abroad, and never more so than when the couple in question are young, glamorous and bathed in the glow of genuine romance. But the meaning invested in royal weddings, and the manner in which they are conducted, have changed dramatically as ideals have shifted about the monarchy and about marriage itself. This book charts almost a thousand years of British royal weddings, from Henry I – whose bride was believed by many to be a runaway nun – through Henry VIII's six attempts at matrimony, to the highly public weddings of recent years including that of Prince William and Kate Middleton as well as the engagement of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.It explores the traditions, symbols and rituals of the ceremonies themselves as well as the popular festivities and commemorative wares that have become a central means of marking the event.

An illustrated history of royal weddings, from Henry I to Prince William and Kate Middleton.Royal nuptials are always a cause for excitement both at home and abroad, and never more so than when the couple in question are young, glamorous and bathed in the glow of genuine romance. But the meaning invested in royal weddings, and the manner in which they are conducted, have changed dramatically as ideals have shifted about the monarchy and about marriage itself. This book charts almost a thousand years of British royal weddings, from Henry I – whose bride was believed by many to be a runaway nun – through Henry VIII''s six attempts at matrimony, to the highly public weddings of recent years including that of Prince William and Kate Middleton as well as the engagement of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.It explores the traditions, symbols and rituals of the ceremonies themselves as well as the popular festivities and commemorative wares that have become a central means of marking the event.

A revealing, frank and sometimes lighthearted illustrated history of British brothels in the eighteenth century.The business of sex was a significant aspect of urban culture in Georgian England, and a visible one. Despite the rise of the 'polite society' of Jane Austen's novels, England was also at the time rife with vice and debauchery: in the shadows of the fashionable public parks and gardens, in alleyways and taverns, even at church doors, there lurked a world of criminality and prostitution of which the bawdyhouse became one of the most potent symbols. This book explores what is was like to run, work in, and frequent these establishments, which ranged from filthy hovels and country inns to grand townhouse apartments, and draws from newspaper reports, criminal trials, political debate and bawdy pamphlets and prints to show both the frivolity and the harsh realities of the Georgian brothel.

THE RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK'Gobsmacking' The Times'Luscious' Mail on Sunday'Delectable . . . ravishing' Sunday Times'A chocolate box full of delicious gothic delights - jump in' Lucy Worsley'Stranger than fiction, as dark as any gothic drama . . . utterly gripping' Amanda Foreman'Brings to life the colourful characters of the Georgian era's most notorious families with all the verve and skill of the era's finest novelists . . . A powdered and pomaded, sordid and silk-swathed adventure' Hallie RubenholdMany know Lord Byron as leading poet of the Romantic movement. But few know the dynasty from which he emerged; infamous for its scandal and impropriety, with tales of elopement, murder, kidnaping, profligacy, doomed romance and adultery. A sumptuous story that begins in rural Nottinghamshire and plays out in the gentleman's clubs of Georgian London, amid tempests on far-flung seas, and in the glamour of pre-revolutionary France, The Fall of the House of Byron is the acclaimed account of intense family drama over three turbulent generations.

Fitzwilliam Darcy''s universally acknowledged primer for single men in possession of a good fortune, should they be in want of a wife. Perfect for fans of Bridgerton and the high society lifestyle of the Regency period.Mr Darcy''s Guide to Courtship is no ordinary Regency courtship manual, composed as it is by a Fitzwilliam Darcy as yet unmellowed by contact with Elizabeth Bennet. Full of entirely justified pride and meticulously cultivated prejudice, Jane Austen''s most famous (and most fancied) hero here reveals the secrets of his success with the opposite sex, offering hints to both ladies and gentlemen on the rules of courtship, including making oneself agreeable, identifying an appropriate partner and how to escape the unwanted attentions of rogues and fortune-hunters. *Also includes: beauty tips from Caroline Bingley, thoughts on the improper courtship techniques of Messrs Wickham and Collins, reflections on spinsterhood by Miss Emma Woodhouse, and Darcy''s advice to his many illustrious correspondents including Lord Byron, the Duke of Wellington and Mr Willoughby of Combe Magna.*