Even then, children were expected to share a bed.ġ8th century woodcut of a bundling couple. It wasn’t until Georgian times that a couple began to expect privacy as they slept. In medieval times, the family often shared their bedroom with people they did not know.

A bed was for sleeping people had sex elsewhere. The bedroom was a crowded and semi-public space. I was struck by the evolution of the bedroom. Until quite recently in historic terms, there were not enough rooms in a house to provide a separate room for sleeping. Click here to read her excellent post, The Georgian Kitchen. In Austenonly, Julie Wakefield discusses the evolution of the kitchen. This video provides a perfect introduction to the book: The book answers questions like: Why did the flushing toilet take two centuries to catch on? Why were kitchens cut off from the rest of a home? And did strangers really share beds as recently as a century ago? (Yes, they did.) – If Walls Could Talk The differences between her home and her workplace inspired Worsley to research the history of the home, which she details in her new book If Walls Could Talk. In contrast, she lives in what she calls a “normal, boring modern flat.” Lucy Worsley works as the chief curator in several palatial buildings in London, including Kensington Palace, Hampton Court Palace and the Tower of London. I listened to Terry’s interview with Lucy and was mesmerized. As is often the case, I am among the last to know. The video series was also shown on BBC last fall. This interview came almost a year after the book was introduced in the UK.

On March 13, I had a most delightful listen when Terry Gross interviewed Lucy Worsley, the author of If Walls Could Talk: An intimate History of the Home. A woman who far from being a lonely spinster in fact had at least five marriage prospects, but who in the end refused to settle for anything less than Mr Darcy.I love to listen to Fresh Air when I am walking my dog. Jane famously lived a ‘life without incident’, but with new research and insights Lucy Worsley reveals a passionate woman who fought for her freedom. It wasn’t all country houses and ballrooms, but a life that was often a painful struggle. This new telling of the story of Jane’s life shows us how and why she lived as she did, examining the places and spaces that mattered to her. On the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen’s death, historian Lucy Worsley leads us into the rooms from which our best-loved novelist quietly changed the world. Lucy Worsley ‘is a great scene-setter for this tale of triumph and heartbreak.’ Sunday Times ‘A refreshingly unique perspective on Austen and her work and a beautifully nuanced exploration of gender, creativity, and domesticity.’ Amanda Foreman ‘This is my kind of history: carefully researched but so vivid that you are convinced Lucy Worsley was actually there at the party – or the parsonage.’ Antonia Fraser

Jane Austen at Home by Lucy Worsley