Life and Language

Jun 16 2024 25 ep. 61 mins 23
Life and Language Podcast artwork

Professor Michaela Mahlberg chats with her guests about life and why language matters. Michaela is Alexander-von-Humboldt Professor & Professor in Digital Humanities at FAU, Germany´s most innovative university For more see https://michaelamahlberg.com

  Society & Culture
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Lyndsey Stonebridge - Changing the World

Jun 16 2024 58 mins  
Today’s world is in much need of change. But what can we do as individuals and as a society? And how can we bring a humanities perspectives to the change that the world needs? Who better to talk to than Lyndsey Stonebridge, author of the book “We are free to change the world”. Lyndsey refers to her book a "critical creative biography of Hannah Arendt". It is very to

Essie Fox - The Fascination

Mar 15 2024 62 mins  
Have you given Victorian gothic fiction a try? The Fascination by Essie Fox will certainly be a good one to get you started. It is a novel that takes you to the Victorian country fairgrounds, the glamour of the Drury Lane pantomimes, and a museum in London’s Oxford Street filled with anatomical wonders. It is a story about belonging and finding your family. In this episode, I tal

Pete Orford - Dickens the Author

Dec 20 2023 58 mins  
Charles Dickens has captured the public imagination like no other. What always fascinates me about him and his work is how fiction and reality intersect. In this episode, I talk to Pete Orford to get his take on the relationship between lived experience and literary examples in the world of Charles Dickens. Pete has recently published the book The Life of the Author: Charles Dicken

Chris Laoutaris – Shakespeare’s First Folio

Dec 01 2023 59 mins  
What makes the First Folio so important and unique? 2023 marks the 400th anniversary of the first published collection of Shakespeare’s plays. In this episode, I talk to Chris Laoutaris, author of Shakespeare’s Book: The Intertwined Lives Behind the First Folio. Chris gives us fascinating insights into the human story of this book that was produced seven years after Shakespeare

Hannah Gold - Writing Bear

Sep 25 2023 58 mins  
How do you become a successful children’s author? I invited the brilliant Hannah Gold so I could learn her secret. What I really liked was Hannah’s insights into the value of a holistic career including a range of professions as well as life experience before becoming an award-winning author of fiction for children. In Hannah’s books, friendships between children and animals

Karen McAuliffe - Multilingual Law

Sep 13 2023 58 mins  
Can the law be the same if the language is different? I invited Karen McAuliffe, an expert in multilingual law, to shed some light on this question. Different languages represent reality in different ways. This has an impact on the legal system, too. So how can law be created that will have the same effect across multiple jurisdictions? Especially in the context of the European Cou

Jack Grieve - Fake News

Aug 29 2023 63 mins  
Are you be able to spot fake news? Can you even define what fake news is? According to Jack Grieve, ‘fake news’ is deceptive, it is intentionally trying to misinform its audience. Fake news is not the same as news that is untrue or false. But what exactly makes news fake? Are there any linguistic clues? Anything that gives away the intention to deceive? Can linguistic methods h

Paul Baker - The Story of Camp

Jun 14 2023 59 mins  
What is the link between Oscar Wilde, Judy Garland and Arnold Schwarzenegger? Find out in this episode, where I talk to Paul Baker about his new book Camp! The Story of the Attitude that Conquered the World. Paul looks at the history of camp - a phenomenon that went from marginal to mainstream. He explains why laughter is so important in today’s world and how popular culture can

David Hannah: Water - The Climate Connector

Mar 22 2023 50 mins  
Water is fundamental to life. Water affects us all. But do we talk about water enough to raise awareness of its value? What do we do to accelerate change to solve the water crisis? Are we aware of the various connections that make the water crisis a wicked problem? I am speaking to David Hannah, Professor of Hydrology and UNESCO Chair in Water Sciences at the University of Birmingh

Paterson Joseph - Historical Fiction

Sep 06 2022 69 mins  
What can historical fiction do for today’s society? Paterson Joseph’s first novel tells the story of Charles Ignatius Sancho, the first known Black person to have voted in a British election. In this episode, we talk about Black presence in history, the challenges of writing historical fiction, and seeing the world through narratives (on the page, on the stage or in films). Pat