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Here at Penguin we're getting very excited about all the Jubilee celebrations that are coming up and so, in order to get you all in the mood to celebrate, we’ve got a very special Jubilee themed podcast! Not only have we got an interview with authority on all things royal, Sarah Bradford, but we’ve also had Kate Williams in to give us the lowdown on both Queen Elizabeth’s coming Diamond Jubilee and how Queen Victoria celebrated the same event. To shake things up a bit we’ve included a reading from Sue Townsend’s hilarious book The Queen and I… and, if that’s not enough for you, we’ve got an imaginary boxing match between the Queen and Henry VII. Who will win – our Diamond Queen or the Winter King?

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With the Diamond Jubilee right around the corner, everyone at Penguin is feeling very proud to be British so we've got a very British podcast for you all.  We've got an interview with Simon Winder, editor of The Penguin English Library series, the perfect recipe for British high tea and, if that's not enough, the chance to win FIVE titles from The Penguin English Library.

To enter the competition, please leave your answer in the comments below (as requested in the podcast).  

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For more information on The Penguin English Library click here. 

Terms & Conditions:

1. No purchase necessary to enter the prize draw.
2. This prize draw is open to UK residents aged 18 years or over, with the exception of employees of the Promoter, their families, agents and anyone else connected with this promotion.
3. Entries must be received by 25.05.12. The Promoter accepts no responsibility for any entries that are incomplete, illegible, corrupted or fail to reach the Promoter by the relevant closing date for any reason. Entries via agents or third parties are invalid. Entries become the property of the Promoter and are not returned.
4. Only one entry per person. No entrant may win more than one prize.
5. To enter leave a comment with the correct answer
6. All correctly completed entries will be entered into a prize draw which will take place on 28.05.2012. The first three entries drawn will be the winners.
7. The prize for the winner is 5 titles as specified in the competition.
8. Prizes are subject to availability. In the event of unforeseen circumstances, the Promoter reserves the right (a) to substitute alternative prizes of equivalent or greater value and (b) in exceptional circumstances to amend or foreclose the promotion without notice. No correspondence will be entered into.Prizes are subject to availability. In the event of unforeseen circumstances, the Promoter reserves the right (a) to substitute alternative prizes of equivalent or greater value and (b) in exceptional circumstances to amend or foreclose the promotion without notice. No correspondence will be entered into.
9. The winner will be notified via email or post by 14 days after the closing date. The winner must claim their prize within 14 working days of the Promoter sending notification. If the prize is unclaimed after this time, it will lapse and the Promoter reserves the right to offer the unclaimed prize to a substitute winner selected in accordance with these rules.
10. To obtain details of the winner please email competitions@penguin.co.uk stating the name of the prize draw in the subject heading 4 weeks after the closing date.
11. The Promoter will use any data submitted by entrants only for the purposes of running the prize draw, unless otherwise stated in the entry details. By entering this prize draw, all entrants consent to the use of their personal data by the Promoter for the purposes of the administration of this prize draw and any other purposes to which the entrant has consented.
12. The winners agree to take part in reasonable post event publicity and to the use of their names and photographs in such publicity.
13. By entering the prize draw each entrant agrees to be bound by these terms and conditions.
14. The Promoter is Penguin Books Limited, 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL.

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Today we have podcast special to mark the global publication this week of The Sign, a major new historical work written by the Cambridge art historian Thomas de Wesselow examining the birth of the Christian religion nearly 2000 years ago in ancient Palestine. As one of the world’s core religions, Christianity has shaped the course of human history. Yet until now, historians have been unable to explain how it really began. How did a 1st-century preacher called Jesus manage to spark a new religion? It is one of the biggest and most profound of all historical mysteries. Now, after years of secret research, the author of The Sign puts all the pieces of the puzzle together and presents a radical, controversial and convincing answer. De Wesselow's revolutionary findings have been kept a secret until today, and in this interview, the author and his editor at Penguin, Joel Rickett, discuss this groundbreaking work of history.

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In this month’s podcast we’re celebrating Mother's Day. We've got an interview with Rachel Khoo, author of The Little Paris Kitchen, and she'll be giving us a recipe perfect for celebrating the big day on Sunday!

Virginia McKenna, famous for Born Free, took time out from recording the audiobook edition of An African Love Story to speak to our audiobook producer ,Roy McMillian, and, if that wasn't enough, we've got an extract from the brilliant Millions Like Us!

       
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In this month’s podcast we’re celebrating the bicentenary of Charles Dickens with a podcast special devoted to the great man. We’re featuring a chat between Claire Tomalin, author of Charles Dickens: A Life, and her editor Tony Lacey, as well as an extract from the audiobook edition of her work. We'll be finishing up with some remastered content from an old archive recording of Dombey & Son, recorded in 1997 and read by Andrew Sachs.

