Author in the picture: Madame Gilflurt, Catherine Curzon

Already from the beginning of my blog adventures in 2012
(sounds like history 😆) , I follow on Twitter a certain Catherine Curzon alias
Madame Gilflurt. She told very interesting stories about the Georgian area. 

Since she has written several books about this interesting time period, I thought
it was an excellent idea to invite her on the blog. 

So these are my questions and her answers. 

Questions & Answers

Can you tell me more about yourself? Who is Catherine Curzon? 

Who is Madame Gilflurt?

Catherine Curzon is a gal who lives up a steep hill in Yorkshire and
writes books about eighteenth century history. My shadow is a little dog named
Pippa, and we have a passion for history and classic Hollywood cinema, reflected
in my Master’s in Film. I’m also half of novelist Ellie Curzon, author of the
bestselling Under a Spitfire Sky, which was published by Orion, and its follow-up
The Codebreaker Girls.  Madame Gilflurt was the name I came up with nearly a
decade ago when I wanted to launch my online presence, and thought a smart
Georgian nickname would be a good way to do it. Gilflurt is a bit of Georgian
cant, meaning a minxish woman!

How did your interest in History started?

I’ve told this story a lot, but my love for history was nurtured by my grandad. 

He lived in a tiny cottage on the edge of Sherwood Forest and was a born
storyteller. By the time I was in primary school I thought Byron’s ghost haunted
the pub and Dick Turpin had a camp out in the woods! When I was five years old he
told me about Marie Antoinette losing her head and that was the clincher –
I was hooked!

How did you begin your blog/website? Do you have tips for new bloggers?

I thought my husband was getting a bit tired of my sharing historical titbits with him,
so I decided to share them with a wider audience instead. That was how the blog
came to be, and it’s since evolved into a place where I post my news and bits and bobs,
such as tour dates for Being Mr Wickham and the like. The main bit of advice I can give
is to keep at it, and make friends. The history community can be very welcoming,
and really nurturing too.

Why do you have such an interest in the Georgian era?

Essentially because of the bloody tales my grandad loved to tell. He really brought
the adventure of the era to life, and captured my young imagination. When he
told stories of the eighteenth century, it really did feel as though anything could
happen. It’s a very relatable time in many ways too, and its obsession with
celebrity and gossip is familiar to anyone who uses social media today, I think.

5/ How do you start researching for new books? 

How for example do you chose a topic?

I specialise in bitesize biographies of Georgian royalty, so there are plenty of
wonderful candidates to choose from. I don’t so much choose a topic as meet
a character in the course of my research who simply won’t sit down. A good
example of that was Sophia, Electress of Hanover. When I wrote
Kings of Georgian Britain and its follow-up about George I’s doomed marriage,
which ended in adultery and murder, Sophia was a major supporting character.
She was the mother of George I and had Stuart blood in her veins, so was a
fascinating character in her own right. As her part in George I’s story got
bigger and bigger, I knew that she had to have her own book.
That became Sophia: Mother of Kings. The same is true for
Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, who has become familiar to
Bridgerton fans lately, but has been a major supporting player in my
non-fiction works from the very first, Life in the Georgian Court.
I’ve just finished her biography, which will be released by
Pen & Sword in 2022, and it’s been a real privilege to spend time with her.

Do you have favourite characters/royals/persons/events in history?
Which ones?

This is a really difficult question for me, because there are just so many.
I’ll narrow it down to a favourite Georgian royal if I may, and choose
Electress Sophia, the founder of the dynasty in so many ways, and a woman
to be reckoned with. She missed out on being queen of the United Kingdom
by a matter of weeks, and I truly believe she is the finest queen we never had.
I also have a soft spot for George IV, but for all the wrong reasons. As a friend
or husband he would’ve been a nightmare, but as a figure who perfectly sums
up the most grotesquely opulent excesses of the era, he takes some beating.

Have you other hobbies or passions than history and writing?

I have a Master’s degree in film and a passion for Golden Age cinema. 

I spend so much time in front of screens that I need to keep my fresh air
topped up, and Pippa and I walk as much as we are able. We’re fortunate to
live among some beautiful countryside, and there’s never any shortage of
fresh air. I also love the theatre and my own play, Being Mr Wickham,
goes on tour in the autumn. I wrote the show with Adrian Lukis, who played
Wickham in the 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, and returns to
the role in our play, to lift the lid on Wickham at 60. 

