Great Lives Folgen

"Step one: invite notable guest. Step two: get them to talk about someone else."After nearly 500 episodes, Great Lives feels like a stable series, but there have been surprises along the way. From Bernard Manning on Mother Theresa to Timmy Mallett on Richard the Lionheart, there's a tradition of guests picking unexpected people they admire. Cerys Matthews on Hildegard of Bingen, Diane Morgan on Air Chief Marshall Hugh Dowding, Iain Lee on Andy Kaufmann, and Lemn Sissay on Prince Alemayu of Ethiopia: "Maybe this is the first Great Life that is a life that hasn't happened," he says. Also features Josie Long on Kurt Vonnegut plus a host of other famous voices in the mix.Presented by Matthew Parris Produced by Miles Warde

Edward III should be much better known, Rosie tells Matthew Parris. He not only won great battles like Crecy in 1346. He also championed the flourishing of Perpendicular architecture; he understood the "branding" of England, and introduced the flag of St George; and he was ahead of his time in other ways - he was the first king of England to own a mechanical clock and the first to have hot and cold running water in his bathroom! The expert is the medieval historian, Lord Sumption. He agrees Edward III deserves to be better known, but is less starry-eyed about his achievements. Edward, Lord Sumption says, was an incompetent diplomat, lived too long, and ended his reign a "heroic failure".Presented by Matthew Parris Produced by Chris Ledgard

Actor, comedian and Author Ben Miller discusses the colourful, complicated and uncompromising life of William Hazlitt.Born in 1778 William Hazlitt is considered one of the greatest critics and essayists in the history of the English language, but for centuries, his life and works were lost in the shadows. He was an advocate of universal rights and civil liberties, and a fierce opponent of pomp and power. He railed against slavery, believed strongly in the power of the imagination, and said, 'The love of liberty is the love of others; the love of power is the love of ourselves'. But he wasn't without his own demons and fell out of public favour. Rumours of gambling, sex addiction and adultery challenged his reputation. In recent years scholars have debated his life and works and a renewed interest in his essays has emerged.Ben Miller plays Lord Featherington in Bridgerton, and he wrote and starred in The Armstrong and Miller Show on Channel Four. With expert contributions from Dr Uttara Nataragen, a founding organiser of The Hazlitt Society and editor of The Hazlitt Review. Presented by Matthew Parris Produced by Nicola Humphries for BBC Bristol