The Independent Bath Literature Festival

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FRIDAY 1 - SUNDAY 10 MARCH 2013 Bath Box Office 01225 463362 bathfestivals.org.uk


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SPONSORS 1

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Title Sponsor

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Festival Supporters

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The Roper Family Charitable Trust The Joyce Fletcher Charitable Trust Anne Marston Morny & Ian Hay Davison Sandra Le Marchant Lady Maitland Chris & Jan Shepley

2 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


WELCOME BOOKING DATES -P atrons Booking 18 December 2012

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W

elcome to The Independent Bath Literature Festival; a place of discussion, debate, ideas, inspiration, people, principle and pleasure.

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Some of the greatest names in contemporary fiction are coming to Bath this year, including the double Booker Prize winner Hilary Mantel and one of the most popular writers on the planet: J.K. Rowling. We also welcome Nadeem Aslam, Pat Barker, Tracy Chevalier, Jim Crace, Lindsey Davis, Helen Dunmore, Aminatta Forna, Amity Gaige, Tessa Hadley, Georgina Harding, P.D. James, Rachel Joyce, Kate Mosse, Michele Roberts, Jennie Rooney, Sara Sheridan, Rupert Thomson, Sandi Toksvig, Kamila Shamsie, A.N.Wilson and Anne Zouroudi.

-P enfriends Booking 18 December 2012 -P enpals Booking 2 January 2013 -B ath Chronicle Priority Booking 3 January 2013 - I ndependent Priority Booking 5 – 6 January 2013 - G eneral Booking 9 January 2013

A hundred years ago Europe was unaware of its oncoming catastrophe. In this Festival we go back to 1913 for a series of connected events that will provide a context for the world war that would shape a century. We look at what people were fighting for then; and what they are prepared to die for today. What does it mean to lay down your life for your country? We look at the way in which war and landscape have come to define our ideas of nationality, and celebrate Britain’s folk tradition, with performances of every single ballad from The New Penguin Book of English Folk Song.

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Our principal subjects are freedom – of thought, speech, politics, religion – and justice: whether that is our stunning Big Bath Read (Honour by Elif Shafak) a landmark conversation with the human rights lawyer Clive Stafford Smith, or a new production of the trial scene from Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Over the last hundred years we have moved from “the age of extremes” to “the age of information” in which there’s so much coming at us that, at times, it’s difficult to tell what matters.

Join the conversation @bathfestivals #bathlitfest /bathlitfest

Words matter. Reading matters. Come and join the conversation. James Runcie Artistic Director Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 3


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PATRONS

Thank you Bath Festivals’ Patrons for your generous support Paragon Patron Trevor and Barbara Osborne Circus Patron Jane Drabble and Bill Nemtin in association with

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Crescent Patron Rob and Deborah Clements Morny and Ian Hay Davison Andrew Fletcher LT.CDR Conrad Jones Sheila McCormack Nigel and Stephanie Pollard Bob and Diana Potter Chris and Jan Shepley Brian & Maggie Woodford

Corporate Patron Beckford James

For more Information

BECOME A FRIEND ENJOY SAVE SUPPORT From as little as £20 a year, you can enjoy:

visit www.bathlitfest.org.uk/patrons or call Clare Diacono, Development Manager on 01225 462231.

BECOME A PATRON

- Advance brochure mailing and programme preview

Join us at the heart of Bath Festivals and play a vital role in developing our programmes, our audiences and our education work.

- Friends newsletter with the latest festival news, reviews and what’s on

From just £62 per month, enjoy exclusive benefits across all of our festivals, including:

- Invitation to Friends’ events

- Priority booking

- Exclusive discounts and offers from Festival partners

- Patrons Box Office with dedicated private booking line

JOIN TODAY AT

- Invitation to exclusive events, including the annual Artistic Director’s dinner and literary lunch

- Priority booking

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www.bathlitfest.org.uk/penfriends or ask at the Box Office for more details. T: 01225 463362.

- Opportunities to attend rehearsals and behind the scenes tours

We are grateful for the support of:

- Advance information with newsletters and programme previews

Champion Joanna Dickson Leach Principal Benefactor Michael Dickson & Effie Galletly Amanda Clarkson

- Pre-reserved top price seats to selected events

- Acknowledgement at every festival - Priority booking and Patron benefits at St Magnus International Festival, Orkney

4 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


RELAX AT THE FESTIVAL FESTIVAL CAFÉ Guildhall Opening during Festival hours Relish will be delivering their pop up café ‘Somewhere Novel’ where festival goers can enjoy luxury barista coffees, deli treats and a delicious lunch menu featuring the very best local seasonal produce. The café accepts both cash and card payment.

