Tea: Laurie Taylor explores the dark history of Britain's favourite hot beverage and hears about the production of mass market black tea in contemporary India.
TEA: A dark history. Laurie Taylor talks to the historian, Seren Charrington-Hollins, about the exploitation, wars & intrigue at the heart of the history of that most 'British' hot beverage. Also, Sarah Besky, Associate Professor in the Departments of International and Comparative Labour & Labour Relations, Law, and History in at Cornell University, discusses her study of mass market black tea, one of the world’s most recognized commodities, and one which is still rooted in the colonial plantation.
Producer: Jayne Egerton
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READING LIST
Sarah Besky, Tasting Qualities: The Past and Future of Tea (2020, University of California Press)
Seren Charrington-Hollins, A Dark History of Making Tea (2020, Pen and Sword History)
Broadcasts
- Wed 2 Dec 202016:00BBC Radio 4
- Mon 7 Dec 202000:15BBC Radio 4
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