#matthew bagwell

[bridgertonbabe]

Edwina's Children

For @edwinaweek I thought I'd share my headcanon for Edwina and Matthew Bagwell's children as part of my Bridgerton: The Next Generation series.

Jeremy Bagwell is born the day before his cousin Edmund's first birthday, and throughout their childhood the Bridgerton and Bagwell families would celebrate the birthdays together at Aubrey Hall, which was always an anticipated highlight of Jeremy's year. He was a very easy baby and rather quiet much to his parents curious disbelief, especially in comparison to the energetic chaos his cousins wreaked on a daily basis. But as he grew, it became apparent that Jeremy was simply a boy of a quieter nature, who was more than content with his own company and much preferred the peace and tranquility of his parents' library than the rough and tumble of the great outdoors. His favourite pastime was being read to by his parents, an activity which he didn't want to limit to just bedtime alone and he would eagerly run up to either parent throughout the day with books in hand requesting to be read to. When he was old enough to read himself he permanently had his head buried in a book, and he could often be found alongside his father in the library as they separately studied their favoured texts. Much like is father, Jeremy would go on to be a scholar, but instead of philosophy, Jeremy opted to become a professor of his lifelong passion; history. So engrossed was he with his educational role, he never showed much interest in settling down or even courting any of the eligible young ladies of the Ton. He never much cared for balls and parties, with the only social events he ever made an effort to attend being those hosted by his Aunt Kate. While he tended to stick close to his relatives, at one particular ball he slipped away to the library of Bridgerton House in search of a textbook he hadn't reread in several years; only to find the season's diamond tucked away reading the exact book he was after. Miss Theodosia Barrington was a reluctant diamond and had been shocked to named as the season's incomparable, especially when she hadn't wanted to take her bow in society in the first place. Much to his surprise Jeremy felt an instant bond with her, and then to his even greater surprise by the end of the season he had married a diamond of the first water, just like his father had before him.

Three years after their first, Edwina and Matthew welcomed baby number two, Francis, into the world. From very early on Francis was an incredibly smiley baby who adored every show of affection he was spoiled with. While his brother was happy to be independent and do his own thing, Francis loved being surrounded by others and would trail after his Mama, Papa, his brother Jem, the household staff, and any guests that came to visit. Someone he adored in particular was his dear Grandmama Mary, who he always ecstatically greeted with a great big hug and whose lap was his most favourite seat. In turn (as much as she claimed not to have favourites among her grandchildren), Mary couldn't help but possess a special fondness for Francis, not just in the way he loved her abundantly, but how his smile and shining eyes were the most reminiscent of her late husband out of her four grandsons. Francis thoroughly enjoyed his stays at Aubrey Hall throughout the years and loved running after his older cousins Edmund and Miles, as well as his cousins' cousins too, happily integrating himself among them as they played games together and hurtled around from one end of the estate to the other. His outgoing and personable nature carried on into adulthood, making plenty of friends along the way during his years abroad, as well as befriending perfect strangers in any ballroom and assembly room he stepped foot into. As delightfully affable and pleasing as Francis was, there were two weaknesses he possessed; pretty girls and suggestibility. With the former he often tended to fall hard and fast for ladies with winsome smiles and sweet temperaments, and had ended up suffering from a string of heartbreaks as a result. The latter was arguably the bigger flaw for him because as confident a young man as he was, he still relied on the approval of those in his life who he looked up to the most and would end up swaying to agree with whatever his role models advised of him in spite of his own thoughts and feelings on the respective matter at hand.

After another three year gap, the Bagwells welcomed their little girl, Maryam, born a month after her Cousin Charlotte. Edwina and Kate loved having daughters so close in age and much to Mary's amusement, Maryam was practically identical to Edwina as Charlotte was to Kate, and watching her granddaughters play and spend time together was just like watching Kate and Edwina twenty odd years before them. Maryam loved her big brothers and copied them both despite their contrasting natures; she'd lark and dance about with Francis as often as she would take a seat next to Jeremy and read a book alongside him (which she adorably did even before she had learnt how to read). She also loved to copy her Mama and enjoyed playing dress up in her mother's gowns and having her Mama style her hair to match hers. From a young age she adored bedtime stories of handsome princes and falling in love after a single dance, and naturally Edwina couldn't help bracing herself for the day her daughter wanted to make her debut into society and all the hopeless romantic antics it may bring - however Edwina was surprised when Maryam came to her about her debut and made the odd request to spend as little money on her gowns as possible. When Edwina asked why, Maryam expressed her worry of impressing the Queen too much and potentially ending up as diamond of the season just like her, not wanting to suffer the same pressures as Edwina had during her season. Sympathetic to her woes, Edwina assured her daughter that regardless if she was the diamond or not, she shouldn't feel burdened by any pressures of securing a prosperous match for the sake of bettering their family; all she wanted for her daughter was to find a love match and secure her happiness. With the reassurance that she would only be expected to marry for love, Maryam enjoyed her debut season alongside her Cousin Charlotte. Sure, not all the suitors she danced with or who called upon her impressed her much, but she was in no real rush to find her perfect match just yet - that is, until she attended David Basset's wedding and was introduced to the bride's brother, Mr. Benedict Woodson.