FESTIVAL BOOKSHOP Guildhall Opening hours: from 10.30am We are delighted to welcome back Mr B’s Emporium of Reading Delights (www.mrbsemporium.com), double-winners of the UK Independent Bookshop of the Year (2011 and 2008), as the official Festival bookseller for The Independent Bath Literature Festival. Pop in to their bookshop inside the Guildhall where a full selection of Festival books will be available to tempt you – it’s also a great place to while away the time between events. And don’t forget that there will be a book signing after every event. There will also be satellite bookshops at the many other Literature Festival venues. The bookshop accepts both cash and card payment.

WIN £500 OF AMAZON VOUCHERS! Principal Sponsor Baillie Gifford is offering Festival goers the opportunity to win £500 worth of Amazon vouchers. Look out for information at Festival venues or attend Baillie Gifford’s sponsored strand of events titled The Global View. Visit www.bgtrustonline.com/bath for further details.

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 5


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£5 includes 7 days of the paper, worth £9.60. PLUS, free iPad access worth £9.99 per month. For the smarter way to pay and more information go to: independent.co.uk/subscriptions


DIARY ARTIST

TIME

VENUE

11AM — 4PM All day 7 — 11PM

Bath Central Library Central Bath Various City Venues

10.30 — 11.15AM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 12 — 4PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.45PM 7.30 — 9.30PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 9PM

Midsomer Norton Library Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital Holburne Museum Central Bath Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital Holburne Museum Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital St. James Wine Vaults Guildhall Guildhall

1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 5PM 2 — 5PM 2 — 4PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 11PM

Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital Central Bath Holburne Museum Holburne Museum Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital Guildhall Guildhall Mineral Hospital The Bell Inn

10AM start — meeting place on ticket 10AM — 1PM Open daily 10AM — 4PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 6PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 10PM

Streets of Bath Holburne Museum Bath Central Library Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Holburne Museum Guildhall Guildhall Keynsham Library Guildhall Guildhall BRLSI St. James Wine Vaults

FRIDAY 1 MARCH Voices in the City: Bath Poetry Café Folk Song Challenge: ‘Soldiers and Sailors’ Poems In Pubs

SATURDAY 2 MARCH Kids Big Bath Read A1 Opening Talk: Sarajevo with Allan Little A2 Sportswriting A3 How we have transformed the land with Francis Pryor A4 Art Detectives A5 Heat on the Street Robert Fisk A6 Miriam Darlington: Otter Country A7 Short Story with Tessa Hadley and Sarah Hall A8 Elen Caldecott A9 Kate Mosse A10 Adam Fergusson: When Money Dies A11 Translation Duel: French A12 P.D. James with John Mullan A13 Dag Solstad A14 Our Brain: Memory and Optimism A15 Will Gompertz: What Are You Looking At? A16 The Independent Foreign Fiction Prize Long–List Announcement – A17 English Folk Songs with Steve Roud A18 Pitch Perfect Big Bath Read: Elif Shafak A19 The Wisdom of Psychopaths A20

SUNDAY 3 MARCH The Pornography Debate B1 John Mullan: What Matters in Jane Austen? B2 Gossip from the Forest B3 Words Alive Wish You Were Here… Folk Song Challenge: ‘Unhappy Love’ Jerry Brotton: 12 Maps B4 Iceland and Antarctica B5 Nine Decades of Radio B6 Darcey Bussell B7 Risk Intelligence with Dylan Evans B8 Patrick Hennessey: Kandak B9 China: Paul Mason B10 Sarah Simblet on Trees B11 Melanie King: Can Onions Cure Ear–ache? B12 The Last Supper B13 Mark Grist B14 Harry Mount: How England Made the English B15 Won’t Get Fooled Again

MONDAY 4 MARCH Morning Walk: Bath in 1713 C1 Sarah Simblet C2 Tiny Monuments Collective A.N. Wilson on Wedgwood C3 Nature Writing with Jean Sprackland C4 Environment, resources and economy C5 Bee Wilson: Consider the Fork C6 Folk Song Challenge: ‘Lust, Infidelity and Bad Living’ Book Illustration Masterclass C7 Sandi Toksvig C8 Paul Ormerod: Positive Linking C9 Jason Drew: The Story Of The Fly C10 James Runcie on Keats C11 Ocean of Life C12 Anatomies with Hugh Aldersey–Williams C13 Poetry and a Pint

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 7


DIARY ARTIST

TIME

VENUE

10AM — 4PM Open daily 10AM — 4PM 10.30 — 11.30AM 10.30AM — 12.30PM 11AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 1.15 — 2.15PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 4.30 — 6PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 6 — 8PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7PM 7 — 8PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 9PM

Holburne Museum Bath Central Library Keynsham Library Hall & Woodhouse Bath Central Library Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Holburne Museum Guildhall Holburne Museum Guildhall Guildhall Roscoff Deli Guildhall Guildhall Radstock Library Midsomer Norton Library Guildhall Guildhall

