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A study into how ordinary British people used to depart this life and grieve for loved ones and a glimpse into why a 'good death' is seen so differently in China.

Laurie Taylor talks to Molly Conisbee, Visiting Research Fellow at the Centre for Death and Society at the University of Bath, about her ‘people’s’ history of mortality, beyond queens and aristocrats. From the plague pits to grave-robberies and wakes, she explores how cycles of dying, death and disposal have shaped our society. What did it mean to die well in the past, what does it mean now? Also, Chao Fang, Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Liverpool, talks about his study of the meaning of a good death in China & how it differs from western notions which centre the dying person’s wishes rather than family harmony.

Producer: Jayne Egerton

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28 minutes

Last on

Sun 22 Jun 2025 06:05

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Guests and further reading

-Ìý - Visiting Research Fellow at the Centre for Death and Society at the University of Bath

No Ordinary Deaths: A People's History of MortalityÌý(Wellcome Collection)

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- , Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Liverpool & ÌýDeputy Director for theÌýÌý(CALC)

Cheng, Mingming,ÌýQin, Luo,ÌýFang, Chao,ÌýComery, AlastairÌýandÌýTroyer, JohnÌýin the Journal of Social Science and Medicine

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Broadcasts

  • Tue 17 Jun 2025 15:30
  • Sun 22 Jun 2025 06:05

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ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ Thinking Allowed is produced in partnership with The Open University

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