About Victoria’s Secret: The Private Passion of a Queen
From the moment John Brown arrived as a servant to Queen Victoria's household, he became known across the land as her loyal companion, her fierce protector, and her right-hand man, their friendship immortalized in print and on-screen. But what if there was more to their relationship than we know? And what has history been hiding from us?
To mark the release of her eagerly anticipated new book, Victoria’s Secret: The Private Passion of a Queen, this unmissable event sees historian and author Dr Fern Riddell draw from new evidence to challenge the prevalent image of Victoria as a grieving widow and instead create a compelling human portrait of a woman in passionate midlife. She talks to writer and broadcaster Matthew Sweet.
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About the Speaker
Dr Fern Riddell is a cultural historian, and an expert in sex, suffrage and entertainment in the Victorian and Edwardian eras. Presenter for Sky History’s global phenomenon, Truthseekers, and the host of Sky History’s Not What You Thought You Knew podcast, she is the author of books including Death In Ten Minutes and Sex: Lessons from History. Her latest book, Victoria’s Secret: The Private Passion of a Queen will be released July 2025.
Matthew Sweet is author of Inventing the Victorians, Shepperton Babylon and The West End Front. A familiar voice in British broadcasting, he presents Free Thinking and Sound of Cinema on BBC Radio 3 and The Philosopher’s Arms on BBC Radio 4. He has judged the Costa Book Award, edited The Woman in White for Penguin Classics and was Series Consultant on the Showtime/Sky Atlantic series Penny Dreadful. He has been film critic of the Independent on Sunday, photography critic of Newsweek and fashion columnist for 1843/The Economist.
Attending your event
This is an in-person only event in the British Library Knowledge Centre. Please arrive no later than 15 minutes before the start time of this event. If you have specific access requirements please email customer@bl.uk
Concessions
There are a range of concessions available. These include discounts for British Library Members, half-price tickets for students and under 26s, free entry for carers as well as a number of other concessions.