[apinchofm]

In Her Own Right

Lord Sheffield approaches the Sharmas with an offer, and Edwina learns to negotiate her own future.

[viscountessevie]

SO TRUE BESTIE! Also to throw Bagwell my beloved in cos I love them (I see both Mr and Miss Bagwell for Eddie ehehe)!!

I think by default, Kate will love whoever Eddie loves and who loves her back while treating her well. And you KNOW Bagwell is THAT person for Eddie so Kate is definitely closer to her side of the family and in-laws for sure and then followed by the Bridgerton clan.

I know The Bridgertons™ are the series protags but it's also interesting to think about the spouses' familes and lives. I think Kate would appreciate having that quiter space sometimes with the Sharmas and Bagwells!

[newtonsheffield]

Okay but please tell me karma bites Edwina in the ass when Anthony and Tharman get a new coworker by the name of Matthew Bagwell (aka Goose as per his mum)

Oh my god imagine.

Edwina just scoffing at Kate like “I literally cannot believe that you’re getting engaged to the guy Dad set you up with. I’m embarrassed for you.”

Kate raised her eyebrow “Do you have time for a few amendments?”

“We’ll see?”

“One: I met Anthony first. 2: I don’t know if Anthony’s going to propose, I just saw him in a jewelry store with Ben and Daphne. They could have been buying anything”

“If it wasn’t an engagement ring, I’ll date the next guy Dad asks me to.”

“Are you sure you want to lock yourself into that?”

“I’m confident.”

And all of a sudden, Kate’s engaged and Edwina’s somehow trapped between her Dad and a man named Goose that her Dad apparently met at chess club.

And damnit, he’s fucking hot

[boymeetsworldconfessions]

ABOUT:

Teddy "Beanbag" Bagwell is a baseball player that was 2 hit-by-pitches away from the all-time record. After getting hit once more, though, a stretcher was required and Bagwell announced to the crowd, "Today I consider myself the stupidest man on the face of the Earth. I quit baseball."

Versailles was Cory Matthews's French girlfriend in the episode No Guts, No Cory. She was a waitress in a local bakery. After serving in World War II, Cory was injured in a blast when running into enemy territory, and he lost all memories of his life, family, and girlfriend Topanga. He resumed his life in Paris under the name "Pierre" with no recollection of his past life, and fell in love with Versailles.

[guywrestlingaddiction]

What Turned me Gay (Not Really) - OTK Backbreaker

It took me a while to admit that erotic wrestling was my thing. In fact there was a period of time when I deluded myself into thinking I was into the athleticism *cough cough* involved in wrestling.  Low and behold, one day I did have an epiphany, a wake up call of sorts, when the homo eroticism of wrestling was far too obvious to hide and that was the day I saw the Over the knee backbreaker.

What turned me gay (not really) ... 

Evan Karagias v Chris Jericho - Over the Knee Backbreaker

This post, inspired by the sidelineland.com blog, takes a tongue and cheek look into "what made me gay (not really)" and I have to say, this move didn't so much turn me anything, but rather made it impossible to deny that Wrestling = Erotic.

I couldn't not show Alex Wright in this position

Arn Anderson v Marcus Bagwell Image Credit: wrestlingarsenal.net

So picture it, me, a young boy watching WCW when all of sudden I am awe struck by the sight of a wrestler in an Over the Knee (OTK) Backbreaker.  To say the hold was emasculating was an understatement, and to say that the move got me excited was an overshare.  Needless to say the hold itself awakened something inside of me.  I recall being glued to the television set and riveted by the action taking place on screen, so much so that my brother gave me a hard time about liking the hold, a bit too much.  

Brother: "That hold is weak and totally fake. Why do you keep rewinding it to watch it?  I bet it doesn't even hurt."

Me: "..." 

Brother: "I mean it looks dumb. And it's sooooo gay."

Me: "..." [Grabs pillow to place on my lap] 

Now there are obviously many an erotic wrestling hold out there and the OTK backbreaker is not overtly sexual, so what was it about it that had such a pull on me in a youth?  The crotch claw comes to mind as another erotic wrestling hold and so do many types of pins, so what's special about this?  

Well, what makes the OTK backbreaker special to me is that it contains a certain exhibition, dominance, and most of all, a vanity to it.  Few other holds out there can match the OTK backbreaker as a way to showcase your sexy jobber to the audience.  Furthermore, it also requires an eagerness to submit to your heel as the hold demands the cooperation of the jobber in order to work.  Now if that combination doesn't deserve deeper thought, then I don't know what does.  

