
Sign up to save your podcasts
Or


No-one attributed more importance to naming the baby than Laurence Sterne's Walter Shandy but his attempts to ensure his son's future success came to naught and all because he couldn't get his trousers on. As the 2016 list of top baby names is revealed to a waiting world, Sophie Coulombeau explores literary archives to uncover the true story of What's In a Name? Just the fears, hopes and frustrations, ambitions and proclivities of British society over the centuries.
By BBC Radio 44.3
286286 ratings
No-one attributed more importance to naming the baby than Laurence Sterne's Walter Shandy but his attempts to ensure his son's future success came to naught and all because he couldn't get his trousers on. As the 2016 list of top baby names is revealed to a waiting world, Sophie Coulombeau explores literary archives to uncover the true story of What's In a Name? Just the fears, hopes and frustrations, ambitions and proclivities of British society over the centuries.

7,913 Listeners

314 Listeners

1,086 Listeners

1,067 Listeners

5,576 Listeners

1,808 Listeners

618 Listeners

1,729 Listeners

1,018 Listeners

1,952 Listeners

488 Listeners

585 Listeners

134 Listeners

129 Listeners

159 Listeners

241 Listeners

181 Listeners

217 Listeners

3,245 Listeners

1,010 Listeners

146 Listeners

100 Listeners

93 Listeners

347 Listeners