Favourite

The scandalous true story of the duchess who became her beloved queen's blackmailer, published in a new and updated edition to coincide with the Oscar-nominated film starring Olivia Colman, Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz.

Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough (1660-1774), was as glamorous as she was controversial. Politically influential and independently powerful, she was an intimate, and then a blackmailer, of Queen Anne, accusing her of keeping lesbian favourites - including Sarah's own cousin Abigail Masham.

Ophelia Field's masterly biography, published in a new and updated edition, brings Sarah Churchill's own voice, passionate and intelligent, back to life. Here is an unforgettable portrait of a woman who cared intensely about how we would remember her.