Authors Harriet Evans (The Beloved Girls) and Francesca Wade (Square Haunting) join us to celebrate Dorothy L. Sayers's 'novel not without detection' Gaudy Night (1935), perhaps the high point in the classic series of books featuring Harriet Vane and Lord Peter Wimsey. Sayers was a feminist pioneer and we discuss her intellectual life and brilliant and unorthodox career. Also in this episode, John dips into The Art of the Glimpse (Head of Zeus), an anthology of Irish short stories edited by Sinéad Gleeson, and reads something short and magical by Dermot Healy; and Andy recommends Tessa Hadley's new book Free Love (Jonathan Cape) in these terms: "Imagine Elizabeth Taylor had written a novel inspired by Richard Thompson's ‘Beeswing’”.

Book mentioned:

Dorothy L. Sayers - Gaudy Night; Strong Poison; Have His Carcasse; Murder Must Advertise; The Nine Tailors
Sinéad Gleason (ed.) - The Art of the Glimpse: 100 Irish Short Stories
Tessa Hadley - Free Love
Harrier Evans - The Beloved Girls; The Garden of Lost & Found
Francesca Wade - Square Haunting

Other links:

British Council Film: Oxford (1941)
Edward Petherbridge on playing Lord Peter Wimsey
Great Lives: Dorothy L. Sayers (2014)
Gaudy Night: A Dorothy L. Sayers Mystery (BBC TV adaptation)
The Dorothy L. Sayers Society