What I would've given to have access to all these OTK images way back then ... *sigh*

Cameron Matthews v Lorenzo Lowe (bgeast.com)

Travis Bennett v Taylor Reign (muscleboywrestling.com)

Jeff Clark v Flash (nrwrestling.com)

Cai Li v Champion Axel (ucwrestling.com)

Austin Cooper v Drake Marcos (bgeast.com)

The parody movie, But I'm a Cheerleader, constantly reminds the audience that homosexuality has a root and that finding that root is important - now I'm not sure I buy into any of that, but that's really not the point;  For me at least, from that moment on, I simply couldn't ignore wrestling or create convincing delusions or excuses on why I really watched it.  

You see, the sight of a handsome Evan Karagias bent over Chris Jericho's knee was a root of sorts.  After that, there was simply no going back to my other fantasies and without a doubt the OTK backbreaker turned me gay (not really). 

Evan spends a good 15-20 seconds on Chris' knee

-

For the original post, check out:

[fitrahgolden]

Story Prompt: Your lips move, but I can't hear what you're saying 🎥 🇵🇬 🎧 🎙 🛩 🌏

Kathani Sharma is a renowned documentarian (following in the steps of her father and birth mother) with a background in linguistics and is herself a polyglot. Her next documentary will be principally filmed in the country whose population speaks more languages than any other country in the world, Papua New Guinea. Kate takes on the writing, directing, and editing. Her brother in law, Matthew Bagwell, is her cinematographer. Linguistics professor and fellow polyglot Thomas Dorset will provide assistance in research and procuring interpreters. And then there's Anthony Bridgerton, her sound engineer and pain in the ass, but in a way Kate kind of loves, and maybe can't live without?

[kanthypantsalltheway]

Hey, do you have any idea who Edwina is paired up with?

Ok, so my best guess is Theo Sharpe. Obviously, I could be wrong. He is an assistant to a printer and also fights for the rights of all! That's seems something Edwina would want in a man. An intellectual, and that's what his description said.

Now, I have a few doubts. If they were paired together, wouldn't they be seen together in promos?

Anyway, I have a good feeling about Theo Sharpe. He's something I would want in my irl sp to be lol. Intellectual, down to earth and fights rights for everybody. I might be wrong, but I wouldn't be opposed to this setting.

[silverhallow]

This is literally an hour away from me…

I’m going Goose hunting for @newtonsheffield 🤣😂🤪

And Harrison stalking 🤣🤣🤣

[g4zdtechtv]

FULL EPISODE: NWA-TNA PPV #1 - 6.19.02

It All Begins Here.

[australian-desi]

Kanthony Wedding Headcanons

I am genuinely pissed that CVD had the audacity to say that Edwina wouldn’t attend Kanthony’s wedding because in no universe whether in the show or the book do I see Edwina not being there for her sister or Kate going through with the wedding without her sister.

So these are my headcanons for the Kanthony wedding/post wedding:

Kate wore a red kanjivaram saree that was her mother’s and she also wears her mother’s jewellery and Edwina is the one who gets her ready.

Mary AND Edwina walk her down the aisle (I know this isn’t tradition at all, but I like the idea that Mary and Edwina “give her away” - as misogynistic as that sounds idk a better way to phrase it)

Edwina and Kate talk right after Kate accepts Anthony’s proposal, and Edwina reassures her that she has no feelings for the viscount and that it was her duty and the viscount’s attention that made her think she loved him but it was nothing more than infatuation and it is nothing compared to Kate’s love for Anthony and vice versa. She gives Kate her full blessing

Anthony apologises to Edwina and explains everything to her. Edwina although cold with him at the start, warms up to him and they even strike a fun friendship/banter. Anthony also has a dowry set aside for Edwina when she decides to marry.

Anthony and Kate love the idea of a small intimate wedding, so their wedding is only attended by the Bridgerton’s, the Bassets (because why would Simon not be there), the Sharmas and Lady Danbury. They have a reception afterwards but again it’s only for their immediate families.

They go to honeymoon in India where Kate shows him Mumbai and all the places she grew up. Anthony is in awe the whole time. She also gets him addicted to desi chai and he arranges for all the spices that she uses to be delivered to London regularly.

Once every couple of months, Kate cooks traditional Tamilian and/or Maharashtran food for the Bridgerton’s and although it’s too spicy for them they enjoy it so much. And Anthony adores how proud she is of her cooking and when everyone compliments the food how her face lights up.

Edwina discovers about her desire for scholarly pursuits and she meets Matthew bagwell who tutors her and they fall in love.

This is absolute ramble but I got carried away.

[bridgertonbabe]

So in keeping with the narrative I’ve come up with for Season 2 (which I first wrote of here; https://bridgertonbabe.tumblr.com/post/675192746759356417/in-light-of-the-ew-teasers-what-id-like-to-see ) in which Penelope becomes jealous of Edwina and exposes her through Whistledown (which you can read here;https://bridgertonbabe.tumblr.com/post/675638332025356288/penelope-and-edwina ), I’ve thought of an expansion.

