Melvyn Bragg, now Lord Bragg of Wigton, was born in Wigton in 1939, and studied modern history at Wadham College, Oxford. He entered the media world through a BBC traineeship in 1961, taking over the editorship of BBC2's first arts programme, New Release, three years later. He is best known as the presenter of arts programs on television, especially 'The South Bank Show', in which he has made a sustained effort to present literature to a wide public in a popular and informal manner.

Over nearly four decades of pioneering broadcasting Melvyn Bragg has edited, produced and presented a wealth of award-winning documentaries and programmes across the cultural spectrum. He is a prodigious author, publishing the first of more than a dozen books, For Want of a Nail in 1965. He has also written a play, two musicals and several screenplays.

He is President of the National Campaign for the Arts and was made a Life Peer in 1998. He is Chancellor of the University of Leeds.

Some books by Melvyn Bragg :

Non Fiction
Land of The Lakes	1983
Speak For England	1987
Laurence Olivier	1989
Cumbria in Verse (ed)
Rich: The Life of Richard Burton	1989
King Lear in New York	1994
Giants' Shoulders	1998
Two Thousand Years Part 1: The Birth of Christ to the Crusades	1999
Two Thousand Years Part 2	1999
Children's Books
My Favourite Stories of Lakeland (ed)	1988
A Christmas Child	1991
Fiction
For Want of a Nail	1965
The Second Inheritance
The Cumbrian Trilogy: The Hired Man	1986
The Cumbrian Trilogy: A Place in England
The Cumbrian Trilogy: Kingdom Come
The Maid of Buttermere	1987
Without a City Wall	1988
Josh Lawton	1989
The Nerve
The Silken Net
Love and Glory
The Second Inheritance	1990
A Time to Dance	1991
The Silken Net	1991
Autumn Manoevres	1993
Crystal Rooms	1993
Credo	1996
The Soldier's Return	1999

In Land of the Lakes Melvyn Bragg describes the geology of the Lake District from when it was desert and swamp, and tells of the people who have lived there for 4000 years. The legends, myths and folklore of the farmers and fishermen are included, and the types of people that populated the area, from the Norsemen and Romans to the Normans. Bragg also follows in the footsteps of writers and poets, such as Wordsworth, Coleridge, Sir Walter Scott and Beatrix Potter.

Several broadcast quality videos on Lakeland, featuring Melvyn Bragg, have been produced by Striding Edge, a video and retail company based in the Wasdale Valley.

Related Links :

• Wikipedia - Melvyn Bragg
• Open Directory - Melvyn Bragg
• Amazon UK - Melvyn Bragg

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