MANY years ago, Jess read a line in a novel that stayed with her. According to that book, everyone is triggered by the handwriting of one particular person, and this handwriting, throughout their life

The rise and fall of a relationship in Muriel Spark’s letters

MARCIA watched her grandson Matthew carefully as they toured the sumptuous interior of Moitlet Hall. To the other visitors, it no doubt seemed he was in awe of the opulent furnishings, wonderful artwo

Samuel Pepys’s self-incriminating diaries

Best known for his graphic portrayal of sexual relationships within a working-class setting, the name of DH Lawrence remains synonymous with the scandal surrounding his most controversial novel, Lady

With a strength of character that belied her fragile looks, Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun pushed the boundaries of royal portraiture and, after the French Revolution, challenged the loss of female influence via every frill and fold in her work