| The person I've chosen to talk about is the French writer Victor Hugo - |
| many people have heard of him because his novel, Les Miserables, |
| which he wrote in 1862, is famous around the world. |
| It became a stage musical in the 1980s, |
| and a film version was also released in 2012. |
| So, some of us, I'm sure, have a pretty general idea of the plot, |
| but we know much less about the author. |
| Today, I'm going to provide a little more insight into this talented man |
| and I'm going to talk particularly about the home he had on the island of Guernsey in the British Channel Islands. |
| But first, his early career... |
| as I've said, he was a writer, |
| he was at the height of his career in Paris |
| and he was very highly regarded by his colleagues. |
| As far as literature was concerned, |
| he was the leading figure of the Romantic movement. |
| However, as well as being a literary genius, |
| he also gave many speeches about issues like the level of poverty in his society. |
| He felt very strongly about this |
| and about other areas where change was needed, like education. |
| This kind of outspoken criticism was not well liked by the rulers of France |
| and, eventually, the emperor - Napoleon III - |
| told Victor Hugo to leave Paris and not return; |
| in other words, he sent him into exile. |
| So Victor Hugo was forced to reside in other parts of Europe. |
| Guernsey was actually his third place of exile |
| and he landed there in 1855. |
| He produced a lot while on Guernsey - including Les Miserables - |
| and to do this, he had to spend a great deal of time in the home that he had there. |
| This was a property that he bought using the money he'd made in France |
| from the publication of a collection of his poetry. |
| It was the only property he ever owned, and he was very proud of it. |
| The property Victor Hugo bought on Guernsey was a large, five-storey house in the capital town of St Peter Port |
| and he lived there for 15 years, |
| returning to France in 1870 when Napoleon's Empire collapsed. |
| He decorated and furnished each level, or floor, of the house in unique and wonderful ways, |
| and many people consider the inside of the house to be a 'work of art'. |
| Today it's a museum that attracts 200,000 visitors a year. |
| He lived in the house with his family... |
| and portraits of its members still hang in rooms on the ground floor, |
| along with drawings that he did during his travels that he felt were important to him. |
| In other ground-floor rooms, there are huge tapestries |
| that he would've designed and loved. |
| The walls are covered in dark wood panelling that Victor Hugo created himself |
| using wooden furniture that he bought in the market. |
| The items were relatively inexpensive, |
| and he used them to create intricate carvings. |
| They gave an atmosphere on the lower level that was shadowy and rather solemn. |
| On the next level of the house there are two impressive lounges, |
| where he entertained his guests. |
| One lounge has entirely red furnishings, |
| such as sofas and wall coverings, and the other blue. |
| There's a strong Chinese influence in these areas |
| in things like the wallpaper pattern and the lamps - |
| which he would have made himself by copying original versions. |
| His library, where he left many of his favourite books, |
| forms the hallway to the third floor |
| and was a comfortable area where he could relax and enjoy his afternoons. |
| And then, at the very top of the house, |
| there's a room called the Lookout - |
| called that because it looks out over the harbour. |
| In contrast to the rather dark lower levels, |
| it's full of light and was like a glass office where he would write until lunchtime - |
| often at his desk. |
| So, Victor Hugo was a man of many talents, |
| but he was also true to his values. |
| While living in his house on Guernsey, |
| he entertained many other famous writers, |
| but he also invited a large group of local children from the deprived areas of the island to dinner once a week. |
| What's more, he served them their food, |
| which was an extraordinary gesture for the time period. |
| In 1927, the house was owned by his relatives, |
| and they decided to donate it to the city of Paris. |
| It has since been restored using photographs from the period |
| and, as I mentioned earlier, is now a museum that is open to the public. |