Unable to stop the delivery of the column, Penelope is devastated that she is responsible for the Ton learning of Edwina’s clandestine kiss with James Dorset at the opera. Edwina meanwhile is beside herself for being so foolish and allowing Dorset to kiss her in such a public area. 

Naturally Kate, Mary, and Anthony are all desperate to fix the problem but it’s not so easy when the tarnished woman in question is the diamond of the season. Then, much to everyone’s surprise, Mr. Dorset himself shows up, apologising to Edwina for his indiscretion but offering to make up for it by asking for her hand in marriage. Knowing it would be the only way to save her reputation, Edwina accepts and they push the story that the kiss at the opera was to celebrate their engagement. 

Kate is upset for her sister, wanting only the best for her and heartbroken for her that she hasn’t secured the love match she deserves. In a role reversal, Edwina is the one trying to reassure her sister, telling her that at least Mr. Dorset it very handsome and well built and they would make beautiful children together. When Kate highlights that Edwina wanted an intellectual and educated man for a husband (and that Dorset only possesses brawn), Edwina brushes the point off, ensuring her sister that she’s still young and might not necessarily know what she wants. When Kate asks if she’s in love with Dorset, Edwina tells her that love isn’t always instantaneous and she believes her love for her future husband will grow with time. 

The wedding is a grand affair with Queen Charlotte in attendance as Edwina is her season’s incomparable. Kate stands to the side with her mother, Eloise, and Penelope; all regarding Edwina sympathetically, knowing she’s trying to make the best of a situation she didn’t wish to find herself in.

Cut to two years later (S3) and Edwina’s storyline is of her unhappy marriage. She had been somewhat content at first as Dorset certainly knew how to go about satisfying her in the bedroom but as time went on, Edwina knew she would never truly love the man. They lacked stimulating conversation, she was bored of attending his many sporting events in being the dutiful supportive wife, and he never quite fit in with the Bridgertons who they dined with once a week. She might have been able to focus all her happiness in her marriage into their activities in the bedroom; however her husband had suffered an injury a few months into their marriage in which a polo mallet had collided with his groin, and ever since... well, there had been many times in which she had consoled her bereft husband after he had failed to perform his manly duties. He wasn’t totally impotent (she had gathered he could still see to himself) but he was well and truly humiliated from one too many failures in their marital bed, and as a result the sexual component of their relationship became as stale as every other aspect of their marriage.  

One afternoon Edwina visits her favourite shop in town; Bagwell’s Bookshop and is perusing the new titles. She makes conversation with the shop owner Mr. Francis Bagwell, who mentions his son has arrived home newly graduated from Oxford. As he’s telling her this update, in through the door comes his wife and their son, Matthew. When Edwina catches his eye, she immediately feels something deep inside that she had never felt before. They’re introduced by his parents, telling Matthew that Mrs Dorset is one of their best customers. Matthew’s face falls upon hearing her married title but before he heads upstairs with his mother, he makes a recommendation to Edwina of the philosophy book in her hand. She purchases it without hesitation. 

They bump into each other several times throughout the season, whether that’s in his parents bookshop or at a society event. Every meeting they have is filled with non-stop conversation and Edwina always finds herself sad when she returns home with the knowledge that no such intellectually-stimulating chat will be taking place at Dorset House. They share in a couple of dances and Edwina is utterly captured by him and recognises the feelings she has for Matthew Bagwell are the same her sister has for Anthony Bridgerton; ardent love. Upon this epiphany, it hurts Edwina to see Matthew, knowing they can never be together, and she stops going to his family’s bookshop. 

One evening Edwina finds herself in attendance of a party taking place at Granville House. Lucy Granville had extended the invitation after one of Lady Danbury’s game nights, telling the young woman it would be a great way to blow off some steam. Edwina had heard rumours of what the Granvilles parties entailed and thought it would be a good way to not only reinvigorate her sex drive, but to take her mind off of Matthew Bagwell. At the party she is too shy to entertain anyone and stands to the side before wondering why she thought going there would be a good idea in the first place. She grabs her cloak from a bedroom only to come face to face with Matthew Bagwell. 

It had been a while since either one saw each other and they’re not sure what to say to the other - especially since were encountering each other at a sex party of all places. Edwina asks if he’s a regular at these events but he tells her it’s his first time and he only came with the hope of getting someone out of his head. Edwina nods sadly, envious of the woman who had captured his heart. When he asks her what she’s doing there, she admits she isn’t happy in her marriage and confesses she had also wanted to get someone out of her head. 

Upon her admission, Matthew approaches her, asking who had turned her head. She had never felt more tense but she confesses that he is the man she can’t stop thinking of, spilling her heart when she admits she’s in love with him. Matthew sighs with relief; “Oh thank god you feel the same” and Edwina pulls him to her and kisses him. They make use of the bedroom they’re in and Edwina experiences the most pleasurable sex she had ever had.

