In episode fifteen of the HC podcast, host Lynsey Shaw talks with author and popular historian Joanne Major about one of her favourite women in history, Kitty Fisher. 18th-century courtesan, pioneering pin-up and, as Jo would argue, the first ever celebrity as we understand the term today. Fisher's story and her careful orchestration of her public persona, and what we would call today her 'personal brand' back in the mid 1700s, while still a teenager, has special resonance today.

Jo and Lynsey talk about Fisher's early life, her motivations, achievements, rivals, the controversy and contentions and her brilliant collaborations with painters, especially her pivotal and nuanced relationship with Sir Joshua Reynolds, ahead of the tercentenary of his birthday on July 16th, 2023.

Warning: Contains discussion of adult themes.

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