Dylan Jones was for twelve years the editor of the UK edition of GQ Magazine, and turned that men's style glossy into essential reading for those interested in the culture, fashion and cool of the 90s. Prior to that he worked on i-D Magazine and Arena. At GQ, Dylan also turned the GQ Man of the Year Awards into one of the big events of the London social calendar, and after GQ Jones went on to edit the Evening Standard. Dylan and Gyles talk about all this in today's fascinating conversation. And they also talk about Dylan's childhood. Born into a military family - Dylan's dad was in the RAF - Dylan moved around a great deal and was subject to his father's physical violence on a regular basis. He describes living in this "chaos" and talks about the lasting impact this difficult childhood has had on his character. This is a really important, powerful and intimate conversation, which doesn't wallow in difficulty or pain, but discusses it openly, calmly, and with real candour. (This episode does contain discussion of serious sexual assault and domestic violence).

Dylan's new book, Table Hopping: The Secret History of London's Restaurants, from Langan's Brasserie to The Wolsley is highly recommended. It's available here.

Our deep thanks to Dylan for being our guest, and for sharing his wisdom, wit, and brilliant conversation with us on Rosebud.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One of our best-loved children's authors, Dame Jacqueline Wilson, is our guest today. Jacqueline has changed the lives of many young readers by introducing them to characters and subjects which reflect the complicated lives of real children. And in this conversation with Gyles, Jacqueline talks about her own childhood, which has informed a lot of her later writing. She grew up with two parents who didn't really get along - a mother who was a narcissist, and a father who was often angry and distant - and who had violent rows with each other, but gave Jacqueline rich material for her books. Jacqueline tells Gyles about being a bookish schoolgirl who liked to daydream, about a disastrous encounter with some orange hair dye, and about writing her first novel for a school teacher. Gyles and Jacqueline talk about her first job, at DC Thompson, and about her marriage and the birth of her daughter when she was only 21. They talk about writing, and about Jacqueline's relationship now, and new-found status as a gay icon.

Our heartfelt thanks to Jacqueline Wilson for her delightful company, wonderful stories and wisdom.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We start this episode of Gyles's diaries by talking about all the postcards we've received after we asked listeners to revive the art of sending the - sometimes saucy - postcard. We got so many, so this is a proper, old-fashioned "mailbag" edition of Rosebud. Our huge thanks to everyone who sent us something - we so appreciate it. We have wonderful listeners.

And we reveal our prize-winning postcards. They come from: James Sainsbury, in Auckland, New Zealand; Alastair Crieff (sp), who set us a black and white photo he'd found in Dieppe, and the Reverend Jane Parry, who sent us a Donald McGill classic. Please get in touch with us at hello@rosebudpodcast.com if this is you!

Then we have another enjoyable and absorbing edition of Gyles's 1980 diary, in which he has a sad lunch with a diminished Sir Michael Redgrave; manages to stay awake through Wagner's Ring Cycle; has a disconcerting invitation to get into a hot tub with Jimmy Edwards, and has a close shave with Frankie Howerd.

Enjoy this, diary aficionadi!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.