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Garlic & Pearls

Garlic & Pearls

By: Muriel Zagha and Suzanne Raine
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Suzanne and Muriel examine a series of very different things – from a film to a kitchen utensil, a model train to a bar of soap – that define British or French attitudes, each explaining her cultural background to the other and trying to get to the essence of what makes the British British and the French French.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Garlic & Pearls Media Ltd Social Sciences
Episodes
  • The Institut Français du Royaume-Uni: Britain's Official Portal into French Culture!

    The Institut Français du Royaume-Uni: Britain's Official Portal into French Culture!
    Jun 26 2026
    With French historian Charlotte Faucher as her guide, Muriel explores the madly ornamental pink-brick Art Deco wonder that is the French Cultural Institute in South Kensington. Though the building dates from 1939, the idea of setting up a French Institute in Britain as a gateway to a better understanding between our two nations arose in 1910, the brainchild of Marie d'Orliac, an enigmatic figure who was also very good at reinventing herself. Nowadays South Kensington is a hub of French soft power, but how did it all begin, and what was the impact of the two World Wars on the project, especially the arrival in 1940 of an obscure officer called Charles de Gaulle and his 'certain idea of France'? Join us for a fascinating peek into a beguiling engine of soft power and the people that gave it meaning!

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    1 hr
  • The Letter J: The Mind-Blowing Creation Story of a British Sound

    The Letter J: The Mind-Blowing Creation Story of a British Sound
    Jun 19 2026
    This episode, full of suspense and mystery, is brought to you by the letter J! In the English language, the letter and its distinctive sound are deployed in their glory, whereas the French soften the letter J (as in je or bijou). The letter's story, which comes to full expression in 1629, is bound with that of the printing press. Who invented the letter J? Suzanne retraces the evolution of this exciting, propulsive letter – and how it acquired its shape – by way of the monumental King James Bible undertaking and the cast of dedicated medieval Cambridge scholars who carried it out. It is a story of the quest for legibility, clarity, directness and transparency – a very British story that would, Suzanne thinks, make a wonderful film. But who should play the letter J, the mischievous letter trying to make its mark on the page?

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    52 mins
  • The Great Paris Flood of 1910: The City of Light vs Nature!

    The Great Paris Flood of 1910: The City of Light vs Nature!
    Jun 12 2026
    In 1910, Paris was an ultra-modern electrified metropolis at the height of its confidence, insouciance and triumphant glamour. Then came the winter rains, and the Seine began inexorably to rise, causing chaos and devastation. Parisians living near the river soon found themselves getting about the streets in rowing boats and on improvised wooden walkways. The man of the moment was the then prefect of Paris, the gallant and indefatigable Louis Lépine, who patrolled the city in a frock coat and top hat , his smart trousers tucked into wellies, and seemed to be everywhere at once. Muriel tells an apocalyptic story of resilience and survival, and of the III Republic being put to the test.

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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    59 mins
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