London Guided Walks » Episode 151: Love of Jane Austen in London

Episode 151: Love of Jane Austen in London

Step into the world of Jane Austen like never before on this episode of the London History Podcast, hosted by qualified London tour guide Hazel Baker. Hazel is joined by Caroline Jane Knight, Jane Austen’s fifth great‑niece and the last of Austen’s family to grow up at Chawton House, where Jane lived nearby at Chawton Cottage.

Host: Hazel Baker

Hazel is an active Londoner, a keen theatre-goer and qualified CIGA London tour guide.

She has won awards for tour guiding and is proud to be involved with some great organisations. She is a freeman of the Worshipful Company of Marketors and am an honorary member of The Leaders Council.

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Guest: Caroline Jane Knight

Caroline Jane Knight is Jane Austen’s fifth great‑niece and the last of the family to grow up at Chawton House, the ‘Great House’ near the cottage where Jane wrote many of her famous novels.

From an early age, Caroline was surrounded by Austen family traditions: dining from the same Wedgwood service Jane used, hearing stories passed down through fifteen generations, and spending summers sharing tales with visitors in the Chawton House Tearoom.

When she’s not talking Austen or exploring family history, Caroline enjoys caring for the house and garden, keeping the spirit of Chawton alive for everyone who visits.

Hazel Baker hosts Caroline Jane Knight, Jane Austen’s fifth great-niece who grew up at Chawton House and shares family traditions, artifacts, and memories. Caroline discusses Austen’s empowerment of women through seemingly domestic novels, the support of the women at Chawton Cottage for her writing, and Austen’s London experiences—especially Covent Garden’s theatre world, the Royal Academy exhibition, and staying with her brother Henry from her first visit in 1796. She recounts the September 1813 Wedgwood showroom visit where Austen helped choose a crested dinner service still in the family, plus other heirlooms Caroline travels with. They cover Austen’s publishing decisions, the Prince Regent’s fandom leading to Emma’s dedication, and Austen’s refusal to write a royal romance. Caroline describes current work: expanding the Jane Austen Literacy Foundation, launching a North American charity, and creating a long-term Austen Knight family archive with photos, stories, and oral histories.