Listen free for 30 days
-
Encounters with Victoria
- Queen Victoria's Reign Through Significant Meetings
- Narrated by: full cast, Lucy Worsley
- Length: 2 hrs and 14 mins
- Radio/TV Programme
- Categories: Arts & Entertainment, Entertainment & Performing Arts
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Listen with a free trial
Buy Now for £25.99
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Queen Victoria
- Daughter, Wife, Mother, Widow
- By: Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Lucy Paterson, Lucy Worsley
- Length: 13 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author and historian Lucy Worsley tracks a new course through Queen Victoria's life, examining how she transformed from dancing princess to the Widow of Windsor and became one of Britain's greatest monarchs along the way. Taking 24 significant days from Victoria's life, from her birth, her wedding and her coronation to her husband's death, and many more in between, allows us to see Victoria up close and personal, examining how she lived hour to hour.
-
-
Excellent book
- By Samantha cross on 27-09-18
-
Jane Austen at Home
- By: Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Ruth Redman, Lucy Worsley
- Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen's death, historian Lucy Worsley leads us into the world in which our best-loved novelist lived. This new telling of the story of Jane's life shows us how and why she lived as she did, examining the rooms, spaces and possessions which mattered to her and the way in which home is used in her novels to mean both a place of pleasure and a prison. It wasn't all country houses and ballrooms; in fact her life was often a painful struggle.
-
-
Outstanding!
- By Gabrielle Harvey-Jones on 27-05-17
-
The Austen Girls
- By: Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Sarah Ovens
- Length: 5 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Would she ever find a real-life husband? Would she even find a partner to dance with at tonight’s ball? She just didn’t know. Anna Austen has always been told she must marry rich. Her future depends upon it. While her dear cousin Fanny has a little more choice, she too is under pressure to find a suitor. But how can either girl know what she wants? Is finding love even an option? The only person who seems to have answers is their Aunt Jane. She has never married. In fact, she’s perfectly happy, so surely being single can’t be such a bad thing?
-
-
Disappointing and simplistic
- By FAB.S on 23-01-21
-
Women
- Our History
- By: DK, Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Stephanie Racine
- Length: 11 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Stephanie Racine narrates Women: Our History, which reexamines history from a female perspective. Packed full of evocative facts, and with a foreword by Lucy Worsley, this audiobook reveals the key events in women's history - from early matriarchal societies through women's suffrage, the Suffragette movement, 20th-century feminism and gender politics, to recent movements such as #MeToo and International Women's Day - and the key role women have had in shaping our past.
-
Eliza Rose
- By: Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Imogen Wilde
- Length: 6 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
"I would often wonder about my future husband. A knight? A duke? A stable boy? Of course the last was just a wicked fancy." Eliza Rose Camperdowne is young and headstrong, but she knows her duty well. As the only daughter of a noble family, she must one day marry a man who is very grand and very rich. But Fate has other plans. When Eliza becomes a maid of honour, she's drawn into the thrilling, treacherous court of Henry VIII.... Is her glamorous cousin Katherine Howard a friend or a rival?
-
-
Not the best historical fiction ever.
- By Elizabeth Stinchcombe on 04-07-17
-
Ask a Historian
- 50 Surprising Answers to Things You Always Wanted to Know
- By: Greg Jenner
- Narrated by: Dan Schreiber, Greg Jenner, Janina Ramirez, and others
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Ask a Historian, the author, BBC podcaster and public historian Greg Jenner provides answers to things you always wondered about but didn't know who to ask. Responding to 50 genuine questions from the public, Greg whisks you off on an entertaining tour through the ages, revealing the best and most surprising stories, facts and historical characters from the past.
-
-
Really entertaining
- By Valerie Bayliss on 08-11-21
-
Queen Victoria
- Daughter, Wife, Mother, Widow
- By: Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Lucy Paterson, Lucy Worsley
- Length: 13 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Best-selling author and historian Lucy Worsley tracks a new course through Queen Victoria's life, examining how she transformed from dancing princess to the Widow of Windsor and became one of Britain's greatest monarchs along the way. Taking 24 significant days from Victoria's life, from her birth, her wedding and her coronation to her husband's death, and many more in between, allows us to see Victoria up close and personal, examining how she lived hour to hour.
