Hola, Salut, Ciao, Aboutye…

This is Speak the Culture, self-appointed doyen of all things cultural. We’re trying to get to the bottom of national culture. Country by country, jabbing and poking, investigating the things and the people that you, no doubt an enlightened citizen, really should know about. Take the French: all those names lurking in your subconscious – Baudelaire, Pascal, Truffaut. Who were they, what did they do and why are they so important to the dear old French?

Speak the Culture fills in the essential cultural background to learning a new language; works as an amiable companion to travel; and eases you through the culture shock of life in a new land.

It all began with a book, Speak the Culture: France, which rapidly turned into a series of books and now leaks out onto the web, pushing the debate about culture, the arts and identity. Enjoy!

The Frenchman, the swede and the artichoke...

Latest in blog:

Perhaps the French now concede that Britain was right to stick by its traditional veg whilst they drifted from their roots (pun intended!).

The Frenchman, the swede and the artichoke...

Latest in blog:

Perhaps the French now concede that Britain was right to stick by its traditional veg whilst they drifted from their roots (pun intended!).

Traveller magazine article

This article on our latest book, Speak the Culture: Italy, appeared in the winter edition of the excellent Traveller magazine.

The ten Victorian novels to read first

In a small, sea bound nation of tepid summers and stiff upper lips, you get your kicks where you can. Many rely on imagination. Perhaps that’s why Great Britain has such a rich creative culture, generated not least by an amazing roll call of novelists.