This Cultural Life

Author Douglas Stuart talks to John Wilson about some of the aspects of his life that inspired him to write his multi award-winning debut novel Shuggie Bain. The book tells the story of a young boy growing up in poverty in Glasgow in the 1980s, and is based on Stuart's own childhood and relationship with his mother who struggled with alcohol addiction. He also discusses his career as a fashion des...

Kwame Kwei-Armah shares some of the influences that have had a significant impact on his career in the theatre. He became a household name playing paramedic Finlay Newton in BBC One's Casualty, while at the same time pursuing a career in writing. His award-winning plays including Elmina's Kitchen and Statement of Regret have been staged at the National Theatre. He tells John Wilson about his early...

Musician Evelyn Glennie talks to John Wilson about her career and some of the key cultural turning points of her life. From growing up in rural Aberdeenshire and becoming profoundly deaf at a young age, she traces her route to fulfilling her ambition of being the first full-time solo percussionist. She recalls her early musical influences; her teacher, the renowned percussionist James Blades at th...

Author and columnist Caitlin Moran talks to John Wilson about some of the works and events that have had the biggest influence on her writing career. The eldest of eight children, she was home-schooled and raised on a council estate in Wolverhampton. At just 16 years old she published her first novel, became a music journalist, and started writing regular columns in the national press. She explain...

Cuban ballet star Carlos Acosta talks to John Wilson about some of the key moments of his cultural life. He discusses the influence of his father, his early love of breakdancing in the streets of Havana and the devastating effects of on life in Cuba after the collapse of Communism around the world. He also recalls his breakthrough moment winning the prestigious Prix de Lausanne ballet competition...

Film-maker Mike Leigh talks to John Wilson about his cultural influences and some of the moments that have had an impact on his creative life. He reveals how a life-drawing class at art college proved to be a formative influence on his later film-making career. He also discusses the influence of 1960s world cinema, particularly the French new wave, and explores in detail his unique process of film...

Artist Tracey Emin talks openly and honestly to John Wilson about her controversial career and her life, including her experiences of cancer and abortion. She reveals some of the deeply personal aspects of her life that have shaped her work and chooses the moments that have had a profound effect on her art including the extraordinary effect that a painting by Mark Rothko had on her as a young woma...

Paul McCartney talks to John Wilson about his key influences and inspirations. In a candid conversation, in which he discusses his relationship with John Lennon, the break-up of The Beatles and his six decade career, he reveals some of his most formative artistic experiences and his creative process. Producer: Edwina Pitman

Author Bernardine Evaristo talks to John Wilson about the formative experiences and cultural influences that have had a profound effect on her work. She looks back on her early childhood in South London, the racism she encountered and how she found her artistic voice attending a youth theatre group. She reveals the influence of her Catholic upbringing on her writing, and the personal relationships...

Actor and filmmaker Sir Kenneth Branagh talks to John Wilson for the first of a new series of interviews in which the world’s leading cultural figures discuss their key influences and inspirations. In a wide-ranging conversation, Branagh reveals some of his most formative artistic experiences and his creative process. He remembers his working class upbringing in late 60s Northern Ireland at the st...

Candid conversations with the world’s leading cultural figures about what has fired their imagination and sparked their creativity.