Hello and welcome to the BAJS podcast, brought to you by the British Association for Japanese Studies. I’m your host, Oliver Moxham, MA in Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies and specialist in language and Japanese war heritage.

In this episode, Oliver is joined by Timon Screech, Professor at the International Research Centre for Japanese Studies in Kyoto, to discuss the first interactions between England and Japan at the start of the 17th century. Tim shares with us the political factors that drove England to find trading partners halfway around the world, the challenges in winning the Shogun’s ear and the statements made in the gifts they brought, such as the title item of Tim’s recent book, The Shogun’s Silver Telescope. We hope you enjoy the show.