Maureen Lipman, Norma Winstone, Christian Garrick, Art Themen and Jeremy Robson

Actress Dame Maureen Lipman, singer Norma Winstone, violinist and musical director Christian Garrick, saxophonist Art Themen and poet Jeremy Robson bring the 25th Oxford Literary Festival to a close with a celebratory evening of music, humour and poetry.

Lipman is one of Britain’s best-loved actresses. She has written a number of best-selling humorous books as well as witty and often hilarious monologues, a few of which she will perform this evening. She will also join poet Jeremy Robson in reading from his latest highly praised collection The Heartless Traffic. They will be joined by the remarkable Norma Winstone, about whom The Times recently wrote: ‘There is no singer in the country to touch her’. With Winstone will be a group of outstanding jazz musicians, directed by the acclaimed jazz violinist Christian Garrick, son of the late legendary pianist and composer Michael Garrick, and featuring the saxophonist Art Themen.  Garrick leads his own groups, including the Budapest Café Orchestra, and is professor of jazz and non-classical violin at three of London’s major music conservatories.

This special evening will also celebrate the association between Robson and Michael Garrick, who worked and performed together in the Poetry and Jazz in Concert events Robson started in 1962 with an historic sell-out concert at the Royal Festival Hall and of which there were over 300 large-scale concerts, directed by Robson and featuring many leading poets and jazz musicians. Garrick, who died ten years ago this month, wrote all the music for these concerts and set a number of poems by Robson and others to music. He also wrote jazz choral works. Several of his compositions will be played tonight.

On piano will be David Gordon, double bass Dave Green and drums Tom Hooper.

This event lasts one hour 40 minutes and includes a 20-minute interval.