The TV historian, 56, reflects on the debt he owes to his determined mother, the history of guns, and why the next series of The Celebrity Traitors should be just as good as the first one…

Where does your interest in geology stem from? Did you collect rocks as a child? Yes, I was an avid mineral and fossil collector as a child. My prize possession was a geological hammer and any exposed

THE PICK OF THIS WEEK’S RADIO

IT was a clear early spring day, the breeze light and the sands empty. Sea and land seemed to go on forever, their divisions blurred by light and distance. Brigitte Wetherby breathed in the salty air

Emin’s newfound happiness These days, life is far ...

The Traitors’ “Lady Muck” would love to be Doctor Who