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The Hatchards Podcast

The Hatchards Podcast

By: Ryan Edgington and Matt Hennessey
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 The Hatchards Podcast is a conversation show about books brought to you by England’s oldest bookshop. Featuring interviews with some of our favourite authors, bookish waffle, and the occasional glass of wine. Hosted by Ryan Edgington and Matt Hennessey.Hatchards Art Literary History & Criticism Social Sciences
Episodes
  • Francesca Wade on Gertrude Stein: An Afterlife, the Avant-Garde, and Alice B. Toklas

    Francesca Wade on Gertrude Stein: An Afterlife, the Avant-Garde, and Alice B. Toklas
    Jun 24 2025
    On this episode, we were joined by Francesca Wade to discuss her groundbreaking new biography, Gertrude Stein: An Afterlife.

    This book paints a dual portrait of Gertrude Stein by dividing her story into two parts: her life and her afterlife. Doing this not only brings her partner, Alice B. Toklas, into clearer view, but also separates Stein’s work and its lasting impact from her larger-than-life personality.

    Francesca takes us behind the scenes of her exhaustive research—from exploring the Yale archives, which hold over 75 years of manuscripts, personal letters, and photographs, to visiting the French countryside where Stein and Toklas lived during the German occupation.

    We also discuss how Toklas, left behind after Stein’s death, devoted herself to preserving Stein’s legacy, even as she struggled with legal battles and near-poverty while living surrounded by Picassos she couldn’t bring herself to sell.

    Hosted by Ryan Edgington and Olivia Robinson.
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    45 mins
  • Graydon Carter on When the Going Was Good: Velvet Ropes, Veritas, and Vanity Fair

    Graydon Carter on When the Going Was Good: Velvet Ropes, Veritas, and Vanity Fair
    May 20 2025
    On this episode, we're joined by legendary magazine editor Graydon Carter to discuss his memoir, When the Going Was Good, an intoxicating portrait of his 25-year reign as editor of Vanity Fair, and an extraordinary life shaped by curiosity, conflict and impeccable taste.

    We begin at Spy, the satirical magazine he co-founded, which targeted New York’s cultural establishment with reckless abandon, coining the infamous "small hands" insult for Donald Trump.

    Later, he reflects on his turbulent start at Vanity Fair, where he was initially hated by staff, the close working relationship he developed with photographer Annie Leibovitz, and the founding of the Vanity Fair Oscar Party, now a more coveted invitation in Hollywood than the ceremony itself.

    Throughout our conversation, Carter shares countless juicy anecdotes — from receiving a Scientology plaque from Tom Cruise to helping Fran Lebowitz find the perfect suit — and explores how magazine journalism has lost its lustre in the digital age.
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    45 mins
  • Philippe Sands on 38 Londres Street: Pinochet, Prosecution, and a Nazi in Patagonia

    Philippe Sands on 38 Londres Street: Pinochet, Prosecution, and a Nazi in Patagonia
    Apr 29 2025
    On this episode, we're joined by author and international human rights barrister Philippe Sands to talk about his latest book, 38 Londres Street, a gripping exploration of justice, memory, and impunity through the intertwining stories of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and Nazi fugitive Walter Rauff who spent decades in Chile avoiding extradition.

    We consider the groundbreaking legal concept of universal jurisdiction through the lens of Pinochet's dramatic 1998 arrest in London—a defining moment that transformed international justice—and what it means for the complex geopolitics of today.

    Drawing inspiration from literary figures like Roberto Bolaño, Bruce Chatwin, and Ariel Dorfman, Sands blends detective-style nonfiction with profound moral complexity, tracing the ominous echoes among Nazi Germany, fascism, and the Cold War. He also tells us about the book's sensational reception in Chile, where the effects of his reporting have reignited long-suppressed debates about accountability and national memory.

    In typical fashion, we also cover everything from Pinochet's visit to Hatchards a few days before his arrest—where he reportedly bought every book he could find on Napoleon—to his compulsive viewing of Star Wars films while awaiting trial.
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    54 mins
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