18.00 – 18.50
Sunday 11th April
This is an online event hosted on the British Library platform. Bookers will be sent a link in advance giving access and will be able to watch at any time for 48 hours after the start time.
It is a truth universally unacknowledged, that most people come to history through fiction. From films and theatre to novels and video games, histories are everywhere. But turning historical fact into historical fiction comes with an ocean of challenges. How do storytellers navigate these stormy waters? Is it possible to be historically authentic and commercially appealing? And, why are there so many Jane Austen adaptations? Part panel discussion, part audience Q&A, we bring together some of the UK’s leading storytellers to explore the complicated world of historical fiction. Panellists include academic, novelist and founder of the Jhalak Prize Dr Sunny Singh (Hotel Arcadia), author and screenwriter Catherine Johnson (Freedom, screen adaptation of Black Tudors), historian and historical consultant Dr Jacqueline Riding (Peterloo), journalist, stage and screenwriter Juliet Gilkes Romero (The Whip) and actor, author and science communicator Stephen McGann (Call the Midwife).
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