In this episode, host Dr Ellie Woodacre interviews Matthieu Mensch on his book Marie-Thérèse Charlotte of France: Daughter of Marie-Antoinette and Almost Queen, which will be published in May 2026 in Routledge's Lives of Royal Women series. We discuss the trials and tribulations that Marie-Thérèse experienced during the French Revolution and her vital role, in the ever shifting landscape of monarchy in 19th century France.

Guest Bio: Matthieu Mensch is a PhD graduate of the Universities of Strasbourg and Federico II of Naples. His research focuses on queenship studies, court studies and the iconography of royal women in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. He is currently a research associate at the ARCHE Laboratory in the Faculty of Historical Sciences at the University of Strasbourg. He published Les femmes de Louis XVIII at Perrin in 2024 and he is working now on the exile of the queens and princesses of France between 1789 and 1866. His last paper "The Duchess of Berry, royal widow and symbol of hope, between tradition and innovation" published in the Rivista dell'Istituto di Storia dell'Europa Mediterranea is now avalaibale on line.

Connect with Matthieu:

• Instagram : matthieu.mensch
• Linkedin : Matthieu Mensch

In this episode, the second of our Marie Antoinette related trio, host Dr Ellie Woodacre interviews Tia Caswell on her comparative study of Marie Antoinette and Queen Victoria. We discuss the rationale for bringing these two queens together and what we can learn about both women and queenship from this study.

Guest Bio: Tia Caswell successfully defended her doctoral thesis at the University of Nottingham in December 2025, titled: Marie-Antoinette l'Autrichienne and Victoria the German Queen: Negotiating Gender and Foreignness in Satire and Portraiture. Tia also holds an MRes in Modern Langauges, from the University of Nottingham, and a BA Joint Hons in French and German from Nottingham Trent University. Tia's MRes thesis explores: "Queen Victoria and Prince Albert: Constructing a Sustainable Monarchy and Negotiating Gender and Foreignness Under conditions of Precarity".

Links:

• Linkedin
• Review of Tate Britain Now You See Us: Women Artists in Britain, 1520 - 1920 - BSECS
• Style and Society: Dressing the Georgians - BSECS
• Crown to Couture: The Fashion Show of The Centuries - BSECS
• Lunchtime Lectures: Queen of Style or Scandal? Negotiating Queenship, Identity, and Politics in the Portraits of Marie-Antoinette - V&A Academy Talk at V&A South Kensington · V&A

In this episode, host Ellie Woodacre interviews Dr Sarah Grant, lead curator for the V&A's incredibly popular 'Marie Antoinette Style' exhibition. We'll discuss the exhibition, the inspiration behind it and what it tells us about Marie Antoinette and her legacy.

Guest Bio: Dr Sarah Grant is a Senior Curator in the Department of Art, Architecture, Photography & Design at the V&A. Sarah holds a doctorate in eighteenth-century French art from the University of Oxford and a Masters in eighteenth-century French decorative arts from the Courtauld Institute of Art. Her books include Marie Antoinette Style; Female Portraiture and Patronage in Marie-Antoinette’s Court; Toiles de Jouy: French printed cottons 1760–1830 and Style and Satire: Fashion in Print 1777-1927. Her exhibitions include Marie Antoinette Style; Modern Masters: Matisse, Picasso, Dali & Warhol and Fashion Fantasies.

If you missed the exhibition, you can still order and enjoy the exhibition catalogue!

Follow Sarah on Instagram: @sarahgrantcurator