The Hatchards Podcast

On this episode, we were joined International Booker Prize shortlisted author Benjamín Labatut, who’s first novel written in English is The Maniac, a dark exploration of genius, telling three gripping stories about the consequences of scientific breakthroughs untethered by moral or ethical boundaries.

Benjamín spoke with us about his interest in humanity’s search for new forms of consciousness, be it through modern computers or the centuries old use of psychoactive drugs by the indigenous peoples of the Amazon.

He also explained that in matters of literature, something considered “morally good” should be not confused with being interesting.

With the book depicting 20th century breakthroughs like the creation of the atom bomb and the eventual rise of AI, we also raised the question about releasing this book in the year of Oppenheimer and ChatGPT. Needless to say, the ideas explore in his new novel – and relayed in our conversation – could not be more timely or relevant.

On this episode, we were joined by Anna Funder, acclaimed author of "Stasiland', to discuss her new book 'Wifedom,' which invites us into the mind of George Orwell's first wife Eileen O'Shaughnessy, who's talent, creative intelligence, and fascinating personal history were essential to the creation of 'Animal Farm' and '1984' – all without credit in Orwell's previous biographies.

In addition to discussing the marriage of Eileen and George Orwell, Anna also touches upon her own marriage; the difficulties of juggling the competing responsbilities of being a writer, mother, and wife, and the inevitable compromises that women make as a consequence of social structures which govern our society.

This episode was hosted by Ryan and his wife, Emily Rushton, a teacher and Doctoral Researcher at the University of Cambridge, who was finally given a public forum to take the piss out of her husband.

Warning: The following conversation includes discussions around sexual violence. This may be distressing for some listeners.

On this episode of The Hatchards Podcast we were joined by writer/director Wes Anderson - Parisian, Texan, filmmaker and cinephile - who spoke to Ryan & Matt about his latest film, 'Asteroid City', and the accompanying book, 'Do Not Detonate Without Presidential Approval,' edited by Jake Perlin.

A collection of essays, articles and stories that inspired the movie, Do Not Detonate features pieces from some of the twentieth century’s most revered journalists and critics (Lilian Ross, Pauline Kael), contemporary writers on film and culture (Matt Zoller Seitz, K. Austin Collins), novelists (Georges Simenon), actors (Bob Balaban) and directors (Francois Truffaut) - and concludes with 'Wild to the Wild', a short story by Sam Shepard, whose life and work had a profound influence on the movie.

Wes spoke to us about the art of film criticism, his favourite film literature, the joy of rewatching movies and the wide array of influences - including mid-century American theatre, noir and science fiction - that fed into the making of his latest masterpiece, 'Asteroid City.'

The film was released in the U.K. on June 23 and the book is available from Hatchards' bookshops in Piccadilly, St. Pancras and Cheltenham, as well as Hatchards.co.uk.

With thanks to Wes, Focus Features, and Adam at Pushkin for arranging this interview.

On this episode, we were joined by David Grann, author of the The Wager, the gripping story of a doomed 18th-century imperial expedition to South America which culminated in shipwreck, mutiny, and near-impossible survival.

Grann is a New Yorker staff writer and bestselling author of the contemporary non-fiction classics The Lost City Z and Killers of the Flower Moon, now a major motion picture from Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio premiering this week at the Cannes Festival.

He spoke to us about piecing together a story from several competing narratives; his love of sea tales and adventure stories; why his books lend themselves so well to the screen; and how stories such as these expose the ugly contradictions at the centre of colonial Europe.

We also hear about his own dangerous boat journey to Wager Island, where no amount of anti-motion sickness medicine could lessen the impact of the storm-wracked seas.

On this episode, we were joined by Ian Dunt, political journalist and broadcaster, Twitter personality, and author of the new bestseller, "How Westminster Works... and Why It Doesn't."

Breaking down Westminster institution-by-institution, Dunt's impressively detailed book is a marvel of non-fiction storytelling, filled with humour, righteous indignation, and an overwhelming desire to wrestle British politics back from the brink.

Ian spoke to us about how exactly we got into this mess; the 'chicken or egg' effect of Brexit; the corrosive effects of 'machismo'; and why the political class loathes non-partisanship and expertise.

What emerges from our conversation is his refreshingly funny and optimistic approach to a subject of deep moral seriousness, and the occasional audio appearance of his tiny dachsund.

On this episode, we were joined by Alice Winn, author of the Hatchards Fiction Book of the Month, 'In Memoriam,' her highly-acclaimed debut.

Beginning at the onset of WWI, Winn's novel follows lifelong friends Gaunt and Ellwood from the confines of their cloistered English boarding school to the horrors of trench warfare, as a forbidden romance of fits-and-stars slowly blossoms between them.

Alice spoke to us about the parallels in attitude felt by young people during that time period and the present; taking ideas from the life of Siegfried Sassoon; and the dangers of complacency within a peacetime society.

