No greater love hath any man but to drive an ancient jalopy whose only air con is the open window, over four hundred km in 36 degrees heat.

Duchamp's older brothers taught him how to play chess when he was growing up in Normandy.

American Independence was fuelled by two Englishmen. The first was John Wilkes, few in America have ever heard of.

Although hers is the most recognised face in the world, Lisa Gherardini was air brushed out of Florence for five centuries.

Born illegitimate without a legal name to Caterina, a fifteen year old servant girl, the name of Leonardo da Vinci is now the most famous on the planet.

Many artists paint what they see. Max painted what he couldn't see. He looked at a floorboard and saw a forest. He looked at a grain silo and saw a monster.

The French monarchy was in a state of collapse. An English boy was King of France. Yolande's beloved adopted country was holding on by its toe nails.

Following in my heroine’s footsteps, here I am in Saumur, in her favourite Château which has barely changed since she lived here.