About the Author

BAMBER GASCOIGNE is perhaps best known as the presenter of the popular British television quiz show University Challenge between 1962 and 1987. He wrote and presented a thirteen-part TV series, The Christians (1977), which led to a bestselling book, and another, Man and Music. Gascoigne was for a number of years a drama critic for the Spectator and the Observer. He won scholarships to Eton and Cambridge and a Harkness Fellowship to Yale. He is the author of a number of books on theatre, art and cultural history, often in partnership with his wife Christina. Several of his books, including A Brief History of the Great Moghuls, contain photographs taken by her.

Reviews

"- 'A triumphant success... a rich mosaic of prose and picture.' The Times - 'This is a remarkable book... both readable and scholarly, therefore genuinely illuminating.' Guardian - 'This book is first a delight, then an education... lavishly and beautifully illustrated... unflawed elegance.' Church Times