About our guests
Peter Frankopan
Peter Frankopan is Professor of Global History at Oxford University and Director of the Oxford Centre for Byzantine Research. Renowned for The Silk Roads, an international bestseller rethinking global history from an Eastern perspective, his work explores connections between the Mediterranean, Asia, and the Islamic world. His recent book, The Earth Transformed (Bloomsbury, 2024), examines the role of climate and environment in shaping human history and was named a Book of the Year by the Financial Times, The Times, and Le Point. A specialist in Byzantine and medieval history, Frankopan frequently advises governments and international bodies on global affairs. He is a Fellow of several major academic societies and President of the Royal Society for Asian Affairs.
Patrick Boucheron
Patrick Boucheron is Professor at the Collège de France, where he holds the chair in the History of Power in Western Europe (13th–16th centuries), and teaches medieval history at the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. A leading figure in rethinking historiography, his work spans the political and urban history of Renaissance Italy to the epistemology of historical writing. His books include The Power of Images: Siena, 1338 (Wiley, 2018) and Machiavelli: The Art of Teaching People What to Fear (Other Press, 2020). Boucheron is also a prominent public intellectual, known for creating the Quand l’histoire fait dates and Faire l’histoire documentary series on Arte, and the radio show Allons-y voir ! on France Culture. He is president of the Théâtre de la Concorde and director of the journal Entre-Temps.
