Susan Ronald talks with Helen Fry on “A Dangerous Woman” The Life of Florence Gould
A Dangerous Woman is Susan Ronald’s revealing biography of Florence Gould, fabulously wealthy socialite and patron of the arts, who hid a dark past as a Nazi collaborator in 1940’s Paris.
During the Occupation, Florence took several German lovers and hosted a controversial Nazi salon. As the Allies closed in, the unscrupulous Florence became embroiled in a notorious money laundering operation for Hermann Göring’s Aerobank. Yet after the war, not only did she avoid prosecution, but her vast fortune bought her respectability as a significant contributor to the Metropolitan Museum and New York University, among many others.
Series “Helen Fry in Conversation” with:
Robin Lustig – Is Anything Happening? My Life as a Newsman – Aug. 28, 2022 Susan Ronald – A Dangerous Woman – Sept. 11, 2022 Leah Garrett – X Troop: The Secret Jewish Commandos of World War II – Oct. 2, 2022 George Bearfield – Foursquare: The Last Parachutist – Oct. 16, 2022 Helen Rappaport – In Search of Mary Seacole: The Making of a Black Cultural Icon and Humanitarian – Oct. 23, 2022
Leah Garrett talks with Helen Fry on X Troop: The Secret Jewish Commandos of World War II
The incredible World War II saga of the German-Jewish commandos who fought in Britain’s most secretive special-forces unit—but whose story has gone untold until now.
“Brilliantly researched, utterly gripping history: the first full account of a remarkable group of Jewish refugees—a top-secret band of brothers—who waged war on Hitler.”—Alex Kershaw, New York Times best-selling author of The Longest Winter and TheLiberator
Series “Helen Fry in Conversation” with:
Robin Lustig – Is Anything Happening? My Life as a Newsman – Aug. 28, 2022 Susan Ronald – A Dangerous Woman – Sept. 11, 2022 Leah Garrett – X Troop: The Secret Jewish Commandos of World War II – Oct. 2, 2022 George Bearfield – Foursquare: The Last Parachutist – Oct. 16, 2022 Helen Rappaport – In Search of Mary Seacole: The Making of a Black Cultural Icon and Humanitarian – Oct. 23, 2022
Leah Garrett is Professor and Director of Jewish Studies at Hunter College, City University of New York. She has published five books in Jewish studies and won and was shortlisted for numerous literary prizes. Her new book, X Troop: The Secret Jewish Commandos of World War Two, has been featured on CNN, Time Magazine, The Guardian, C-SPAN and a range of other venues. The Daily Telegraph called it “a thrilling story, well-told,” while the Times of London labelled it as “gripping,” and The Jerusalem Report called it “stunning…an incredible moving story of Jewish heroism.” X Troop is being translated into Hebrew, Polish and Russian. To learn more, please visit www.leahgarrett.org
Helen Fry talks with George Bearfield – Foursquare: The Last Parachutist
In 1938, when Bohemia and Moravia were occupied by Nazi Germany, Jaroslav and Josef Bublík fought their way to their country’s exiled intelligence service in England. Jaroslav began training parachutists to go back to their home country and in 1941, Josef was amongst the first crop to be dropped. In one of the most daring and momentous actions of the Second World War, Heydrich – the Nazi ‘Protector’ – was assassinated. But Josef and his colleagues were tracked down in Prague and killed.
In the dying days of the War, Jaroslav was asked to take part in one final mission: Operation Foursquare. Sixty years later, his grandson wanted to know the full story. Did he lead the last Czechoslovak parachute drop of the War? What exactly was the mission? And why had it become shrouded in secrecy?
“…fantastically written…reads like a fast-paced novel, with all of the intrigue, action and politics you would expect, except its true.” Colonel Philip Ingram MBE, Ex British Intelligence
Series “Helen Fry in Conversation” with:
Robin Lustig – Is Anything Happening? My Life as a Newsman – Aug. 28, 2022 Susan Ronald – A Dangerous Woman – Sept. 11, 2022 Leah Garrett – X Troop: The Secret Jewish Commandos of World War II – Oct. 2, 2022 George Bearfield – Foursquare: The Last Parachutist – Oct. 16, 2022 Helen Rappaport – In Search of Mary Seacole: The Making of a Black Cultural Icon and Humanitarian – Oct. 23, 2022
Helen Fry talks with Helen Rappaport at 10:30am* PLEASE NOTE TIME CHANGE!
– In Search of Mary Seacole: The Making of a Black Cultural Icon and Humanitarian
From New York Times bestselling author Helen Rappaport comes a superb and revealing biography of Mary Seacole that is testament to her remarkable achievements and corrective to the myths that have grown around her.
Raised in Jamaica, Mary Seacole first came to England in the 1850s after working in Panama. She wanted to volunteer as a nurse and aide during the Crimean War. When her services were rejected, she financed her own expedition to Balaclava, where her reputation for her nursing–and for her compassion–became almost legendary. Popularly known as ‘Mother Seacole’, she was the most famous Black celebrity of her generation–an extraordinary achievement in Victorian Britain.
Series “Helen Fry in Conversation” with:
Robin Lustig – Is Anything Happening? My Life as a Newsman – Aug. 28, 2022 Susan Ronald – A Dangerous Woman – Sept. 11, 2022 Leah Garrett – X Troop: The Secret Jewish Commandos of World War II – Oct. 2, 2022 George Bearfield – Foursquare: The Last Parachutist – Oct. 16, 2022 Helen Rappaport – In Search of Mary Seacole: The Making of a Black Cultural Icon and Humanitarian – Oct. 23, 2022
Appealing to the intrinsic fascination with British royalty, Borman lifts the veil to reveal the remarkable characters and personalities who have ruled Britain. Since the Glorious Revolution of 1688, the Monarchy has been more ceremonial―a crucial distinction explaining the staying power as the royal family has evolved and adapted, avoiding the storms of rebellion that brought many of Europe’s royals to an abrupt end.
Tracy Borman has terrific stories about Richard III; Henry VIII; Elizabeth I; George III; Victoria; Elizabeth II: whose names evoke eras and dramatic events, forming the sweep of British history.
Also in the series:
Life in Britain’s Royal Palaces – behind the Scenes: Wed. July 20 @ 2pm / 7pm GMT
Andrew Lownie talks about his new book with Helen Fry
The intimate story of a unique marriage spanning the heights of British glamour and power that descends into infidelity, manipulation, and disaster through the heart of the twentieth century.
From British high society to the South of France, from the battlefields of Burma to the Viceroy’s House, The Mountbattens is a rich and filmic story of a powerful partnership, revealing the truth behind a carefully curated legend.
Was Mountbatten one of the outstanding leaders of his generation, or a man over-promoted because of his royal birth, high-level connections, film-star looks and ruthless self-promotion? What is the true story behind controversies such as the Dieppe Raid and Indian Partition, the love affair between Edwina and Nehru, and Mountbatten’s assassination in 1979?
Also in the series:
Andrew Lownie’s new book “Stalin’s Englishman: Guy Burgess”: Sun. Feb. 13 @ 11am
Leah Garrett is Professor and Director of Jewish Studies at Hunter College, City University of New York. She has published five books in Jewish studies and won and was shortlisted for numerous literary prizes. Her new book, X Troop: The Secret Jewish Commandos of World War Two, has been featured on CNN, Time Magazine, The Guardian, C-SPAN and a range of other venues. The Daily Telegraph called it “a thrilling story, well-told,” while the Times of London labelled it as “gripping,” and The Jerusalem Report called it “stunning…an incredible moving story of Jewish heroism.” X Troop is being translated into Hebrew, Polish and Russian.