Open daily 10AM — 4PM 10AM — 4PM 10AM — 11PM 11AM — 12PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 2.30 — 3.15PM 3 — 4PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 6PM 5.30 — 6.30PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 7.30 — 8.30PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 9PM

Bath Central Library Holburne Museum The Raven Keynsham Library Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Keynsham Library Bath Central Library Guildhall Holburne Museum Keynsham Library Guildhall Guildhall Keynsham Library Guildhall Guildhall

Open daily 10AM — 4PM 10AM start — meeting place on ticket 10AM — 4PM 11AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 6PM 5 — 7PM 6 — 7.30PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 9PM 8 — 10PM

Bath Central Library Streets of Bath Holburne Museum Bath Central Library Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Holburne Museum Radstock Library Roscoff Deli Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Salon St. James Wine Vaults

TUESDAY 5 MARCH Writing in the Social Media Age D1 Tiny Monuments Collective Book Chat Wish You Were Here Meet The Artists: Tiny Monuments Collective John Batchelor on Tennyson D2 Memoir D3 The Drugs Trade D4 Sarah LeFanu: S is for Samora D5 Folk Song Challenge: ‘Traditional Religious Songs’ Anthologise D6 Writing Online D7 The Oldie Event D8 Freedom from Torture: Write to Life D9 Devoted to Rhyme China’s Growth with Linda Yueh D10 Tracey Thorn D11 Meet the Author: Susan Swingler D12 After Hours: Poetry Liaison Clive Stafford Smith: Injustice D13 Noise: A Human History of Sound and Listening D14

WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH Tiny Monuments Collective We Make Books E1 Comic Book Slumber Party E2 Writers Surgery 1922: Constellation of Genius E3 Biography with Jane Ridley E4 Violent Conflict E5 Running with the Pack E6 Meet the Author: Jane Ridley E7 Book Chat Literary Walks Around Bath E8 Not a Games Person? Sports Writing for All E9 Folk Song Challenge: ‘Rural Life and Occupations’ Ben Goldacre: Bad Pharma E10 Aminatta Forna E11 Keynsham Voices Helen Dunmore and James Long E12 Ninja E13

THURSDAY 7 MARCH Tiny Monuments Collective Bath in 1813 F1 Helen Cross: Creating Expressive Characters F2 Tiny Monuments Collective Cecil Beaton’s Theatre of War F3 Social History F4 What happens when good religion goes bad? F5 The Hidden Lives of Daphne du Maurier and her Sisters F6 Lindsey Davis F7 The Bookshop Band F8 Extraordinary Writing F9 Folk Song Challenge: ‘Songs of Death and Destruction’ Writers Surgery: Speculative Fiction Gavin Esler: Lessons from the Top F10 The Undiscovered Country: Journeys Among the Dead F11 State of the World F12 BBC Stories F13 Pitch Perfect

8 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


DIARY ARTIST

TIME

VENUE

10AM start — meeting place on ticket 10AM — 4PM Open daily 10am — 4pm 11.15AM — 12.15pm 11.15AM — 12.15pm 12 — 1pm 1 — 2pm 1 — 2pm 3.30 — 5pm 3.30 — 4.15pm 4.30 — 5.30pm 5.30 — 7.30pm 6.15 — 7.15pm 6.15 — 7.15pm 7 — 8pm 8 — 9pm 8 — 9pm 8 — 11pm

Streets of Bath Holburne Museum Bath Central Library Guildhall Guildhall Theatre Royal Bath Guildhall Guildhall Jacob’s Café Radstock Library Guildhall Bath City Centre Guildhall Guildhall Midsomer Norton Library Guildhall Forum St James Wine Vaults, Gallery Room

OPEN DAILY 10AM — 4PM 10.30AM — 12.30PM 11AM — 12.30PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.30AM — 1PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 8 — 9PM 8.30 — 10PM

Bath Central Library Midsomer Norton Library Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Holburne Museum Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Guildhall Holburne Museum Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Guildhall Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Holburne Museum Forum Bath Spa Live, Burdall’s Yard

11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 11.15AM — 12.15PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 1 — 2PM 2PM, 3PM & 3.30PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 2.45 — 3.45PM 3 — 4PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 4.30 — 5.30PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15PM 6.15 — 7.15 8 — 9PM 8 — 9PM

Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Holburne Museum Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Guildhall Jacob’s Café Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Guildhall Guildhall Masonic Hall Holburne Museum Guildhall Guildhall

FRIDAY 8 MARCH Morning Walk: Bath in 1913 G1 How to get published G2 Tiny Monuments Collective Jennifer Scott G3 Poetry Prescription with William Sieghart G4 The Real Jane Austen with Paula Byrne G5 Extremes with Kevin Fong G6 Michael Jacobs: A River Journey Through Colombia G7 Writers Surgery How does publishing work G8 The Mystery of writing a Mystery G9 Folk Song Challenge: ‘Lovers’ Tricks, Disguises and Obstacles Overcome’ Polly Toynbee and David Walker: Dogma and Disarray G10 The Secret Anarchy of Science G11 Poetry Prescription with William Sieghart G12 Tour de France 100 G13 J.K. Rowling G14 What A Performance!

