William Caxton

Whan that aprill with his shoures soote

The droghte of march hath perced to the roote,

And bathed every veyne in swich licour

Of which vertu engendred is the flour;

These lines, although difficult to understand, are from a key work in English literature. They have endured today, in part, thanks to a man called William Caxton, who chose a book called 'The Canterbury Tales' as the first book to be printed in England.

In this episode, Charlie Higson looks at the life and work of William Caxton - the founder of printing in England with his introduction of the printing press, the incredible invention that changed history in so many ways.

By homogenising regional dialects he changed the English language forever. His story affects us all.

To help Charlie cross the T's and dot the I's on Caxton's life, he is joined by Dr Kat Marchant, Postdoctoral researcher in early modern literature and culture and content creator for the Reading the Past YouTube channel.

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