The Essay Episodes Available now
Uniforms - An Alternative History—Fashion Stories
4/5 Tom Smith links school blazers and clothes worn by East German soldiers to clubbing.
Drama, Dressing-up and Droopy & Browns—Fashion Stories
3/5 Jade Halbert looks at the designs inspired by English history created by Angela Holmes.
In a Handbag—Fashion Stories
2/5 Shahidha Bari looks at what the contents of a handbag can tell us.
Body Armour—Fashion Stories
1/5 Sophie Oliver looks at a Mina Loy corselet and the history of reshaping bodies.
Frank Cottrell-Boyce—The Well-Tempered Clavier
Screenwriter and novelist Frank Cottrell-Boyce marvels at the enduring freshness of Bach.
Thomas Guthrie—The Well-Tempered Clavier
4/5 Opera director and performer Thomas Guthrie reflects on what it means to be well-tempered.
Rachel Cooke—The Well-Tempered Clavier
Journalist and writer Rachel Cooke considers The Well-Tempered Clavier as domestic music.
Clive Myrie—The Well-Tempered Clavier
Clive Myrie considers Bach's role his constant travel companion.
Armando Iannucci—The Well-Tempered Clavier
Satirist Armando Iannucci contemplates the connection between music and comedy.
Maidens, Matriarchs and Crones—Unearthing Britannia's Tribes
15/15 The Essay reaches journeys end across Britain. Mandy Haggith imagines Albion's women.
