The Bookshop, The Draper, The Candlestick Maker

Google 'future of the high street' and you'll get news articles, opinion pieces, economic projections and a whole lot about Amazon... but what about the history of the high street? Where did it come from? While we argue about the future, isn't it worth considering the past?

Historian Annie Gray uses a single day to walk us down the street and through the ages - from the very dawn of the high street in Roman England to present-day suburbia. Using colourful vignettes and contemporary accounts, we visit everything from apothecaries and penny bazaars to the birth of Marks & Sparks. The Butcher, The Baker, The Corsetmaker is a vibrant cultural history of our high streets, the first of its kind, and an essential reflection on how we shopped and lived in days gone by - and what the future may bring.