SATURDAY 9 MARCH Tiny Monuments Collective Folk Song Challenge: ‘Happy Relationships’ PR for Writers H1 Jonathan Bate on First World War Literature H2 The Geek Manifesto: Why Science Matters H3 Make an App! H4 The Youth View H5 Hayek, Friedman, and the Birth of Neoliberal Politics H6 Crime: How to Plot H7 The Suffragette and The Jockey H8 New Voices: Anthea Nicolson, Beatrice Hitchman and Katie Ward H9 On The Map H10 To Kill A Mockingbird H11 The Wind in the Willows goes Digital H12 Alex Danchev on Cézanne H13 Folk Song Challenge: ‘Poachers, Highwaymen and Other Criminals’ Jim Crace: Harvest H14 The World before the Great War H15 Pat Barker H16 Karl Polanyi and The Great Transformation H17 To Kill A Mockingbird H18 Hello World H19 Jennie Rooney and Amity Gaige H20 Hilary Mantel H21 QL (Quite Literate)

SUNDAY 10 MARCH The Silence of Animals J1 The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry J2 Di Atkinson on Mrs Norton J3 The Independent Debate J4 Ban This Filth! J5 From the Ruins of Empire J6 Folk Tales Christopher Clark: The Sleepwalkers J7 Nadeem Aslam with Kamila Shamsie J8 An Optimist’s Tour of the Future J9 To Kill A Mockingbird J10 Book Chat Spell It Out: The Singular Story of English Spelling J11 Uncomfortable Truths J12 Tracy Chevalier and Rupert Thomson J13 Jon Ronson: Lost at Sea J14 Poetry and Fascism with Lucy Hughes–Hallett J15 The Phantom Army of Alamein J16 Georgina Harding and Michèle Roberts J17 Folk Song Challenge: ‘Animals and Nonsense’ To Kill A Mockingbird J18

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 9


FRIDAY 1 MARCH

VOICES IN THE CITY

BATH POETRY CAFÉ Bath Central Library 11am – 4pm Free Event Bath Poetry Café returns for its third year with a programme devised by poets from across the West Country. With sets from Bristol, Wells, Swindon and Knucklebone Poets, the day will feature two recent Poetry Cafe ventures with new versions of the ongoing local portrait project Faces and a reprise of the concert of poems presented as part of the international event 100,000 Poets for Change. Look out too for some surprise celebrities!

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

SOLDIERS AND SAILORS All day Bath City Centre Free event This year we will be celebrating the publication of The New Penguin Book of English Folk Songs by Steve Roud and Julia Bishop. We are challenging local choirs, community groups, storytellers and readers to bring the stories to life by performing the whole selection of songs throughout the Festival. The folk songs might be sung, acted, rapped, read or signed, but most importantly they will be performed live. To celebrate the start of the Literature Festival there will be performances around the city centre - look on our website for details and listen out for tales of seafaring, press gangs and disguised female soldiers.

VOICES IN THE CITY

POEMS IN PUBS 7 – 11pm Various City Venues Free event Poems in Pubs returns as Bath’s one and only poetry pub crawl for the fourth year in a row. Marvel as masters of the spoken word magically mix sonnets with satire, comedy with couplets and poetry with pints! Follow the whole route or dip in and out as you please. Poets welcome for the open mic finale. Follow the pub crawl: 7pm The Raven 8.30pm The Salamander 9.30pm The Huntsman 10.20pm The Raven Sponsored by

10 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


SATURDAY 2 MARCH

Join the conversation @bathfestivals #bathlitfest /bathlitfest

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

OPENING TALK

KIDS BIG BATH READ

SARAJEVO WITH ALLAN LITTLE

10.30 – 11.15am Midsomer Norton Library Age 7+ Free but booking required A1 Award-winning author Elen Caldecott writes stories about very ordinary people who do very extraordinary things. Join Elen as she reveals her top writing secrets, where she gets her inspiration from and talks about her latest book, The Mystery of Wickworth Manor. Supported by Bloomsbury

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £9 (£8) A2 We begin our series of events devoted to the build-up to the Great War in Europe with a report from the place where it all began. The assassination of Archduke Ferdinand in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914 has always been seen as the trigger for war. But what was the city like at the time, and how has it played such an extraordinary part in the history of Europe, right up to the Bosnian War between 1992 and 1995? Allan Little, co-author of the acclaimed Death of Yugoslavia looks at how one city shaped the destiny of a century.