They sneak around after that as they embark on an affair. She tells him all she wants is to be with him, if only she could get out of her marriage with Dorset. Matthew vows that he’ll love her no matter what, even if he has to spend the rest of his life loving her in secret. Edwina wishes for a miracle to happen so that she and Matthew can be together officially - and then Whistledown reports of Mr. Dorset’s affair with Lady Trowbridge. 

James Dorset braces himself following the publication of the column, waiting for his wife’s ire. Instead, Edwina waltzes into the room and cheerfully asks him for a divorce, suggesting it would make things easier for him to be with Lady Trowbridge. “If it’s what you want.” he nods in bemusement and she confirms it with a peck on his cheek before practically skipping back out of the room. 

She wastes no time in marrying Matthew and becoming Mrs Bagwell following her divorce (which got fast-tracked thanks to Anthony’s connections and the union ended up being dissolved within a week), and she and her new husband welcome Baby Bagwell some seven months after the wedding, though everyone turns a blind eye to the fully developed baby’s “premature” arrival. 

[apinchofm]

Chapter 18 & Chapter 19 - In Her Own Right

@angel-starbeam @spitefularmand @alrightsnaps @livingonfanficseyra @lizzibennet @hptriviachamp @jeanvanjer @goodqueenalicunt @katesharmasheart @harnitbee @onlysnowydays @aspoonfuloffiction @phantomphaeton @margaritanightly

[galadrielette]

Edwina cruel intentions au???? I don’t know HOW but I’m imagining Matthew Bagwell as the known playboy of his school (with a secret love of archaeology and anthropology and ancient cultures) and Edwina as the pure girl who he changes for.

[newtonsheffield]

Once Edwina finds herself googling “how to play chess” she knows it’s over for her. She really is fucking obsessed with the cute little chess player her DAD set her up with.

Edwina is… shaken by Matthew Bagwell. Shaken. When her father told her that his new friend from Chess club, a palaeontologist as well allegedly, was coming to dinner Edwina steeled herself for the most boring dinner of her entire life.

And yet, when she arrives, dragging her feet, there’s a man sat on her mum’s sofa, talking to her Dad and her stomach dropped. He had thick dark hair that was falling in his eyes and tied back in a tiny bun and he was wearing a sweet little knitted vest and when he turned to smile at her he had dimples and she found herself swallowing a little thickly.

“I see you’ve noticed Matthew.” Kate hummed, “His Mum calls him Goose.”

Something in her chest ached at how sweet that seemed, “Is he sitting behind the really hot guy?”

Kate clicked her tongue, “But of course, you’re not interested in this very sweet man. Because as you constantly tell me: Being into one of Dad’s set ups would be a mortifying embarrassment.”

Edwina narrowed her eyes “That’s… that’s right.”

“Eddie, Come and meet Matthew.” Their father called out and Kate chuckled as Edwina’s stomach lurched again.

“Yes, Go and meet Matthew, Eddie.” Kate hummed, “I’ll be watching your mortifying embarrassment from here.”

“Shut up!”

[nellygwyn]

BOOK RECS

Okay, so lots of people wanted this and so, I am compiling a list of my favourite books (both fiction and non-fiction), books that I recommend you read as soon as humanly possible. In the meantime, I’ll be pinning this post to the top of my blog (once I work out how to do that lmao) so it will be accessible for old and new followers. I’m going to order this list thematically, I think, just to keep everything tidy and orderly. Of course, a lot of this list will consist of historical fiction and historical non-fiction because that’s what I read primarily and thus, that’s where my bias is, but I promise to try and spice it up just a little bit. 

Favourite fiction books of all time:

The Mermaid and Mrs Hancock // Imogen Hermes Gowar

Sense and Sensibility // Jane Austen

Slammerkin // Emma Donoghue 

Remarkable Creatures // Tracy Chevalier

Life Mask // Emma Donoghue

His Dark Materials // Philip Pullman (this includes the follow-up series The Book of Dust)

Emma // Jane Austen

The Miniaturist // Jessie Burton

Girl, Woman, Other // Bernadine Evaristo 

Jane Eyre // Charlotte Brontë

Persuasion // Jane Austen

Girl with a Pearl Earring // Tracy Chevalier

The Silent Companions // Laura Purcell

Tess of the d’Urbervilles // Thomas Hardy

Northanger Abbey // Jane Austen

The Chronicles of Narnia // C.S. Lewis

Pride and Prejudice // Jane Austen

Goodnight, Mr Tom // Michelle Magorian

The French Lieutenant’s Woman // John Fowles 

The Butcher’s Hook // Janet Ellis 

Mansfield Park // Jane Austen

The All Souls Trilogy // Deborah Harkness

The Railway Children // Edith Nesbit

Favourite non-fiction books of all time

Catherine the Great: Portrait of a Woman // Robert Massie

Love and Louis XIV: The Women in the Life of the Sun King // Antonia Fraser

Madame de Pompadour // Nancy Mitford

The First Iron Lady: A Life of Caroline of Ansbach // Matthew Dennison 

Black and British: A Forgotten History // David Olusoga

Courtiers: The Secret History of the Georgian Court // Lucy Worsley 

Young and Damned and Fair: The Life of Katherine Howard, the Fifth Wife of Henry VIII // Gareth Russell

