The historian on taking the social pulse of the nation in his new TV series, why we’re such word addicts, and his fear that the needle in the US is moving towards red
Simon Schama, 79, is a writer, television presenter and professor of history and art history at Columbia University in New York. His bestselling, prize-winning books include The Embarrassment of Riches, about the Dutch Golden Age, and Citizens, a study of the French Revolution. His television series for the BBC include A History of Britain, Simon Schama’s Power of Art, and The Story of the Jews. His new series, Simon Schama’s The Story of Us, traces the history of postwar Britain in an effort to locate the origins of the current culture wars and to celebrate the art that has united us in the past.
How did you begin thinking about this series?
Well, I live most of my time in America, but I come back here often and it always pierces me. I’m heartfelt about it. I wanted to take the social pulse of Britain, and I wanted to look at our culture, our endless creativity. Ever since I was a nipper and my parents took me to the 1951 Festival of Britain on the South Bank three times – the first inanimate object I ever fell in love with was the Skylon [a futuristic, steel structure that appeared to have no visible means of support] – that has been such a source of delight to me.
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