How does a typical (writing) day look like?

A typical writing day isn’t too exciting, but it is generally pretty productive, 

and that’s what matters. I get up early and walk Pippa after Mr C has gone to 

work, then we eat breakfast before I head upstairs to my office and knuckle down.
Essentially I try to keep office hours as much as I can, otherwise I’m the sort of
person who could easily find themselves still happily writing away at 4am!
I’ll usually work at home or in our gorgeous village café until Mr C finishes work,
then take Pippa for a walk to meet him. The three of us will then go for a cuppa or
a bit more of a stroll if the weather is fine, then spend the evening relaxing as
much as possible. Writing is my full-time job, and in the past I’ve been guilty
of not giving myself time off. I’ve learned to be much better at that now –
when you’re working for yourself, you have to remember to look after
yourself too!

Do you have other plans for new books?

The Wives of George IV, the true story of Maria Fitzherbert and
Queen Caroline, will be out before Christmas. Next year will see the
release of my Queen Charlotte biography and also a tie-in book for
fans of Bridgerton, which will pull back the sheets on some of the era’s
sauciest scandals. After that There’ll also be exciting things happening
for Ellie Curzon, and Being Mr Wickham too, as well as lots more history!

I always end with the same question. What do you wish for yourself and
for the world? 

A contented and smiling future.

Thank you very much for participating in your Author in the picture blogpost on 
MyCrazyLifeWithBooks Blog. 

I'm looking forward to read your books and to follow your stories on Twitter!

If you want to know more about Catherine Curzon and Madame Gilflurt here

are some interesting pages and links!

Links

www.catherinecurzon.com

https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/The-Mistresses-of-George-I-and-II-Hardback/p/19112

https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Catherine-Curzon/a/2720

https://twitter.com/madamegilflurt

https://www.facebook.com/madamegilflurt

Author in the picture: Sarah Murden

First of all: thank you very much for participating in your “Author in the picture” blog on my bookblog. I’m very happy I may interview you because I’m always enjoying your books (I read All Things Georgian and the Dukes of Bolton) as well as your All Things Georgian Blog on this link.

The Books of Sarah Murden and Joanne Major are all available on Kobo Plus!

 

Questions and Answers

Who is Sarah Murden and when did you start writing & blogging?

I’m an 18^th century historian, genealogist and host of the blog All Things Georgian and have co-authored 5 nonfiction books with Joanne Major, all featuring people from the Georgian period. We began All Things Georgian a few years ago, in fact at the same time as we began writing, but I’ve been hosting it alone now for about 18 months.

 

Could you tell me more about your blog and books?

The blog takes a brief look at people, places and events in the Georgian period. To date there are over 600 articles in there everything from fashion to sport, to crime, the list is endless. I look at how people lived in the 18^th century, those who were famous or infamous to those you’ll never have heard of, but have an interesting story to tell, so in their absence I try to give them a voice. There’s quite a few about women, as I feel that it’s time they had more prominence in history.  

The books we have written are ‘An Infamous Mistress’, which is the biography of the courtesan, Grace Dalrymple Elliot and her family. The book which, although standalone, follows on from that is ‘A Right Royal Scandal’ which is about the next generations of Grace’s family and has links to our present royal family. The third one, is ‘A Georgian Heroine’ and is about a long forgotten Georgian woman, Rachel Charlotte Williams Biggs, who was abducted and assaulted by a would-be suitor, she manages to escape and reinvented herself into a sort of British spy in France, reporting back to the government and also, almost singlehandedly organised the gold jubilee for King George III. Our fourth book is ‘All Things Georgian’. This one isn’t a biography, but a collection of short stories written in the same format as the blog, so a book to dip into with just a chapter on each person/event, with plenty of glossy images too. For our latest book we have returned to a biography format, this one is ‘The Dukes of Bolton 1600-1815’ which takes a look at the Dukes of Bolton, in North Yorkshire over a period of just over 200 years, their role as British aristocrats during that period, their allegiance to the monarchy as well as the loves of their lives.

 

Why is the 18^th. Century your favourite era?