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 11


SATURDAY 2 MARCH

MY CRAFT

LANDSCAPE

WORKSHOP

VOICES IN THE CITY

SPORTS WRITING

HOW WE HAVE TRANSFORMED THE LAND WITH FRANCIS PRYOR

ART DETECTIVES

HEAT ON THE STREET

11.15am – 1.15pm Holburne Museum Age 8 – 11 £8 A5

12 – 4pm Central Bath Free event

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) A3 Which is more exciting to write about – football or rugby? Rodge Glass (Bring Me the Head of Ryan Giggs) and Owen Sheers (Calon: A Journey to the Heart of Welsh Rugby), discuss how to put a passion for sport on the page. They talk about why their obsessions have taken hold, and share their ideas about how to convey the drama of those moments in sport when nothing else seems to matter. Supported by Faber and Faber

11.15am – 12.15pm Mineral Hospital £8 (£7) A4 Former president of the Council for British Archaeology, Dr Francis Pryor has spent thirty years studying the ways in which human beings have changed their immediate surroundings. From suburban streets, which still trace the boundaries of long vanished farms, to the Norfolk Broads, formed when medieval peat pits flooded – the evidence of man’s effect on the environment is everywhere. This talk promises to change the way in which you see the land around you.

Come and join us as we uncover the secrets behind the paintings at the Holburne Museum and details of the lives of the artists who painted them. Be inspired by these real and imagined stories to create your very own artwork and new exhibition at the museum.

Be ready for close encounters of the word kind – stories, drama, poetry and more. Exploring ideas of change and revolution, students of creative writing, English literature and performing arts from Bath Spa University bring their interactive creativity to the heart of the city. For details of where to catch the performances visit bathfestivals.org.uk Presented by our Creative Partner

Supported by Penguin Sponsored by

Become a member Get more with membership. Join from just £20 / 01225 463362

12 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


SATURDAY 2 MARCH

ROBERT FISK 1 – 2pm Guildhall £9 (£8) A6 The multi award winning journalist Robert Fisk has been the Middle East Correspondent for The Independent for over thirty years, primarily based in Beirut. In this special session he talks and takes questions on the current political situation, focusing particularly on Syria, the Lebanon, and western interests in the Middle East.

LANDSCAPE

MY CRAFT

KIDS BIG BATH READ

MIRIAM DARLINGTON: OTTER COUNTRY

SHORT STORY WITH TESSA HADLEY AND SARAH HALL

ELEN CALDECOTT

1 – 2pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) A7

1 – 2pm Mineral Hospital £8 (£7) A8

Over the course of a year, Miriam Darlington travelled around Britain in search of wild otters: from her home in Devon to the wilds of Scotland; to Cumbria, Wales, Northumberland, Cornwall, Somerset and the River Lea; and back to her childhood home near the Ouse, the source of her watery obsession. Her wonderful new book, Otter Country follows that search through different landscapes, seasons, weather and light, as she tracks one of Britain’s most elusive animals.

Tessa Hadley’s Married Love is an unflinching examination of family relationships. Sarah Hall’s The Beautiful Indifference has been praised for its sensuous power and luminous sense of place. These are undoubtedly two of our greatest short story writers, consistently recognised for the economy, style and sheer originality of their writing. Come and hear them.

Supported by Granta Sponsored by

Supported by Faber and Faber and Jonathan Cape Sponsored by

2.45 – 3.45pm Holburne Museum Age 7+ £5 A9 When Paige and Curtis, discover a hidden painting they are determined to find out who the Wickworth Boy really is and the real story behind the painting. Swept up in a rollercoaster of an adventure, an unlikely friendship develops between them, and soon they are working together to expose the truth. Join award-winning author Elen Caldecott for a crash-course in story writing and find out all about her latest book, The Mystery of Wickworth Manor. Be prepared to get your creative brain in-gear. Audience participation is essential! Supported by Bloomsbury

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 13


SATURDAY 2 MARCH

FICTION

THE GLOBAL VIEW

INTERNATIONAL

FICTION

KATE MOSSE

ADAM FERGUSSON: WHEN MONEY DIES

TRANSLATION DUEL: FRENCH

P.D. JAMES WITH JOHN MULLAN

2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £9 (£8) A10 Kate Mosse’s Citadel, the story of an all female group of Resistance fighters in the Second World War, is already a phenomenal bestseller, described by The Times, as ‘a lovely, fat, comfy wodge of a book, packed with suspense and romance.’ She discusses the wonderfully ambitious and moving conclusion to her internationally acclaimed Languedoc trilogy with Bath Literature Festival Artistic Director James Runcie. Supported by Orion

2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) A11 Adam Fergusson’s account of hyperinflation in the Weimar Republic of 1923 is now acknowledged as the classic economic textbook warning of the dangers of a government printing money to try and buy its way out of the problems of debt, civil unrest and unemployment. More than thirty-five years ago The Times wrote: ‘The Prime Minister would do well to put copies of this fascinating history beside every bed in Chequers’. That advice still holds good.

