Hello, and Happy New Year! It is, at present, exceedingly blustery outside as I sit quietly pondering over many things. 2024 was a busy year for my family and me: not only did we have our live show once a month, but I had book edits, in-person and online events, promotional work, and finally, the publication of my book, Ravenous: A Life of Barbara Villiers, Charles II’s Most Infamous Mistress, not to mention household and family obligations.
But there was another, new, element that took considerable time during the year: a show. In December, we came to the end of Season One of Stuart Saturday: The Live Show (which I usually refer to as Stuart Saturday Live), which is a once-monthly history show that is live-streamed online on X, Facebook, YouTube, and Patreon. I usually begin each episode with some news, or events that have been going on, then I introduce my guest and we have a chat. It may seem as though we started the show seemingly out of the blue, but there had been something that prompted it to come into being…
I had a rather disastrous experience when I got a job creating and delivering a bespoke several-day Stuart history tour in 2023. I had initially been so excited, as I had given many tours before, and I carefully prepared and submitted a meticulously-planned itinerary and tour (weeks in advance) and yet this was scuppered by another employee (who provided the transportation and flat-out said we couldn’t do most of the things I’d planned, mere minutes before we were to pick up our clients)…and I was left completely demoralised and humiliated. I remember entering my hotel room in Soho after my shift and just crying for a few hours that night because (as a consequence of this one person’s actions) I had been made to look like an incompetent know-nothing in front of the clients.
When I returned home, I was on the verge of giving up on history, it had been that distressing. It was my husband who, a little while later, during a snowy walk in the woods, told me that I shouldn’t give up, because I have always loved history, and that he would help me do whatever he could to support me. He was right: I shouldn’t let one mortifying experience destroy my love of history. I expressed a desire to make a show about Stuart and 17th-century history, but I didn’t know how to go about it, and didn’t think I could do it – and he really went to work, researching and trying things out for weeks. It was difficult, learning all the technical aspects involved in it, and then to do it live (no pressure, eh?), which required me to be more confident and him to direct all the feeds and processes. All the hard work and determination paid off and we ended up with a successful show not only because of the many, many hours Gavin put in to get it to work, but because of these 12 extraordinary, wonderful guests who shared their passion and expertise with us.
Our first episode was in December 2023, when my guest was historian Liam Maloney:
2024:
Ep. 2: January: Mark Turnbull:
Ep. 3: February: Elizabeth St.John:
Ep. 4: 2 March: Joshua Provan:
Ep. 5: 13 April: Leanda de Lisle:
Ep. 6: May: Gareth Russell:
Ep. 7: 8 June: Nicola Cornick:
Ep. 8: 13 July: Christine de Melo:
Ep. 9: 17 August: J.D. Davies:
Ep. 10: 7 September: Adrian Tinniswood:
Ep. 11: 12 October: Margaret Porter:
Ep. 12: 9 November: Stuart Orme:
And, finally, Episode 13 was our Christmas Special:
And so, I am so very grateful to everyone who helped make Stuart Saturday Live a success. I am so pleased that Season 2 of Stuart Saturday Live is scheduled with more wonderful guests who will both educate and entertain you.
I think now about how despondent I was in that hotel room in Soho back in 2023, feeling useless, still very much grieving personally, and how now I actually am looking forward to 2025. I was on many podcasts in 2024, including major ones such as Not Just the Tudors, was filmed for a documentary, and had the release of my book – all of which have helped lessen the blow of that one job. There are other projects already in place. For example, I am gearing up to narrate an audiobook for an author who is beloved in the Stuart history/historical fiction scene and I’m so excited to be doing this [as it not only set in the early 17th century, but it’ll really challenge me as a voice actress (there are quite a few characters with different accents!)]. I know you’ll love the story, and – hopefully – my narration.
Other than that, although I’m booked for several in-person events throughout the UK, I still have some availability for 2025; so if you’re looking for a historian to give a talk to your audience, you can find a list of my talks here, although I’m happy to create a bespoke talk for your needs. And you can book through my agent’s page here.
Some things (one major one, in particular) are simmering in the background, which I’d love to tell you all about but none of them are concrete enough at this stage, and realistically, may never come to fruition. But I’m hopeful some good will come this year, and I promise to do my best to continue to bring the history of the seventeenth century to you.
2025 is the year I am to become 40. It’s hard to believe that, especially with everything that has happened in recent years, but I intend to make the most of the remains of the day. After all, I’m living on “extra time”, as I often say at home, and for that, I’m grateful.
I’ll leave you now with a view from my office window, of the ruinous yet romantic Stuart-era Bolsover Castle, taken a couple of days ago at sunset:
May 2025 bring us all peace, love, health, prosperity…and a continued drive to follow your dreams.
AZ x
