Friday 3 April 2020

John Carey Interviewed by Bernard O’Donoghue

A Little History of Poetry
Weston Lecture Theatre 10:00am Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Claudia La Malfa

Raphael and the Antique
St Cross College 10:00am Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Michael Wood

The Story of China: A Portrait of a Civilisation and a People
Sheldonian Theatre 10:00am Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Vivek Singh

Indian Cooking Masterclass
Westgate Centre: Cinnamon Kitchen 11:00am Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Diego Zancani

How we Fell in Love with Italian Food
Weston Lecture Theatre 12:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Catherine Horwood

Beth Chatto: A Life with Plants
St Cross College 12:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Jerry Toner

Infamy: The Crimes of Ancient Rome
Oxford Martin School: Seminar Room 12:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
James Hanratty

The Making of an Immigration Judge
Oxford Martin School: Lecture Theatre 12:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Janet Ellis and Kirsty Wark Interviewed by Lucy Atkins

How it Was and The House by the Loch
Bodleian: Divinity School 12:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Bernard O’Donoghue

Poetry: A Very Short Introduction
Blackwell’s Marquee 1:15pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Janice Hadlow

The Other Bennet Sister
Bodleian: Divinity School 2:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
John Took

Dante
Oxford Martin School: Seminar Room 2:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Steve Jones

Here Comes the Sun: How it Makes us What we are
Sheldonian Theatre 2:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Mamtimyn Sunuodula

A Book Written Upside Down: Origins of Chinese Learning in the UK
Weston Lecture Theatre 2:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Clementine Fiell, Nipa Doshi and Kim Colin Chaired by Charlotte Fiell

Women in Design
Oxford Martin School: Lecture Theatre 2:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Ian Fraser

Shredded: Inside RBS, The Bank that Broke Britain
Oxford Martin School: Lecture Theatre 4:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Helen Taylor

Why Women Read Fiction: The Stories of our Lives
St Cross College 4:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Philip Mansel

The Sun King and the English: from Francophobia to Francophilia
Bodleian: Divinity School 4:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Catherine Fletcher

The Beauty and the Terror: An Alternative History of the Italian Renaissance
Weston Lecture Theatre 4:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Alexander McCall Smith

A Celebration of A Writing Life and Honorary Fellowship
Sheldonian Theatre 4:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Nikita Gill

SLAM! You’re Gonna Wanna Hear This
Oxford Martin School: Seminar Room 4:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Susan Llewelyn

Clinical Psychology: A Very Short Introduction
Blackwell’s Marquee 5:15pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Donna Leon Interviewed by Peter Kemp

Trace Elements
Sheldonian Theatre 6:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Hugo Mercier

Not Born Yesterday: The Science of Who We Trust and What We Believe
Oxford Martin School: Seminar Room 6:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Rebecca Abrams

Jewish Treasures from Oxford Libraries
Weston Lecture Theatre 6:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Philipp Ther and Peter Gatrell Chaired by Ian Goldin

Migration and Europe: The Story of Today and our Yesterdays
Oxford Martin School: Lecture Theatre 6:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event
Rachel Reeves

Women of Westminster: The MPs who Changed Politics
Bodleian: Divinity School 6:00pm Fri 3 Friday, 3 April 2020 See this event

Festival information:

The Oxford Literary Festival has in my mind become the leading literary festival of the year. The organisation, the roster of speakers, the ambience and the sheer quality of it all is superb. May it now go from strength to strength each year stretching its ambition more and more. I believe it will.

Every literary festival stays in an author’s mind for slightly individual reasons. I shall remember the Oxford festival for: - the size of the audience: at the top end of the range - their intelligence – this makes a huge difference for a speaker. In the Oxford audience I encountered many experts in the field my book covered and even one of the ambassadors I’d quoted - the beauty and the grace of the place itself – incomparable - the willingness of my hearers to buy books afterwards; I’ve never sold more.

Often as an author, I only occasionally get to meet the public who buy and read my books. The Oxford Literary Festival was a special opportunity for me and certainly one of the highlights of my career – it was an honour I will never forget.

It was a privilege for me to visit the festival to receive the Bodley Medal. As an incidental blessing I saw Oxford at its most mysterious and atmospheric. It was a day of piercing cold and as I walked through the twilight from the Sheldonian to Christ Church, the streets were empty and the whole city was shutting itself away. Christ Church was silent except for the footfall of unseen persons around corners and the sounds of evensong creeping from behind closed doors. For the first time I understood thoroughly the power of college ghost stories.

The Oxford festival is the most elegant and atmospheric of literary festivals. It’s a pleasure to both attend and perform there.

A stimulating and rewarding on-stage conversation; a lively informed and tolerant audience; privileged access to the great treasures of the Bodleian, and finally, wonderfully interesting dinner companions to help me conclude the best day I have enjoyed at any festival – anywhere.

The night in Oxford was the most beautiful event I have ever done. Not just the spectacular setting (of the Sheldonian), but an unforgettable evening.