-
-
Excellent book
- By Samantha cross on 27-09-18
-
Jane Austen at Home
- By: Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Ruth Redman, Lucy Worsley
- Length: 14 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the 200th anniversary of Jane Austen's death, historian Lucy Worsley leads us into the world in which our best-loved novelist lived. This new telling of the story of Jane's life shows us how and why she lived as she did, examining the rooms, spaces and possessions which mattered to her and the way in which home is used in her novels to mean both a place of pleasure and a prison. It wasn't all country houses and ballrooms; in fact her life was often a painful struggle.
-
-
Outstanding!
- By Gabrielle Harvey-Jones on 27-05-17
-
The Austen Girls
- By: Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Sarah Ovens
- Length: 5 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Would she ever find a real-life husband? Would she even find a partner to dance with at tonight’s ball? She just didn’t know. Anna Austen has always been told she must marry rich. Her future depends upon it. While her dear cousin Fanny has a little more choice, she too is under pressure to find a suitor. But how can either girl know what she wants? Is finding love even an option? The only person who seems to have answers is their Aunt Jane. She has never married. In fact, she’s perfectly happy, so surely being single can’t be such a bad thing?
-
-
Disappointing and simplistic
- By FAB.S on 23-01-21
-
Women
- Our History
- By: DK, Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Stephanie Racine
- Length: 11 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Stephanie Racine narrates Women: Our History, which reexamines history from a female perspective. Packed full of evocative facts, and with a foreword by Lucy Worsley, this audiobook reveals the key events in women's history - from early matriarchal societies through women's suffrage, the Suffragette movement, 20th-century feminism and gender politics, to recent movements such as #MeToo and International Women's Day - and the key role women have had in shaping our past.
-
Eliza Rose
- By: Lucy Worsley
- Narrated by: Imogen Wilde
- Length: 6 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
"I would often wonder about my future husband. A knight? A duke? A stable boy? Of course the last was just a wicked fancy." Eliza Rose Camperdowne is young and headstrong, but she knows her duty well. As the only daughter of a noble family, she must one day marry a man who is very grand and very rich. But Fate has other plans. When Eliza becomes a maid of honour, she's drawn into the thrilling, treacherous court of Henry VIII.... Is her glamorous cousin Katherine Howard a friend or a rival?
-
-
Not the best historical fiction ever.
- By Elizabeth Stinchcombe on 04-07-17
-
Ask a Historian
- 50 Surprising Answers to Things You Always Wanted to Know
- By: Greg Jenner
- Narrated by: Dan Schreiber, Greg Jenner, Janina Ramirez, and others
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Ask a Historian, the author, BBC podcaster and public historian Greg Jenner provides answers to things you always wondered about but didn't know who to ask. Responding to 50 genuine questions from the public, Greg whisks you off on an entertaining tour through the ages, revealing the best and most surprising stories, facts and historical characters from the past.
-
-
Really entertaining
- By Valerie Bayliss on 08-11-21
-
Murder Before Evensong
- A Canon Clement Mystery
- By: Reverend Richard Coles
- Narrated by: Reverend Richard Coles
- Length: 7 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Canon Daniel Clement is rector of Champton. He has been there for eight years, living at the rectory alongside his widowed mother—opinionated, fearless, ever-so-slightly annoying Audrey—and his two dachshunds, Cosmo and Hilda. When Daniel announces a plan to install a lavatory in church, the parish is suddenly (and unexpectedly) divided: as lines are drawn in the community, long-buried secrets come dangerously close to destroying the apparent calm of Champton. And then Anthony Bowness is found dead at the back of the church, stabbed in the neck with a pair of secateurs.
-
-
The book holds one’s interest
- By Ms. on 13-06-22
-
Queen Victoria's Mysterious Daughter
- A Biography of Princess Louise
- By: Lucinda Hawksley
- Narrated by: Jennifer M. Dixon
- Length: 16 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The secrets of Queen Victoria's sixth child, Princess Louise, may be destined to remain hidden forever. What was so dangerous about this artistic, tempestuous royal that her life has been documented more by rumor and gossip than hard facts? When Lucinda Hawksley started to investigate, often thwarted by inexplicable secrecy, she discovered a fascinating woman, modern before her time, whose story has been shielded for years from public view.