King Charles II // Antonia Fraser

Casanova’s Women // Judith Summers

Marie Antoinette: The Journey // Antonia Fraser

Mrs. Jordan’s Profession: The Story of a Great Actress and a Future King // Claire Tomalin

Jane Austen at Home // Lucy Worsley

Mudlarking: Lost and Found on the River Thames // Lara Maiklem

The Last Royal Rebel: The Life and Death of James, Duke of Monmouth // Anna Keay

The Marlboroughs: John and Sarah Churchill // Christopher Hibbert

Nell Gwynn: A Biography // Charles Beauclerk

Jurassic Mary: Mary Anning and the Primeval Monsters // Patricia Pierce

Georgian London: Into the Streets // Lucy Inglis

The Prince Who Would Be King: The Life and Death of Henry Stuart // Sarah Fraser

Wedlock: How Georgian Britain’s Worst Husband Met His Match // Wendy Moore

Dead Famous: An Unexpected History of Celebrity from the Stone Age to the Silver Screen // Greg Jenner

Victorians Undone: Tales of the Flesh in the Age of Decorum // Kathryn Hughes

Crown of Blood: The Deadly Inheritance of Lady Jane Grey // Nicola Tallis

Favourite books about the history of sex and/or sex work

The Origins of Sex: A History of First Sexual Revolution // Faramerz Dabhoiwala 

Erotic Exchanges: The World of Elite Prostitution in Eighteenth-Century Paris // Nina Kushner

Peg Plunkett: Memoirs of a Whore // Julie Peakman

Courtesans // Katie Hickman

The Other Victorians: A Study of Sexuality and Pornography in mid-Nineteenth Century England

Madams, Bawds, and Brothel Keepers // Fergus Linnane

The Secret History of Georgian London: How the Wages of Sin Shaped the Capital // Dan Cruickshank 

A Curious History of Sex // Kate Lister

Sex and Punishment: 4000 Years of Judging Desire // Eric Berkowitz

Queen of the Courtesans: Fanny Murray // Barbara White

Rent Boys: A History from Ancient Times to Present // Michael Hone

Celeste // Roland Perry

Sex and the Gender Revolution // Randolph Trumbach

The Pleasure’s All Mine: A History of Perverse Sex // Julie Peakman

LGBT+ fiction I love*

The Confessions of the Fox // Jordy Rosenberg 

As Meat Loves Salt // Maria Mccann

Bone China // Laura Purcell

Brideshead Revisited // Evelyn Waugh

The Confessions of Frannie Langton // Sara Collins

The Intoxicating Mr Lavelle // Neil Blackmore

Orlando // Virginia Woolf

Tipping the Velvet // Sarah Waters

She Rises // Kate Worsley

The Mercies // Kiran Millwood Hargrave

Oranges are Not the Only Fruit // Jeanette Winterson

Maurice // E.M Forster

Frankisstein: A Love Story // Jeanette Winterson

If I Was Your Girl // Meredith Russo 

The Well of Loneliness // Radclyffe Hall 

* fyi, Life Mask and Girl, Woman, Other are also LGBT+ fiction

Classics I haven’t already mentioned (including children’s classics)

