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What
do Clive James, Pamela Stephenson, Diarmuid Gavin, Angela Rippon,
Griff Rhys Jones, The Duchess of Devonshire, Ray Mears and Sebastian
Faulks all have in common?
They
are all appearing at one of Britain's biggest extravaganzas for
bookworms - the Cheltenham Festival of Literature which runs from
October 10 to 19.
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| Fly
away: Journeys are a key theme of the 2003 festival |
In
fact, this year’s festival will be welcoming over 400 of our
greatest writers, critics, historians, actors, playwrights and thinkers
to explore the theme of the journey - while visitors will able to
follow the progress of the festival's four intrepid travelling authors
on a special website.
From
the journey of Captain Scott, brought to life by modern day explorer
Ranulph Fiennes, to tales of the travelling circus with Nell
Stroud or even a magical tour inside your own head with BBC
boffin Robert Winston, some remarkable and inspirational
stories await.
Whether you want to delve into the world of wine with Hugh Johnson,
talk politics with Clare Short or Douglas Hurd, walk
the boards with Steven Berkoff and Janet Suzman or
jump into the history books with Lisa Jardine and Simon
Jenkins - this year's literary feast offers it all!
As
part of the Voices Off programme you can even explore the British
obsession with tea, or test your sleuthing skills with a murder
mystery written especially for the Festival by acclaimed crime-writer
Ann Cleeves.
The
most distinguished and diverse of literary carnivals.
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| The
Independent |
Those
joining the festival for their own unique journeys of discovery
include:
- Jung
Chang - the author of the 10 million best-seller Wild Swans
who will be discussing the phenomenal success of her book and
her remarkable life in East and West
- Alan
Parker - director of some of the finest modern cinema, including
Bugsy Malone, The Commitments and Evita, who will be assessing
the contrasting challenges of writing for the page and for the
screen
- John
Simpson - the BBC World Affairs Correspondent who will be
discussing his coverage of the Middle East over the last 20 years.
Other
events not to miss include appearances by Donna Tartt, author
of The Secret History (who appears in a special festival preview
event on October 4) and Martin Amis who will be joining John
Walsh to discuss his extraordinary new novel Yellow Dog plus an
interactive celebration of gloriously trivial information with Ben
Schott - author of Schott’s Original Miscellany.
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| Wallace
and Gromit will be appearing at the children's festival - Book
It! |
The
festival's guest directors, novelist and film-maker Nigel Williams
and poet and novelist Fred D’Aguiar, have each created a compelling
signature series of events, while at the heart of the Festival is
Across Continents, a groundbreaking international series featuring
leading African and Latin American authors and world premieres by
writers including Maggie Gee and Tobias Hill.
Spreading
the festival spirit still further the popular Voices Off series
continues in its quest to entertain as a range of audacious authors,
star storytellers and poets are set loose in the streets and bars
of Cheltenham.
Stressed
at work? Unlucky in love? Or just having a bad hair day? Whatever
your problem Daisy Goodwin, editor of Essential Poems for
Britain knows just the piece to pep you up!
Book It!, the ever-popular and highly acclaimed children’s
festival within a festival, is brimming with the very best of the
children’s book world.
There’s
a whole host of events to entertain all the family with Philip
Pullman, Jacqueline Wilson, Eoin Colfer, Roger McGough, Martin Jarvis,
Kevin Crossley-Holland and Wallace and Gromit all visiting
the festival and special guest appearances for young bookworms from
Spot the Dog and Preston Pig!
Now celebrating its 54th year, the festival still has been described
as "the most distinguished and diverse of literary carnivals"
in a town recently dubbed 'the world capital of festivals' by The
Times.
Sarah Smyth, festival director, said:
"With such a diverse line-up of artists and an exciting visual
arts and film series planned, we hope the festival will provide
something for every literary taste and continue in its quest to
champion the written and spoken word."
With
such a line-up Cheltenham is sure to popular pilgrimage for book
lovers from far and near - so book early if you're planning a visit
to this year's literary feast!
»Read
more about the festival's web writing project Across
Continents, the children's
festival Book It! and the Write
On workshops and Breaking The Rules events for young people.
| Cheltenham
Festival of Literature |
| Venue |
Town
Hall and other venues |
| Date |
Friday
Oct 10 to Sunday Oct 19 |
| Info |
Box office: 01242 227979
Brochure hotline: 237377
Email boxoffice@cheltenham.gov.uk
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