The 18^th century and early 19^th century were times of great change, both socially and economically, with developments in art, music, literature and science. With so such change taking place it provides a plenty of scope for someone like me to bring some of this information into the public domain, especially as it’s a period of history that is often ignored. The old newspapers of the time make for fascinating reading and that’s where I get much of my source material from.

 

Which history characters are your favourite ones?

I don’t have favourites as such, but if pushed, I’d have to that given that my tendency to focus on women’s history of the 18^th century, then I’d probably say Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire, for her beauty and taste in fashion and about whom you can find out more in Dr Amanda Foreman’s book, Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire; Lady Seymour Worsley née Fleming, for the gossip and scandal surrounding her, likewise, you can learn about her in Hallie Rubenhold’s book, The Scandalous Lady W and then Lady Mary Wortley Montagu for being brave and wise enough to have her 3 year old daughter inoculated against smallpox, setting a trend that would benefit the world, whose life can be read in a brand new book written by Jo Willett, The Pioneering Life of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu: Scientist and Feminist. All very different characters, but all fascinating in their own way.

What do you like the most about history? The scandals, the stories, the people, the palaces …. ?

I have to confess, although rather superficial I know, I do enjoy a bit of gossip from the 18^th century. There’s nothing more fun than a juicy piece of scandal to delve into, especially when it relates to women’s history and if possible, I do like to try to determine the facts from the fiction.

 

How does a typical writing/blogging day look like at your place?

When I used to research with Joanne it worked really well, as I’m an early bird and for me research/ writing at 5am is a regular occurrence, whereas Jo preferred a late start and would go on into the early hours of the morning, so it was quite common for my first email of the day to be one sent late at night by Jo, saying ‘Urgent’ or ‘Read me now’ when she’d found something really interesting. Working alone now though, the schedule remains the same, I’m always at my best early morning, with copious amounts of caffeine at the side of me. Then it’s head down and start with the days research, which rarely ends as I had planned, as I easily get distracted by anything that catches my eye, usually from an old newspaper and that ends me off down a proverbial rabbit hole to find out more. I find that I need peace and quiet to concentrate, so I’m lucky enough to live in rural Lincolnshire where I can enjoy the countryside views from my desk and spot the occasional bird of prey hovering overhead, or a muntjac running across the field, or be deafened by the amazing, RAF Typhoons flying over throughout the day.

 

What’s on your to-read and to-do list?

Oh goodness, I have so many books on my to-read list I wouldn’t know where to begin with that one, apart from that I’d like to learn more about 18^th century fashion so there are plenty to choose from on that subject. There are so many great books I really must make time to read, but if I’m being totally honest, I have little time to read for pleasure as most of my reading these days is purely for research.

Have you always wanted to become an historian/genealogist? 

Yes, definitely. I’ve always been interested in history and grew up within a few minutes of Lord Byron’s home, Newstead Abbey in Nottinghamshire, which I visited regularly, so it seemed inevitable that 18th century history was my thing and my degree allowed me to build on that interest. I also thoroughly enjoy genealogy and that helps when trying to build a picture of someone’s life, as well as finding unknown facts about people

 

Do you have hints for beginning bloggers and authors?

Find a subject you’re passionate about and either set up your own website or use something like WordPress, which is what I use for All Things Georgian, and get writing. When we began writing the blog it was really just a place to put information that was superfluous to the book we were working on, we didn’t really think anyone would read it … but much to our amazement they did, and to date there are over 600 articles on there and over 1.5 million people have read it, which is mind-blowing, we hoped that maybe half a dozen people might be interested in our scribblings, how wrong we were. Make sure you also promote your blog on social media platforms so that people know who you are and what you write about. Again, for potential authors write about a subject that you’re passionate about and when you’re ready try to find a publisher – easier said than done though, but persevere, or, as many people do now and try the self-publishing route.

 

I always end with the same question: What are your dreams/wishes for you and the world?

Right now, I’m just incredibly pleased to have survived this past dreadful year and my hope for the world is that life will eventually return to some form of normality.

To know more about Sarah

Check the blog: all things Georgian on this link 

Sarah Murden is on Twitter on this link. @sarahmurden

Sarah Murden is on Amazon on this link.