“The rudest man in Britain”? TV historian David Starkey to appear at Stortford literature festival

Historian David Starkey is unabashed: "I have a thick skin and a sharp tongue."

Dubbed the rudest man in Britain, over the past two decades in the public eye he seems to have courted controversy at almost every turn. His style is uncompromising, based on an unshakeable belief in his command of facts and his clear relish for a fight.

He is a regular guest on BBC One's Question Time and describes joining the political panel in front of a live audience as a "bear pit".

He said: "No-one should go on it unless they are used to fighting bears." ...