Far From the Madding Crowd // Thomas Hardy 

I Capture the Castle // Dodie Smith 

Vanity Fair // William Makepeace Thackeray 

Wuthering Heights // Emily Brontë

The Blazing World // Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle

Murder on the Orient Express // Agatha Christie 

Great Expectations // Charles Dickens

North and South // Elizabeth Gaskell

Evelina // Frances Burney

Death on the Nile // Agatha Christie

The Monk // Matthew Lewis

Frankenstein // Mary Shelley

Vilette // Charlotte Brontë

The Mayor of Casterbridge // Thomas Hardy

The Tenant of Wildfell Hall // Anne Brontë

Vile Bodies // Evelyn Waugh

Beloved // Toni Morrison 

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd // Agatha Christie

The History of Tom Jones, A Foundling // Henry Fielding

A Room With a View // E.M. Forster

Silas Marner // George Eliot 

Jude the Obscure // Thomas Hardy

My Man Jeeves // P.G. Wodehouse

Lady Audley’s Secret // Mary Elizabeth Braddon

Middlemarch // George Eliot

Little Women // Louisa May Alcott

Children of the New Forest // Frederick Marryat

I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings // Maya Angelou 

Rebecca // Daphne du Maurier

Alice in Wonderland // Lewis Carroll

The Wind in the Willows // Kenneth Grahame

Anna Karenina // Leo Tolstoy

Howard’s End // E.M. Forster

The Secret Diary of Adrian Mole, Aged 13 3/4 // Sue Townsend

Even more fiction recommendations

The Darling Strumpet // Gillian Bagwell

The Wolf Hall trilogy // Hilary Mantel

The Illumination of Ursula Flight // Anne-Marie Crowhurst

Queenie // Candace Carty-Williams

Forever Amber // Kathleen Winsor

The Corset // Laura Purcell

Love in Colour // Bolu Babalola

Artemisia // Alexandra Lapierre

Blackberry and Wild Rose // Sonia Velton

The Bloody Chamber and Other Stories // Angela Carter

The Languedoc trilogy // Kate Mosse

Longbourn // Jo Baker

A Skinful of Shadows // Frances Hardinge

The Black Moth // Georgette Heyer

The Far Pavilions // M.M Kaye

The Essex Serpent // Sarah Perry

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo // Taylor Jenkins Reid

Cavalier Queen // Fiona Mountain 

The Winter Palace // Eva Stachniak

Friday’s Child // Georgette Heyer

Falling Angels // Tracy Chevalier

Little // Edward Carey

Chocolat // Joanne Harris 

The Watchmaker of Filigree Street // Natasha Pulley 

My Sister, the Serial Killer // Oyinkan Braithwaite

The Convenient Marriage // Georgette Heyer

Katie Mulholland // Catherine Cookson

Restoration // Rose Tremain

Meat Market // Juno Dawson

Lady on the Coin // Margaret Campbell Bowes

In the Company of the Courtesan // Sarah Dunant

The Crimson Petal and the White // Michel Faber

A Place of Greater Safety // Hilary Mantel 

The Little Shop of Found Things // Paula Brackston

The Improbability of Love // Hannah Rothschild

The Murder Most Unladylike series // Robin Stevens

Dark Angels // Karleen Koen

The Words in My Hand // Guinevere Glasfurd

Time’s Convert // Deborah Harkness

The Collector // John Fowles

Vivaldi’s Virgins // Barbara Quick

The Foundling // Stacey Halls

The Phantom Tree // Nicola Cornick

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle // Stuart Turton

Golden Hill // Francis Spufford

Assorted non-fiction not yet mentioned

The Dinosaur Hunters: A True Story of Scientific Rivalry and the Discovery of the Prehistoric World // Deborah Cadbury

The Beauty and the Terror: An Alternative History to the Italian Renaissance // Catherine Fletcher

All the King's Women: Love, Sex, and Politics in the life of Charles II // Derek Jackson

Mozart’s Women // Jane Glover

Scandalous Liaisons: Charles II and His Court // R.E. Pritchard

Matilda: Queen, Empress, Warrior // Catherine Hanley 

Black Tudors // Miranda Kaufman 

To Catch a King: Charles II's Great Escape // Charles Spencer

1666: Plague, War and Hellfire // Rebecca Rideal

Henrietta Maria: Charles I's Indomitable Queen // Alison Plowden

Catherine of Braganza: Charles II's Restoration Queen // Sarah-Beth Watkins

Four Sisters: The Lost Lives of the Romanov Grand Duchesses // Helen Rappaport

Aristocrats: Caroline, Emily, Louisa and Sarah Lennox, 1740-1832 // Stella Tillyard 

The Fortunes of Francis Barber: The True Story of the Jamaican Slave who Became Samuel Johnson’s Heir // Michael Bundock

Black London: Life Before Emancipation // Gretchen Gerzina

In These Times: Living in Britain Through Napoleon’s Wars, 1793-1815

The King’s Mistress: Scandal, Intrigue and the True Story of the Woman who Stole the Heart of George I // Claudia Gold

Perdita: The Life of Mary Robinson // Paula Byrne

The Gentleman’s Daughter: Women’s Lives in Georgian England // Amanda Vickery

Terms and Conditions: Life in Girls’ Boarding School, 1939-1979 // Ysenda Maxtone Graham 

Fanny Burney: A Biography // Claire Harman

Aphra Behn: A Secret Life // Janet Todd

The Imperial Harem: Women and the Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire // Leslie Peirce

The Fall of the House of Byron // Emily Brand

The Favourite: Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough // Ophelia Field

