WHAT A WAY TO GO! - MARCH 25 - 3.19pm

‘Just A Minute’ brings down the house

Now that’s the way to end a festival - laughing, shouting, cheering, booing (just a little) and clapping. Yes, I finished my last day by retiring to the haloed hall of the Sheldonian to enjoy 60 minutes of all of the above, courtesy of Radio 4’s long-running ‘Just A Minute’. Chaired by Nicholas - “And now from Norwich, it’s the quiz of the week” - Parsons, guests included poet Pam Ayers, thriller writer Felix Francis, and comedians Miles Jupp and Tony Hawkes. The show’s format has remained unchanged for an astonishing 60 years and is, like all timeless things, brilliantly simple in concept: panel members are challenged to speak for one minute without repetition or deviation on any subject that comes up. And believe it or not, that very basic premise kept an absolutely packed house, sold out in fact, laughing continuously. I really can’t think of a better way to pull the curtain on nine days of rich, literary exuberance. Here’s to 2019!