Libby Purves meets historian Thomas Pakenham; actor Janice Connolly; Asfa-Wossen Asserate, the great-nephew of Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia and ecologist Hugh Warwick.
Janice Connolly is an actor and comic who stars in the BBC Radio 2 sit com Barbara Nice, part of the network's Comedy Showcase season. The show is based around her character Barbara, a housewife from Stockport, mother of five and occasional stage-diver. Janice played in a range of punk bands before moving into comedy. She was discovered by Peter Kay and starred as Holy Mary in both series of Phoenix Nights. Barbara Nice is broadcast on BBC Radio 2.
Thomas Pakenham, the 8th Earl of Longford, is a writer, historian, photographer and champion of trees. In his latest book, The Company of Trees, he recounts his personal quest to establish an arboretum on the family estate, Tullynally, in Ireland. He writes about his often hazardous plant-hunting expeditions and his efforts to preserve old trees and historic woodland. He is chairman of the Irish Tree Society. The Company of Trees - A Year in a Lifetime's Quest is published by Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
Prince Asfa-Wossen Asserate is a member of the Imperial House of Ethiopia. A political analyst, his book King of Kings tells the story of his great-uncle, Emperor Haile Selassie I. The book follows the emperor's story from his early life and coronation to exile and then return to his country where he fought alongside the Allies during World War Two. His downfall and death followed a military coup in Ethiopia in 1974. King of Kings - The Triumph and Tragedy of Haile Selassie I of Ethiopia is published by Haus Publishing.
Hugh Warwick is an ecologist and writer who has studied hedgehogs for 25 years. He is the author of A Prickly Affair - My Life with Hedgehogs and is a spokesperson for the British Hedgehog Preservation Society. He is running The Day of the Hedgehog - a hedgehog summit in which experts will launch a ten year conservation strategy for the species. The Day of the Hedgehog is at The International Centre in Telford.
Producer: Paula McGinley. Show less