Night-Walking: A Nocturnal History of London // Matthew Beaumont, Will Self

Jane Austen: A Life // Claire Tomalin

Beloved Emma: The Life of Emma, Lady Hamilton // Flora Fraser

Sentimental Murder: Love and Madness in the 18th Century // John Brewer

Henrietta Howard: King’s Mistress, Queen’s Servant // Tracy Borman

City of Beasts: How Animals Shaped Georgian London // Tom Almeroth-Williams

Queen Anne: The Politics of Passion // Anne Somerset 

Charlotte Brontë: A Life // Claire Harman 

Goddess: The Secret Lives of Marilyn Monroe // Anthony Summers

Queer City: Gay London from the Romans to the Present Day // Peter Ackroyd 

Elizabeth I and Her Circle // Susan Doran

African Europeans: An Untold History // Olivette Otele 

Young Romantics: The Shelleys, Byron, and Other Tangled Lives // Daisy Hay

How to Create the Perfect Wife // Wendy Moore

The Sphinx: The Life of Gladys Deacon, Duchess of Marlborough // Hugo Vickers

The Life and Death of Anne Boleyn // Eric Ives

Dancing in the Streets: A History of Collective Joy // Barbara Ehrenreich

A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie // Kathryn Harkup 

Mistresses: Sex and Scandal at the Court of Charles II // Linda Porter

Female Husbands: A Trans History // Jen Manion

Ladies in Waiting: From the Tudors to the Present Day // Anne Somerset

Ghostland: In Search of a Haunted Country // Edward Parnell 

A Cheesemonger’s History of the British Isles // Ned Palmer

The Butchering Art: Joseph Lister’s Quest to Transform the Grisly World of Victorian Medicine // Lindsey Fitzharris

Medieval Woman: Village Life in the Middle Ages // Ann Baer

The Husband Hunters: Social Climbing in London and New York // Anne de Courcy

The Voices of Nîmes: Women, Sex, and Marriage in Reformation Languedoc // Suzannah Lipscomb

The Daughters of the Winter Queen // Nancy Goldstone

Mad and Bad: Real Heroines of the Regency // Bea Koch

Bess of Hardwick // Mary S. Lovell

The Royal Art of Poison // Eleanor Herman 

The Strangest Family: The Private Lives of George III, Queen Charlotte, and the Hanoverians // Janice Hadlow

Palaces of Pleasure: From Music Halls to the Seaside to Football; How the Victorians Invented Mass Entertainment // Lee Jackson

Favourite books about current social/political issues (?? for lack of a better term)

Feminism, Interrupted: Disrupting Power // Lola Olufemi

Revolting Prostitutes: The Fight for Sex Worker Rights // Molly Smith, Juno Mac

Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race // Reni Eddo-Lodge

Trans Britain: Our Journey from the Shadows // Christine Burns

Me, Not You: The Trouble with Mainstream Feminism // Alison Phipps

Trans Like Me: A Journey For All Of Us // C.N Lester

Brit(Ish): On Race, Identity, and Belonging // Afua Hirsch 

The Brutish Museums: The Benin Bronzes, Colonial Violence, and Cultural Restitution // Dan Hicks

Things No One Will Tell Fat Girls: A Handbook for Unapologetic Living // Jes M. Baker

Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women White Feminists Forgot // Mikki Kendall

Denial: Holocaust History on Trial // Deborah Lipstadt

Yes Means Yes: Visions of Female Sexual Power and a World Without Rape // Jessica Valenti, Jaclyn Friedman

Don’t Touch My Hair // Emma Dabiri

Sister Outsider // Audre Lorde 

Unicorn: The Memoir of a Muslim Drag Queen // Amrou Al-Kadhi

Trans Power // Juno Roche

Breathe: A Letter to My Sons // Imani Perry

The Windrush Betrayal: Exposing the Hostile Environment // Amelia Gentleman

Happy Fat: Taking Up Space in a World That Wants to Shrink You // Sofie Hagen

Diaries, memoirs & letters

The Diary of a Young Girl // Anne Frank

Renia’s Diary: A Young Girl’s Life in the Shadow of the Holocaust // Renia Spiegel 

Writing Home // Alan Bennett

The Diary of Samuel Pepys // Samuel Pepys

Histoire de Ma Vie // Giacomo Casanova

Toast: The Story of a Boy’s Hunger // Nigel Slater

London Journal, 1762-1763 // James Boswell

The Diary of a Bookseller // Shaun Blythell 

Jane Austen’s Letters // edited by Deidre la Faye

H is for Hawk // Helen Mcdonald 

The Salt Path // Raynor Winn

The Glitter and the Gold // Consuelo Vanderbilt, Duchess of Marlborough

Journals and Letters // Fanny Burney

Educated // Tara Westover

Bookworm: A Memoir of Childhood Reading // Lucy Mangan

Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal? // Jeanette Winterson

A Dutiful Boy // Mohsin Zaidi

Secrets and Lies: The Trials of Christine Keeler // Christine Keeler

800 Years of Women’s Letters // edited by Olga Kenyon

Istanbul // Orhan Pamuk

Henry and June // Anaïs Nin

Historical romance (this is a short list because I’m still fairly new to this genre)

The Bridgerton series // Julia Quinn

One Good Earl Deserves a Lover // Sarah Mclean

Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake // Sarah Mclean

The Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics // Olivia Waite

That Could Be Enough // Alyssa Cole

Unveiled // Courtney Milan

The Craft of Love // EE Ottoman

The Maiden Lane series // Elizabeth Hoyt

An Extraordinary Union // Alyssa Cole

Slightly Dangerous // Mary Balogh

Dangerous Alliance: An Austentacious Romance // Jennieke Cohen

A Fashionable Indulgence // KJ Charles