Podcast Summary

Podcast: All Of It

Host: Tiffany Hansen (in for Alison Stewart)
Guest: Kaliane Bradley, author of The Ministry of Time
Air Date: May 7, 2024
Episode Title: “'The Ministry of Time' Presents a Time-Traveling Adventure and Romance”

Episode Overview

This episode spotlights Kaliane Bradley’s much-anticipated debut novel, The Ministry of Time—released on its official publication day. Blending time travel, romance, and historical intrigue, the story reimagines the fate of Graham Gore, a 19th-century polar explorer, who's rescued from certain death in the past and transported to contemporary London. The conversation delves into the origins and research behind the book, Bradley's fascination with polar exploration, and the deeper cultural and philosophical questions the novel raises, particularly around colonialism, immigration, and adaptation.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Inspiration: Graham Gore and Polar Exploration

• Bradley’s Initial Fascination

  • Sparked by watching the FX series The Terror, Kaliane Bradley became fixated on Graham Gore, particularly after seeing his photo and reading about his character.

  “I thought, God, I bet he’d be nice to have around in a pandemic, which is what I’m in right now.” — Kaliane Bradley (02:38)

• Research Deep Dive

  • Exploring both the heroic and troubling aspects of British polar expeditions, Bradley acknowledged the imperial underpinnings of these adventures, calling them “brave” yet “stupid”—fascinating for their mix of ambition, escape, and historical context.

  “Obviously, the British element of it, the British imperialist element, was also very alarming. But just the things they did, going out to discover passages they weren’t sure existed... It was brave, it was stupid. They were fascinating, fascinating people.” (03:16)

2. The Franklin Expedition & the Myth of Empire

• Franklin Expedition Explained
  • Bradley summarizes the real-life disappearance of Gore and his crew.

  "They sent 129 men and two ships… to find this passage... they just never came back. All 129 men and both ships vanished.” (05:30–06:05)

  • The mission was a symbol of imperial ambition and the participants internalized the ideals of the British Empire:

  “These men carried England in them as a kind of story that they keep telling themselves.” (06:14)

3. Building a Character from Historical Fragments

• Graham Gore: Competency, Kindness, and Humor

  • With little direct evidence, Bradley pieced together Gore’s personality, drawing on the few existing letters and contemporary accounts:

  "The thing that keeps coming up about him is that he is very kind and very good at his job.” (07:58)

  • Gore's wit appears in surviving anecdotes, e.g., describing a house as “fit only for the habitation of ducks.” (08:31)

• Romantic and Emotional Anchoring

  • The protagonist, a British-Cambodian civil servant, becomes Gore’s “bridge” to the 21st century, nurturing a complex relationship rooted in attraction, historical irony, and power imbalance:

  “She ends up having quite a complicated relationship, necessarily, with Gore, with this man who represents this empire that would have exploited her if they’d been born at the same time. Instead, she is in a position of power over him. And I quite enjoy playing with that.” (09:40)

4. Time Travel as a Metaphor

• Immigration & Displacement

  • Bradley crafts time travel less as a mechanical backdrop and more as a thematic device reflecting forced migration and adaptation:

  “I was interested in the idea of time travel as a metaphor for immigration. So the expats, as they're called, who are pulled from the past, are really forced refugees... what it's like to adjust to 21st century Britain as an entirely new country and culture when you can never go home.” (12:01)

• Power, Control, and Adaptation

  • The Ministry of Time exerts bureaucratic dominance over the “expats,” restricting their freedom and highlighting the bewildering limitations faced by outsiders:

  “They're confined to the house... then to London, and then... within the British Isles if they have passed the test. I really wanted to replicate that sense of not being sure where you're allowed to go or what you're allowed to do...” (13:09)

5. Writing Across Time: Voice and Authenticity

• Crafting Distinct Period Voices
  • Bradley describes the challenge of developing authentic language for characters from different eras, especially Margaret Kemble, a 17th-century woman:

  “I ended up reading a lot of Shakespeare comedies… just pulling out bits of vocabulary or comparisons that I thought might be useful for Margaret. I didn’t use all of them, but that was handy. It does mean that her speech is probably... about 50 years out of date...” (14:23)

6. Central Relationship: Tension and Intimacy

• Banters and Emotional Nuance

  • The heart of the novel is the growing camaraderie—and romantic tension—between Gore and the protagonist, fueled by mutual curiosity and the joy of discovery:

  “You know how when you have a very deep crush on someone and you're always waiting for them to text... you live in the things they said. You can't do that if the man's dead, right? ...so the book really grew out of these scenes where these two people were just talking to each other, bantering with each other, kind of being playful with each other.” (10:58–11:39)

• Handling Prejudice and Growth

  • Asked about the protagonist’s reaction to Gore’s 19th-century biases:

  “I think she feels alarmed by them, but doesn't want to be alarmed by them. So she smothers them. She wants to find a way to fix him but also fix her own relationship to her fear.” (15:13)

Notable Quotes

• “It was brave, it was stupid. They were fascinating, fascinating people.”
  — Kaliane Bradley (03:16)

• “These men carried England in them as a kind of story that they keep telling themselves.”
  — Kaliane Bradley (06:14)

• “He was very liked by people. But, yeah, absolutely, he was working on a frightening imperialist project.”
  — Kaliane Bradley (08:11)

• “I was interested in the idea of time travel as a metaphor for immigration... what it's like to adjust to 21st century Britain as an entirely new country and culture when you can never go home.”
  — Kaliane Bradley (12:01)

• “She wants to find a way to fix him but also fix her own relationship to her fear.”
  — Kaliane Bradley (15:13)

Important Timestamps

• 02:21 — Kaliane Bradley introduced, origin of her obsession with Graham Gore
• 03:11–04:30 — On the lure and psychology of polar exploration
• 05:30–06:14 — Summary of the Franklin Expedition and context of Victorian England
• 07:18–08:11 — Researching Graham Gore’s character
• 09:40–10:33 — Developing the protagonist and exploring modern power dynamics
• 12:01–13:09 — Time travel as metaphor for immigration and adaptation
• 13:53–14:51 — Writing dialogue spanning centuries
• 15:13 — On the protagonist’s response to Gore’s prejudices

Tone & Style

Throughout, the conversation is warm, lively, and gently humorous, balancing historical fascination with thoughtful critique. Bradley’s voice is considerate and candid, while Hansen steers the dialogue with curiosity and cultural awareness.

Conclusion

This episode offers a compelling behind-the-scenes look at The Ministry of Time, exploring not just its imaginative premise but the deeper social and psychological currents that shape both history and contemporary life. It stands as an invitation to reflect on how we inherit, rewrite, and reconcile our collective stories—across time, culture, and personal connection.