Social faux pas meaning full#

My scholarly, indeed historical, interest in faux pas was prompted by a very embarrassing moment some years ago.Ĭhristopher Buckley: I ran into a friend of the family, very distinguished fellow. Christopher, how did you first begin your scholarly interest in the subject?Ĭhristopher Buckley: Well, I have to start by saying, having a historian of the caliber of Andrew Roberts calling me a historian is about as good as it gets, so I think I'm going to retire right after this podcast. The faux pas has had a long and interesting history, and its foremost historian is the author and broadcaster, Christopher Buckley. The title derives from Sir Winston Churchill's reply to a young American who asked him for some life advice as Churchill was walking through Westminster Hall on the day of the Queen's coronation in 1953.Īndrew Roberts: 'Study history, study history,' Churchill said, 'for therein lies all the secrets of statecraft.' I've been an historian for 30 years and have written or edited 18 books, and in this podcast series, I'll be talking to prominent people about the role that history has played in their careers and their decision making and also to fellow historians about how the past influenced the people they've written about.Īndrew Roberts: In the course of it, I hope to eke out some of the timeless secrets of statecraft.

To view the full transcript of this episode, read below:Īndrew Roberts: Ladies and gentlemen, hello, I'm Andrew Roberts, the Roger and Martha Mertz Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, and I'd like to welcome you to my new podcast, Secrets of Statecraft. This episode is brimming with witty repartee and hilarious anecdotes featuring several historically significant figures, and not one faux pas (that we know about). In this episode of Secrets of Statecraft, actual historian Andrew Roberts talks to humorist and self-appointed “historian” Christopher Buckley about the faux pas and its celebrated and checkered past.

Social faux pas meaning full#