meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
Intelligence Squared

Martin Amis on Love, Loss and Christopher Hitchens

Intelligence Squared

Intelligence Squared

News Commentary, Arts, News, Society & Culture

4.21.2K Ratings

🗓️ 10 November 2020

⏱️ 31 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Martin Amis is often called the Mick Jagger of the British book world. As famous for his love affairs, his friendships and his complicated family history as for his dazzling prose, he dominated the literary scene for decades.  In this exclusive Intelligence Squared event he speaks about his much anticipated autobiographical novel Inside Story. It is perhaps Amis’s most intimate book, a meditation on love, loss, ageing and death. We encounter the vivid characters who have helped define Amis – his father Kingsley, his literary hero Saul Bellow, the poet Philip Larkin and his novelist stepmother Elizabeth Jane Howard.  And of course there is his lifelong friend and conversation partner, Christopher Hitchens, whose death from cancer he chronicles in some of the tenderest prose he has ever written.  In conversation with novelist Alex Preston, Amis reflects on his life and work and explore the hardest questions we all face: how to live, how to grieve, and how to die. This event was recorded in November 2020 and produced by Executive Producer Hannah Kaye with editing by Executive Producer Rowan Slaney To hear the full length episode in which Amis goes into the urgency of youth, the legacy we leave, and dealing with the death of Hitchens, become an Intelligence Squared Supporter today, just visit IntelligenceSquared.com/members — We’d love to hear your feedback and what you think we should talk about next, who we should have on and what our future debates should be.  Send us an email or voice note with your thoughts to podcasts@intelligencesquared.com or Tweet us @intelligence2.  And if you’d like to get ad-free access to all Intelligence Squared podcasts, including exclusive bonus content, early access to new episodes and much more, become a supporter of Intelligence Squared today for just £4.99, or the equivalent in your local currency .  Just visit intelligencesquared.com/membership to find out more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Peloton knows that working out takes willpower, discipline, motivation, and a good deal doesn't hurt either to be fair.

0:08.7

Right now get up to 500 pounds of selected Peloton Bike Plus and Tread packages to help get you up and running or cycling or

0:16.7

yogaing or boxing or meditating or stretching is kind of a big deal

0:22.1

offerings 28th November, 2023, Internet Connection and Peloton, all access membership at 39

0:26.8

per month required. Terms of apply, I see 1 Peloton.co. UK.

0:30.0

Hello, I'm Rory Stewart and I'd like to tell you about an Intelligence Square event I'm doing with the classicist author and broadcaster Mary Beard.

0:39.0

Together we'll be discussing politics and power, from the Caesars to Sunak who gets to win power who is excluded

0:45.8

does power always corrupt or are there examples of leaders who've maintained their

0:50.2

integrity while an authority and how does the nature of power vary across different

0:54.8

times and cultures? These are just some of the questions that Mary and I will be trying to answer.

0:59.7

In-person tickets are now sold out, but you can still watch online on the 13th November at 7 PM BST.

1:06.2

Put your questions to us live as we discuss power and politics down the edges. Hello and welcome to this episode of Intelligence Squared. I'm Senior

1:25.8

producer Connor Boyle. Today we bring you our online event Martin Amos on

1:31.0

Love Loss and Christopher Hitchins.

1:33.0

Amos is often called the Mick Jagger of the British book world,

1:37.0

as famous for his love affairs, his friendships and his complicated family history

1:42.0

as for his dazzling prose.

1:44.0

He's dominated the literary scene for decades and in this exclusive intelligence squared event

1:50.0

he speaks about his much anticipated auto by a graphical novel inside story.

1:55.2

It is perhaps Amos's most intimate book, a meditation on love, loss, aging and death.

2:02.0

We encounter the vivid characters who help define Amos,

2:06.1

his father Kingsley, his literary hero Saul Bello, the poet Philip Larkin, and his novelist

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Intelligence Squared, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Intelligence Squared and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.