To find out more about Dickens at Penguin click here

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This month's podcast has a “New Year, New You” theme, so we asked a selection of our authors to provide some inspiration for 2012. First, so we can all remember why we made those brutal new years resolutions, we're starting with some "retox" from Ben Masters, who will be reading an extract from his debut, Noughties, published by our Hamish Hamilton imprint. Next we have Dr. Mike Dow, author of Diet Rehab, with his top tips for starting a healthy 2012. We’ve also got John Tierney, co-author of Willpower: Rediscovering Our Greatest Strength, who will be answering some questions about the importance of willpower in success and happiness and finally we’ve got some career advice from Mrs. Moneypenny, who will be reading an extract from her new book, Mrs Moneypenny's Careers Advice for Ambitious Women.

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In this special podcast, recorded with producer and engineer Roger Moutenot and accompanied by musician Ryan Norris, Hollis Hampton-Jones reads from the opening of her novel, Comes the Night. Drawing on her personal experiences as a model in Paris, she produces an eye-opening insight into the fashion world as well as dealing boldly and compassionately with a range of taboo and controversial subjects. A stark, unflinching novel with a dark heart, Comes the Night chronicles 19 year old Meade’s fevered and tormented journey through the frothy, glossy world of fashion and the shadowy recesses of love.

For more information about Comes the Night click here.

The Penguin Podcast: Hollis Hampton-Jones "Comes the Night" by Penguin Books UK

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Hello and Merry Christmas from everyone here at Penguin! We’ve got a very Christmassy themed episode with a big focus on food , so if you’re not hungry now you certainly will be by the end. There's a talk from Pen Vogler, publicist here at Penguin and co-Editor of the Great Food series. She’s going to be telling us all about the history of Christmas food and how things like turkeys and mince pies became associated with Christmas dinner. After that there's a brillantly funny extract from the audiobook edition of India Knight’s festive novel Comfort and Joy. If you've ever been to Oxford Street for some last minute christmas shopping you'll understand her pain. And lastly we have Juliet Annan, the Publishing Director of Fig Tree, reading a lovely recipe for blinis from Felicity Cloake’s Penguin Short, Perfect Christmas Day.

For more information on the Great Foods series click here.

Christmas Special Podcast |Download MP3

Featured Titles

Great Foods

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In this month’s podcast we’re celebrating the release of the Penguin Shorts, our new straight-to-digital series featuring some of our best writers.

The podcast features an interview with Venetia Butterfield, Publishing Director at Viking, in which she explains the thinking behind the Penguin Shorts. There’s also an extract from the audiobook edition of Colm Tóibín’s contribution, A Guest at the Feast, a captivating memoir of a writer coming of age and his connections between home, work and love. And finally we have an interview with Colm himself, in which he discusses a writer's approach to the short form and how it works for memoir.

Click here for more information on the Penguin Shorts.

These ebooks are available to buy from the Amazon Kindle Store, the iTunes Bookstore, the Kobo website and the Penguin website.

The Penguin Podcast: Penguin Shorts|Download MP3

The full list includes: 

At the Hairdresser's

Anita Brookner

Solitude is a familiar burden for Elizabeth Warner. She lives in a basement flat near Victoria and leaves the house only to go shopping and to have her hair done…

How To Be A Rogue Trader

John Gapper

Nick Leeson at Barings, Jerome Kerviel at Societe Generale, John Rusnak at Allied Irish Bank. And now the 31 year-old Kweku Adoboli, who allegedly…

The Battle of Isandlwana

Saul David

On 22 January 1879, at Isandlwana in Zululand, South-East Africa, the British Army suffered one of the worst defeats in its history. A camp of 1,700 men…

Colm Tóibín

"A Guest at the Feast" moves from the small town of Enniscorthy to Dublin, from memories of a mother who always had a book on the go to the author's… 

Perfect Christmas Day

Felicity Cloake

Christmas dinner is perhaps the one meal of the year where even the most relaxed cook feels the pressure of perfection - and, although few menus can be… 

How To Set Up a Free School

Toby Young

In September 2011, one of the most radical and controversial education reforms in the UK became a reality when twenty-four Free Schools - funded by…

The Happiness of Blond People

Elif Shafak

As Elif Shafak stands in line at the airport, she overhears a Turkish father expressing to a friend his bewilderment at the cultural differences he's experienced… 

The Battle of Alamein

Colin Smith & John Bierman

A turning point in the Second World War, the battle of El Alamein was the culmination of a military campaign like no other. Fought across desolate arid…

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In this special podcast, TV personality Rob Brydon reads an extract from his autobiography, Small Man in a Book.  Before his much-loved performances in shows including The Trip, Gavin and Stacey, Human Remains and Marion and Geoff, Rob Brydon had a difficult ascent to fame.  In this extract, he discusses his college years and the trials and tribulations of starting your career.

Growing up in South Wales, Rob had a passion for radio (his hero was DJ Jimmy Savile) and even on-air humiliation aged just thirteen was not to put him off. For years the Welsh airwaves resounded to his hearty burr while he later became the voice of just about every household brand in the country - if appliances could talk they'd speak like Rob. All of them.

A Small Man in a Book has hit the shops today! You can get it in hardback, audiobook, ebook and a special enhanced ebook which includes loads of extra content. You can watch Rob talk about it on the video below.

 The Penguin Podcast: Rob Brydon's "Small Man in a Book" by Penguin Books UK |Download MP3

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