Catherine Pepinster Interviewed by Suzi Feay

Journalist Catherine Pepinster looks at the relationship between the British monarchy and religion and asks what role ‘defender of the faith’ plays in an increasingly multicultural society and how this is likely to play out during the reign of King Charles.

Pepinster looks at how personal faith has had an impact on the public role of monarchs from Henry VIII to Elizabeth II. She looks at the challenges faced by the late monarch including marriage breakdowns in her family and the death of Diana. And she argues that it is vital that King Charles looks forward but without forsaking the past and the importance of tradition.

Pepinster is a former editor of the independent Catholic weekly, The Tablet. She is a regular on Radio 4’s Thought for the Day and writes for The Times, Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph, Sunday Telegraph, The Guardian and The Observer. Here she talks to journalist and reviewer for the FT Suzi Feay.

This event is part of the festival’s programme on Christian tradition.