2.45 – 3.45pm Mineral Hospital £8 (£7) A12 What happens to the essence of a story when it is translated from one language into another? Join Daniel Hahn as he pits the linguistic skills of Independent Foreign Fiction prizewinning translator Frank Wynne and Free Word’s Translatorin-Residence Ollie Brock against each other to prove that every translation is a creative work of merit in its own right. No knowledge of French is needed to enjoy this event! Supported by

Supported by Old Street Publishing Sponsored by

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £10 (£9) A13 Inspired by a lifelong passion for the work of Jane Austen, P. D. James masterfully recreates the world of Pride and Prejudice, and combines it with the excitement and suspense of a brilliantly-crafted crime story. Death Comes to Pemberley is a distinguished work of fiction, from one of the best-loved, most-read writers of our time. In this absolutely-don’t-miss event, P.D. James discusses her work with John Mullan, one of the finest critics working today, author of What Matters in Jane Austen? Supported by Faber and Faber and Bloomsbury Sponsored by Anne Marston

14 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


SATURDAY 2 MARCH

INTERNATIONAL

SCIENCE

FICTION: DAG SOLSTAD

OUR BRAIN: MEMORY AND OPTIMISM

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) A14 We are honoured to welcome Dag Solstad, one of Norway’s most distinguished living writers to the Festival. All three of his novels available in English have been listed for the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. His latest Professor Andersen’s Night is an unsettling yet highly entertaining novel of apathy, rebellion and morality. In flinty prose, Solstad presents an uncomfortable question: would we, like his cerebral protagonist, do nothing when we witness a crime? Sponsored by

4.30 – 5.30pm Mineral Hospital £8 (£7) A15 Charles Fernyhough and Elaine Fox use genetics, neurology, and psychology to discuss memory and optimism. How do we remember? Are we genetically programmed to be happy or sad? If you are an optimist will your memories be happier? Can we retrain our brains to have a happier outlook? If so, what does that mean for our memories? Supported by Profile and William Heinemann Sponsored by

THE ART OF LOOKING

WILL GOMPERTZ: WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT? 6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £9 (£8) A16 Why do we either love or loathe modern art? And why is it worth so much money? Join BBC Arts Editor Will Gompertz for a dazzling behind the scenes tour of the masterpieces, meet the artists as they really were, and discover the real point of modern art. Guaranteed to change the way you look at modern art forever and make your next gallery trip a lot more interesting!

INTERNATIONAL

THE INDEPENDENT FOREIGN FICTION PRIZE LONG-LIST ANNOUNCEMENT 6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) A17 Join three of the judges, Boyd Tonkin, Elif Shafak and Frank Wynne, for a behind the scenes look at this year’s long-list. In conversation with translator Maureen Freely they discuss the fifteen books and the reasons behind the selection. Supported by IFFP and Penguin

Supported by Penguin Sponsored by

Become a friend today. Enjoy. Save. Support. www.bathlitfest.org.uk/penfriends

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 15


SATURDAY 2 MARCH

LANDSCAPE

VOICES IN THE CITY

BIG BATH READ

SCIENCE

ENGLISH FOLK SONGS WITH STEVE ROUD

PITCH PERFECT

ELIF SHAFAK

THE WISDOM OF PSYCHOPATHS

6.15 – 7.45pm Mineral Hospital £15 (£14) A18 One of the great English popular art forms, folk songs can be painful, satirical, erotic, dramatic, rueful or funny. Join Steve Roud, the editor of The New Penguin Book of English Folk Songs for a very special event that takes you on a journey through some of the classics and lesser known songs interspersed with live performances by Bath’s own Beth Porter and friends. Every day local performers will be interpreting a chapter of The New Penguin Book of English Folk Songs. Check the brochure for performance times and venues (it’s free!) or get in touch if you would like to join in – email folksongs@ bathfestivals.org.uk.

7.30 – 9.30pm St. James Wine Vaults Free event Pitch Perfect is back and searching for more unpublished fiction writers! You have 3 minutes to try out your work on a new audience and a panel of judges from Bath Spa University. Make it fun, imaginative and entertaining and leave them wanting more. See our website for the rules. Presented by our Creative Partner

8 – 9pm Guildhall £9 (£8) A19 Elif Shafak has recently been named as ‘one of the most distinctive voices in contemporary Turkish and world literature’. Her new book Honour, is a powerful, brilliant and moving account of murder, love and family set in a Kurdish village, Istanbul and London. A wonderful reader and a compelling speaker, Elif discusses her writing with the writer and translator Maureen Freely and takes questions from the audience. Supported by Penguin Sponsored by

Join the conversation Read Honour in advance and share your thoughts at the event. Take advantage of our group booking offer and get one free ticket for every 10 booked to an event.

