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Will Gompertz is the , a post he’s as surprised about as anybody- Ìýhis first job was an assistant in a record shop. He left school without any A-Levels, and after a series of directionless jobs, he had a surprising revelation in an art museum that changed his life and set him on course to a career in the arts. He tells us about his fascination for modern art and his latest project: discovering the stories behind the art in peoples’ homes.

'Art of the Nation' will broadcast on ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Radio 4 in July.

Jan Prebble had a long and varied career but throughout, for 42 years in fact, she was the secret mistress of author John Prebble, who was married with children. They eventually married and, now in her eighties, she reflects on a lifetime of being the other woman.

tells us about her love of singing.

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The Queen of Four Kingdoms by HRH Princess Michael of Kent is published by Constable.Ìý

Musician talks about his travels playing the mandolin and the people around the world he has met whoÌýmake, playÌýor love this underrated instrument.

Simon's new album ' The Art of Mandolin' is out now.

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Brian Conaghan describes what it was like to be diagnosed with Tourette’s Syndrome in his late 30s.

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When Mr Dog Bites by Brian Conaghan is published by Bloomsbury

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Artistchooses Little Things Mean A Lot by Kitty Kallen and ‘My Father’ by Judy Collins.

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The is currently open at Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, Glasgow.

"I am 10 years old and I like ballet, playing the flute and the piano. I have a hamster called Sparkle and fish called Speckle."

This was part of a message in a bottle which ZoeÌýAverianovÌýthrew into the North Sea in 1990. 23 years later,ÌýsheÌýreceived a reply after it was discovered by a couple in the Netherlands.