-
-
Intriguing study but odd narrator
- By MB on 10-03-19
-
The Private Lives of the Tudors
- Uncovering the Secrets of Britain's Greatest Dynasty
- By: Tracy Borman
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble, Sandra Duncan
- Length: 15 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Tudor monarchs were constantly surrounded by an army of attendants, courtiers and ministers. Even in their most private moments, they were accompanied by a servant specifically appointed for the task. A groom of the stool would stand patiently by as Henry VIII performed his daily purges, and when Elizabeth I retired for the evening, one of her female servants would sleep at the end of her bed. These attendants knew the truth behind the glamorous exterior.
-
-
Utterly absorbing!
- By Gabrielle Harvey-Jones on 19-06-16
-
This Much Is True
- By: Miriam Margolyes
- Narrated by: Miriam Margolyes
- Length: 15 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Award-winning actor, creator of a myriad of memorable characters from Lady Whiteadder to Professor Sprout, Miriam Margolyes is a national treasure. Now, at last, at the age of 80, she has finally decided to tell her extraordinary life story. And it's far richer and stranger than any part she's played.
-
-
Frank & Funny
- By John C. Patterson on 23-09-21
-
Harry Potter: A History of Magic
- An Audio Documentary
- By: Pottermore Publishing, Ben Davies
- Narrated by: Natalie Dormer
- Length: 11 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The history of magic is as long as time and as wide as the world. In every culture, in every age, in every place and, probably, in every heart, there is magic. Harry Potter: A History of Magic reveals some of the hidden stories behind real-world magic and explores some of J.K. Rowling's magical inventions alongside their folkloric, cultural and historical forebears.
-
-
Better as a documentary - read review to the end
- By Sarah on 04-10-18
-
How to Behave Badly in Renaissance Britain
- By: Ruth Goodman
- Narrated by: Ruth Goodman
- Length: 9 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Historian and popular TV presenter Ruth Goodman offers up a history of offensive language, insulting gestures, insolent behaviour, brawling and scandal in the 16th and 17th centuries - with practical tips on just how to horrify the neighbours. From royalty to peasantry, every age has its bad eggs, those who break all the rules and rub everyone up the wrong way. But their niggling, antisocial and irritating ways tell us about not only what upset people but also what mattered to them, how their society functioned and what kind of world they lived in.
-
-
Joyous!
- By Mrs Trellis on 14-01-19
-
Medical Downfall of the Tudors
- Sex, Reproduction & Succession
- By: Sylvia Barbara Soberton
- Narrated by: Christine Rendel
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Tudor dynasty died out because there was no heir of Elizabeth I's body to succeed her. Henry VIII, despite his six marriages, had produced no legitimate son who would live into old age. Three of the reigning Tudors (Edward VI, Mary I, and Elizabeth I) died without heirs apparent, the most tragic case being that of Mary Tudor, who went through two recorded cases of phantom pregnancy. If it were not for physical frailty and the lack of reproductive health among the Tudors, the course of history might have been different.
-
-
Sigh!
- By D. on 04-05-22
-
Elizabeth
- By: David Starkey
- Narrated by: Patricia Hodge
- Length: 3 hrs and 5 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An abused child, yet confident of her destiny to reign, a woman in a man's world, passionately sexual yet, she said, a virgin, Elizabeth I was to be famed as England's most successful ruler. This absorbing new book, by concentrating on the early years from her birth in 1533 to her accession in 1558, shows how her experiences of danger and adventure formed her remarkable character and shaped her opinions and beliefs.
-
-
Very enjoyable
- By Teebs on 23-06-16
-
Queen Elizabeth
- The Queen Mother: The Official Biography
- By: William Shawcross
- Narrated by: William Shawcross, Sophie Roberts
- Length: 9 hrs and 47 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes Lyon,the youngest daughter of the Earl of Strathmore, was born on 4 August 1900. It might reasonably have been expected that she would lead a life of ease and privilege but few could have imagined the profound effect she would have on Britain and its people. Her life spanned the whole of the 20th century and this official biography tells not only her story but, through it, that of the country she loved so devotedly.