Supported by Penguin Sponsored by

16 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

8 – 9pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) A20 In this groundbreaking adventure into the world of psychopaths, renowned psychologist Kevin Dutton reveals that there is a ‘scale of madness’ along which we all sit. Incorporating the latest advances in brain scanning and neuroscience, he shows that there is a fine line separating a brilliant surgeon and a serial killer. Illustrating the spectrum of psychopathy with some insightful and startling case studies, The Wisdom of Psychopaths reveals a shocking truth: beneath the hype and the popular characterisation, psychopaths have something to teach us. Supported by William Heinemann


SUNDAY 3 MARCH BATH HALF Bath Half Marathon takes place on Sunday 3 March. This exciting event attracts a lot of supporters to the city so please allow more time to get to your event. Local road closures and parking suspensions will be in place. Alternative routes will be signposted. For further details about how the Bath Half Marathon could affect your journey please call Bath Box Office on 01225 463362.

THE PORNOGRAPHY DEBATE 1 – 2pm Guildhall £8 (£7) B1 Why are young girls continually portrayed as sex objects? What can be done to stop the pornification of women in our society and in our media? Should pornography be banned? And has 50 Shades of Grey made everything worse? Kate Mosse, bestselling author and founder of the Women’s Prize For Fiction, chairs a debate with Independent journalist Yasmin Alibhai Brown, Dr Jan Macvarish from the Centre for Parenting Culture Studies and sexual health worker Ali Morris.

FICTION

LANDSCAPE

JOHN MULLAN: WHAT MATTERS IN JANE AUSTEN?

GOSSIP FROM THE FOREST

1 – 2pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) B2 What are the right and wrong ways to propose marriage? What do the characters call each other, and why? Is there any sex in Austen? And which important Austen characters never speak? In What Matters in Jane Austen: Twenty Crucial Puzzles Solved, the great literary critic John Mullan looks at the intriguing quirks and intricacies of her fiction, explores the rituals and conventions of her fictional world, and reveals her sheer daring as a novelist. Supported by Bloomsbury

1 – 2pm Mineral Hospital £8 (£7) B3 Fairytales are one of our earliest and most vital cultural forms, and forests one of our most ancient and primal landscapes. Both evoke similar sensations in us – we find them beautiful, magical, spooky, and unsettling. Sara Maitland argues that the two are intimately connected: the mysterious secrets and silences, gifts and perils of the forests were both the background and the source of fairytales. Yet both forests and fairy stories are at risk – and their potential loss deprives us of our cultural lifeblood. Supported by Granta Sponsored by

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 17


SUNDAY 3 MARCH

VOICES IN THE CITY

VOICES IN THE CITY

WORDS ALIVE

WISH YOU WERE HERE…

1 – 5pm Central Bath Free event Responding to themes of freedom and liberty, students from Bath Spa University bring their verbal vitality and creative invention back to the city centre. Feel free to get engaged with performances, get involved in workshops, and enjoy having fun along the way! Presented by our Creative Partner

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

UNHAPPY LOVE

2 – 5pm Holburne Museum Free event

2 – 4pm Holburne Museum Free event

Choose a postcard and let yourself go. Compose a message to someone you miss, your worst enemy or a lover you can’t forget. Write a short story, a poem or a haiku inspired by the collections in the Holburne Museum. Confess a secret you never dared tell anyone, post it in our box and walk away with a lighter heart. Alex and Jude of Writing Events Bath will be there to inspire and help you.

Join local musicians and community groups as they take part in our Festival Challenge to perform every song from Steve Roud and Julia Bishop’s The New Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs. Today’s chapter tackles the complexities of love and the pain of rejection – not all love songs have a happy ending!

