Since 1969, Antonia Fraser has written many acclaimed historical works which have been international bestsellers, including Marie Antoinette, Mary Queen of Scots (James Tait Black Memorial Prize), Cromwell: Our Chief of Men, The Six Wives of Henry VIII and The Gunpowder Plot: Terror and Faith in 1605 (St Louis Literary Award; CWA Non-Fiction Gold Dagger). Antonia Fraser was made CBE in 1999, and awarded the Norton Medlicott Medal by the Historical Association in 2000. She is married to the playwright Harold Pinter and lives in London. Jasper Ridley gave up his practice at the bar to become one of the leading historical biographers of England, and his most recent book, Lord Palmerston, was awarded the James Tait Black Prize. He has twice stood for Parliament, and his personal experience of political affairs has given him added insight into the career of the most successful of Nineteenth-century revolutionaries. He is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.
