Talking Tudors

Episode 353 - Marie Maitland: Scotland's 16th‑Century Sappho with Dr Ashley Douglas

Host Natalie Grueninger welcomes Dr Ashley Douglas to discuss her new book, 'With My Own Hand: The Secret Life of Marie Maitland, Scotland's Sixteenth-Century Sappho'. They discuss the life and poems of Marie Maitland, a 16th-century Scottish scribe whose Maitland Quarto contains early sapphic verse. The episode explores Marie's family and court connections, her role as her blind father's secretary, the manuscript's anonymous female poems, and the wider significance for women's and LGBT+ history in Reformation Scotland. VISIT DR DOUGLAS' OFFICIAL WEBSITE https://ashleydouglas.scot/ [https://ashleydouglas.scot/] TAKEAWAY https://www.rps.ac.uk/ [https://www.rps.ac.uk/] JOIN 365 DAYS IN ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/ [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/] Learn more about your host: https://www.nataliegrueninger.com [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/] Support Talking Tudors on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TalkingTudors]!

Episode 352 - The Accounts of Thomas Boleyn: A Revealing Window into 1526 with Natalie Grueninger & Dr Owen Emmerson

Host Natalie Grueninger and Dr Owen Emmerson examine Thomas Boleyn’s November–December 1526 financial accounts, revealing the family’s substantial landholdings, household expenses, and wide social networks just before Anne Boleyn’s rise. LEARN MORE ABOUT THR QUEEN ANNE BOLEYN MEMORIAL  https://anneboleynmemorial.co.uk/ [https://anneboleynmemorial.co.uk/] https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/qab-memorial?utm_medium=CA&utm_source=CL [https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/qab-memorial?utm_medium=CA&utm_source=CL]   JOIN 365 DAYS IN ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/ [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/] Learn more about your host: https://www.nataliegrueninger.com [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/] Support Talking Tudors on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TalkingTudors]!

Episode 351 - Rethinking Anne of Cleves with Dr Valerie Schutte

In this episode Natalie Grueninger interviews Dr Valerie Schutte about her upcoming cultural biography of Anne of Cleves. They re-examine long-standing myths about Anne's appearance, birthdate, and role in Tudor politics, by returning to contemporary sources and continental perspectives. The conversation also covers Anne's portrayal in art (including Holbein’s portraits), surviving books and dedications, the politics surrounding her divorce from Henry VIII, and how her reputation has evolved across centuries. Schutte's book is published July 3, 2026. Visit Dr Schutte's official website https://tudorqueenship.com/ [https://tudorqueenship.com/] JOIN 365 DAYS IN ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/ [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/] Learn more about your host: https://www.nataliegrueninger.com [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/] Support Talking Tudors on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TalkingTudors]!

Episode 350 - Edmund Spenser's 'The Faerie Queene' with Cait Murphy-Hurrell

Natalie Grueninger interviews Cait Murphy-Hurrell about Edmund Spenser's 'The Faerie Queene', exploring the poem's rich allegory, its portrayal of villainous women and otherness, and how Spenser reflects Elizabethan politics, religion, and his experiences in Ireland. Check out Cait's Substack! https://caitmurphyhurrell.substack.com/ [https://caitmurphyhurrell.substack.com/] Visit 'The Renaissance Academy' https://therenaissanceacademic.com/group-events [https://therenaissanceacademic.com/group-events] JOIN 365 DAYS IN ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/ [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/] Learn more about your host: https://www.nataliegrueninger.com [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/] Support Talking Tudors on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TalkingTudors]!

Episode 349 - The Life & Works of Erasmus with Amy McElroy

Host Natalie Grueninger interviews historian Amy McElroy about Desiderius Erasmus, exploring his mysterious early life, education, travels across Europe, and key works such as 'Praise of Folly' and his Greek-Latin New Testament. The conversation covers Erasmus’s influence on Tudor education and humanism, his relationships with Thomas More and Martin Luther, and his complex legacy as a Catholic reformer and leading Renaissance scholar. This episode of Talking Tudors was made possible by 'Simply Tudor Tours'. Check out their new Anne Boleyn & Elizabeth I Tour! https://simplytudortours.com/anne-boleyn-and-elizabeth-i-tour [https://simplytudortours.com/anne-boleyn-and-elizabeth-i-tour] Visit Amy's Substack! https://amymcelroy.substack.com/ [https://amymcelroy.substack.com/] JOIN 365 DAYS IN ELIZABETHAN ENGLAND https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/ [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/2026/05/17/365-days-in-elizabethan-england/] Learn more about your host: https://www.nataliegrueninger.com [https://www.nataliegrueninger.com/] Support Talking Tudors on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/TalkingTudors]!