This is a slightly revised text of a talk delivered in front of the famous English-speaking bookstore in Paris, Shakespeare and Company, on 10 August 2009 to celebrate the publication of the paperback, Metrostop Paris: History from the City’s Heart (London: John Murray, 2009).
The talk focused on ’the thirteenth chapter that was never published: Metrostop Cité — The Impossible Love of Abelard and Heloise’. This medieval love story has long been famous. But the last few years have brought to light facts about both Abelard and Heloise which make their love affair appear almost contemporary. And Gregor Dallas adds his own twist to the tale.
Photographs courtesy of Lauren Goldberg.