We also learn how inspiration for the novel came from reading archival newspapers published by her alma mater, Marlborough, regularly listing the wounded and dead amongst former students throughout the war.

Finally, her cat makes a most welcome appearance on mic; a first for The Hatchards Podcast.

If you're a fan of the show, please remember to subscribe and rate us 5-stars on Apple and Spotify.

In the latest episode of the Hatchards podcast our guest was the historian Sarah Watling, author of Tomorrow Perhaps the Future, an enthralling group biography of a handful of female writers and rebels who aided the Republican side in the Spanish Civil War during the 1930s.

Nancy Cunard, Sylvia Townsend Warner, Martha Gellhorn, Gerda Taro and Josephine Herbst – among others – all felt compelled, to varying degrees, to aid the spirited but ultimately doomed defence against Franco’s fascist regime. But what was it about this particular conflict – more so than most others in history – that prompted such widespread and fierce solidarity from the outside? And what kind of legacy did the war leave on these women who travelled to a war zone and risked their lives for a cause they felt morally compelled to support?

We spoke to Sarah about the role of the writer in war; explored some of the fascinating personalities featured within her book – most notably the pioneering American journalist Martha Gellhorn; the Spanish Civil War in the popular imagination, and why it is so stubbornly synonymous with just a handful of famous men; parallels between the war in Spain and contemporary causes such as the Ukraine war and Black Lives Matter; and whether or not Nancy Cunard would be an entertaining or insufferable presence on Twitter.

Tomorrow Perhaps the Future was published by Vintage on February 9 and is available from Hatchards.co.uk as well as our shops on Piccadilly, at St. Pancras Station and in Cheltenham.

Bret Easton Ellis – one time enfant terrible of American literature, a precociously talented writer who published his first novel when he was barely into his twenties, and author of the classic piece of provocation and perversion American Psycho – is now, at the age of 58, looking back on the era in which he came of age.

Set in 1981, his new novel The Shards is a bravura work of auto-fiction steeped in the milieu of Ellis’ seminal early novels, and features many of the hallmarks that first made him famous, notorious and wildly successful: obscenely privileged youth; indulgence and excess; drugs; sex; pop music; and a touch of the old ultra-violence.

It is written largely in the same inimitable style (“numbness as feeling”) as those earlier works – including Less Than Zero, which we see the ‘Bret’ of the novel himself trying to perfect.

Bret spoke to us about what it was like to revisit this formative period of his youth; the irresistible pull of the music and fashions and sense of freedom he remembers from 1981; blending more traditional “auto-fiction” with the genre trappings of a horror story; his indifference to reviews; and whether he cares about being called “controversial”.

California cadres Bret & Ryan also spoke about their respective experiences growing up in the San Fernando Valley while Matt – whose hometown has hitherto not been memorialised in fiction – nodded in silent unrecognition.

The Shards was published on January 17 and is available from our three branches in Piccadilly, St. Pancras and Cheltenham, as well as at Hatchards.co.uk.

For our final episode of 2022, one of our most loyal customers dropped in for a festive chat: the sharp-suited national treasure, bookshop-haunter, and newly-Golden Globe-nominated actor, Bill Nighy.

Bill kindly took time out for a busy schedule promoting his new film, 'Living,' to talk to us about working with Kazuo Ishiguro; his teenage dreams of literary stardom; his feelings about being known as "Mr. Christmas" following the success of 'Love Actually'; and his enduring affection for Hatchards.

Thank you for listening to us throughout the year, happy holidays, and look out for much more from The Hatchards Podcast in 2023.

According to former lorry driver turned Pulitzer Prize-winning art critic, Jerry Saltz, art represents "the greatest operating system our species has ever devised to explore consciousness." That is, of course, until they invented the podcast.

On this episode, Ryan and Lydia Porter had the distinct pleasure of talking all things visual with America's most famous, and in some corners of the internet, infamous, art critic.

In his new book, "Art Is Life", Saltz draws on two decades of work to offer a real-time survey of contemporary art as a barometer of our times. Chronicling a period punctuated by dramatic turning points - from the cultural reset of 9/11 to the rolling social crises of today - Saltz traces how visionary artists have both documented and challenged the culture.

Art Is Life offers Saltz's eye-opening appraisals of trailblazers like Kara Walker, Hilma af Klint and Jasper Johns; provocateurs like Jeff Koons, Richard Prince and Marina Abramovic; and visionaries like Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning. With his signature blend of candour and conviction, Jerry Saltz argues in Art Is Life for the importance of the fearless artist. The result is an openhearted and irresistibly readable appraisal by one of our most important cultural observers.

Jerry spoke to us about everything from Tracey Emin to Dolly Parton, to the bankrupt FTX billionaire currently making headlines. We debated the merits of the art market, to whether or not we British are capable of transcending our literary roots to paint what he calls, "the bullsh*t American sublime."

While rarely succinct, he is never boring, and full of tremendous curiosity, intelligence, and an enthusiasm for art and artists that cannot be ignored.