Robert Hart: Chinese Customs
He was a servant of the Chinese empire, respected in Beijing and London alike. Yet he was no son of Shanghai, but of Ulster. Robert Hart grew up in Portadown, but his real life started when he shipped...
24 Apr 201812min
Zheng He: The Admiral Goes to Africa
China rarely had an image as a great maritime power. But for a brief time in the mid-15th century, that all changed under the Ming dynasty and its admiral, Zheng He. He was sent out on seven voyages t...
23 Apr 201813min
River Elegy: River and Ocean
In 1988, one of the most important television programmes in history was shown. Titled River Elegy, it was watched by perhaps 100 million Chinese viewers. Despite its stirring music and dramatic imager...
20 Apr 201813min
Li Qingzhao: Patriotic Poet
Li Qingzhao, who lived (1084-1151) during the late Song dynasty, is recognised as one of China's greatest poets. She grew up within China's culture of highly regulated court bureaucracy. While her hus...
19 Apr 201813min
Confucius: Becoming the Sage
If there were a competition for most famous Chinese in history, Confucius (551-479 BCE) would surely come out on top. He was the philosopher and ethicist who has given China a significant part of its ...
18 Apr 201813min
Kublai Khan: Cosmopolitan Conqueror
He was the man with the pleasure dome, according to Coleridge, but in reality Kublai Khan didn't have so much time for pleasure. He was too busy running one of the most complex and cosmopolitan empire...
17 Apr 201813min
Sima Qian: Grand Historian
He wasn't quite the man who invented history in China, but he certainly shaped it for thousands of years. Author of the Shi Ji (Records of the Grand Historian), Sima Qian told the history of China in ...
16 Apr 201813min
Ding Ling: Sophie, Sensation and Sex
In 1927, China's literary scene was struck by a sensational new character. Her name was Sophie, and she was tormented by sexual longing, unashamedly self-centred about her desires and dreams, and dete...
13 Apr 201813min