-
-
A charming period piece
- By Kl Love on 13-04-13
-
Princess Mary
- The First Modern Princess
- By: Elisabeth Basford, Hugo Vickers - foreword
- Narrated by: Jennifer M. Dixon
- Length: 9 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Princess Diana is seen as the first member of the British royal family to tear up the rulebook, and the duchess of Cambridge is modernizing the monarchy in strides. But before them was another who paved the way: Princess Mary.
-
-
Royal fan! ♥️
- By Helen Roycroft on 11-04-22
-
Queen Victoria
- By: Elizabeth Longford
- Narrated by: Julia Franklin, Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 33 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Queen Victoria, a woman of diminutive stature and superabundant temperament, gave her name to something more than an age. Elizabeth Longford's classic biography won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize when it was first published in 1964. The author's grasp of the era's politics, and her understanding of the problems which confront a woman who is not only a queen but also a mother of a large high-spirited family, make this audiobook unique to this day.
-
-
A Historical Masterpiece
- By Anonymous User on 15-05-19
-
Mistresses
- Sex and Scandal at the Court of Charles II
- By: Linda Porter
- Narrated by: Julie Teal
- Length: 8 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
According to the great diarist John Evelyn, Charles II was ‘addicted to women’, and throughout his long reign a great many succumbed to his charms. Clever, urbane and handsome, Charles presided over a hedonistic court, in which licence and licentiousness prevailed. Drawing on a wide variety of original sources, including material in private archives, Linda Porter paints a vivid picture of these women and of Restoration England, an era that was both glamorous and sordid.
-
-
Restoration naughtiness.
- By Campesque on 22-08-20
Summary
Lucy Worsley presents a 10-part BBC radio exploration of Queen Victoria’s reign via notable encounters.
In this revealing series, acclaimed historian and Chief Curator at Historic Royal Palaces Lucy Worsley explores the reign of Queen Victoria through pivotal figures in her life. We meet 10 key individuals - some well known, others less so - and find out how they influenced the queen, what she thought of them - and what they thought of her.
Beginning with Victoria’s prime minister and closest advisor, Lord Melbourne, Worsley goes on to introduce us to the queen’s lady-in-waiting, Lady Flora Hastings; the Mayor of Newport, Thomas Phillips, governess Louise Lehzen; and two popular American entertainers, Tom Thumb and Buffalo Bill - as well as dresser Frieda Arnold; celebrity nurse Florence Nightingale; royal ‘favourite’ Abdul Karim; and Bishop Randall Davidson.
There are also encounters of a different kind, as Lucy Worsley chronicles Victoria’s grief at the death of her husband, Prince Albert, and records Victoria’s own final days and the crowd of people who gathered as Britain’s longest reigning monarch breathed her last.
Travelling from Kensington Palace to a luxury hotel on the Côte d’Azur, Worsley talks to eminent writers and historians and draws on letters and diaries including the queen’s own journal to provide fascinating insight into Victoria’s world and those who helped shape it.
- Accession Day and Kinky Lord M - 1837
With historian Philip Ziegler - Poor Lady Flora - 1839
With historian Kathryn Hughes - A Wounded Welshman - 9 December 1839
With historians Les James and Rhian E. Jones and curator Oliver Blackmore - The Governess - 3 September 1842
With Historic Royal Palaces curator Claudia Williams - American Idols - 1844 and 1887
With historian Helen Davies and V&A curator and writer Nicholas Rankin - The Dresser - Frieda Arnold, 1854
With Beatrice Behlen, Senior Curator at the Museum of London, and Joanna Marschner, Senior Curator at Historic Royal Palaces, Kensington Palace - A Nightingale at Balmoral - Florence Nightingale - September 1856
With historian Mark Bostridge - An Encounter with Death - 13 December 1861
With historian Helen Rappaport - Mutiny Against an Indian - 1897
With historians Priya Atwal and Shrabani Basu - The Sinking of a Great Ship - Bishop Randall Davidson - 25th January 1901
With writer and historian A.N. Wilson
Extracts from Queen Victoria’s Journals by Gracious Permission of Her Majesty The Queen.
More from the same
What listeners say about Encounters with Victoria
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mike S.
- 09-03-22
Poor sound in places,
Great story but poor sound quality, especially when Ms Worsley is speaking. Volume levels keep changing.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Beverly
- 20-03-20
Love Dr Worsley's books
I love that she finally got around to narrating something herself. fascinating look into the queen and her life.
5 people found this helpful