THIS LIFE

JERRY BROTTON: 12 MAPS 2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £8 (£7) B4 Throughout history, maps have been fundamental in shaping our view of the world, and our place in it. But far from being purely scientific objects, world maps are unavoidably ideological and subjective, intimately bound up with the systems of power and authority of particular times and places. In this scintillating talk, Jerry Brotton examines the significance of 12 maps – from the mystical representations of ancient history to the satellite-derived imagery of today, showing how they continue to make arguments and propositions about the world. Supported by Penguin Sponsored by The Roper Family Charitable Trust

18 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


SUNDAY 3 MARCH

LANDSCAPE

HISTORY

THIS LIFE

THE GLOBAL VIEW

ICELAND AND ANTARCTICA

NINE DECADES OF RADIO

DARCEY BUSSELL

2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) B5

2.45 – 3.45pm Mineral Hospital £8 (£7) B6

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £9 (£8) B7

RISK INTELLIGENCE WITH DYLAN EVANS

In Iceland, Sarah Moss was drawn to the strangeness of the landscape, exploring hillsides of boiling mud, volcanic craters and fissures, watching the northern lights and the comings and goings of migratory birds. In Antarctica, Gavin Francis spent fourteen months as the base-camp doctor experiencing a rare opportunity to live among emperor penguins, the only species truly at home in the Antarctic. What does it mean to explore these remote places, experience their beauty and understand the hardships facing those who live there?

Simon Elmes celebrates the great, the forgotten and the notorious voices of radio from the last nine decades. His survey runs from Marion Cran in the 1920s, who pioneered the first gardening programme to Lord Haw Haw, whose sinister catchphrase ‘Germany calling’ punctuated broadcasts throughout the Second World War; and from the Goons and Kenneth Horne, comedy greats of the 1950s, all the way up to Eddie Mair, Fi Glover and Danny Baker today.

We are delighted to welcome one of the greatest English ballerinas of all time to the Festival. Darcey Bussell’s A Life in Pictures chronicles her career with stunning images by world renowned photographers, intimate behind-thescenes glimpses and personal anecdotes. Do not miss this very special event and a fascinating insight into the ballet world.

Supported by Random House Books

Supported by Hardie Grant Books Sponsored by

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) B8 There is a special kind of intelligence for dealing with risk and uncertainty. It doesn’t correlate with IQ and most psychologists fail to spot it because it is found in such a disparate group of people such as weather-forecasters, professional gamblers and hedge-fund managers. Yet Dylan Evans shows us how risk intelligence is vital to making good decisions, from dealing with climate change to combating terrorism. He argues that ‘risk intelligence’ can teach us to make decisions in all aspects of our lives. Supported by Atlantic Books

Supported by Granta Sponsored by

Sponsored by

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SUNDAY 3 MARCH

THIS LIFE

THE GLOBAL VIEW

LANDSCAPE

HISTORY

PATRICK HENNESSEY: KANDAK

CHINA: PAUL MASON

SARAH SIMBLET ON TREES

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £9 (£8) B10

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) B11

MELANIE KING: CAN ONIONS CURE EAR-ACHE?

BBC Newsnight’s Paul Mason returns to Bath to talk about Rare Earth a zeitgeist novel about the growing dominance of the Chinese economy, in which a television reporter stumbles on a corruption scandal involving illegal mines, a fashion crazed gang of girl-bikers and the unquiet dead of Chinese communism. This is a disturbing and humorous account of our inability to understand what will soon become the most powerful nation in the world.

Sarah Simblet is currently travelling the land, drawing British trees in all seasons and all weathers for The New Sylva, a book which will be published in 2014 to coincide with the 350th anniversary of John Evelyn’s original Sylva published by the Royal Society in 1664. A fabulous artist and wonderful speaker, Sarah talks us through this fascinating and comprehensive work in progress, and takes a drawing class the following morning (see page 23).

Supported by No Exit Press

Sponsored by

4.30 – 5.30pm Mineral Hospital £8 (£7) B9 When Patrick Hennessey (The Junior Officers’ Reading Club) returned home from service in Afghanistan, he left behind him bands of friendship forged in the heat of the moment between living and dying. The comrades he left furthest behind were Qiam, Syed and Majhib, in the dust and heat of Helmand. An account of friendship and loss, of warriors and soldiers, KANDAK: Fighting with Afghans explores the reasons men pick up the sword, and how in the intensity of battle, unlikely alliances can be formed.

Sponsored by

Supported by Penguin

20 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

6.15 – 7.15pm Mineral Hospital £8 (£7) B12 If someone was struck down by illness or injury in the late eighteenth century, the chances are that they would have referred to William Buchan’s Domestic Medicine – with the result that they might have found themselves drinking a broth made from sheep brain or administering drops of urine in their ears. The book’s author, a Scottish physician, published his selfhelp manual in 1769 specifically for the benefit of those without access to affordable medicine. Melanie King tells his story.


SUNDAY 3 MARCH

THE ART OF LOOKING

THE LAST SUPPER 8 – 9pm Guildhall £8 (£7) B13 After a dozen years at the court of Lodovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan, Leonardo da Vinci was at a low point personally and professionally. Despite a number of prestigious commissions, he had reached the age of 43 – more than the average life expectancy for the day – without having completed a major work that fulfilled his astonishing promise, when at last the challenge arose. In this richly illustrated talk, Ross King shows how Leonardo created a masterpiece that would forever define his reputation.

PERFORMANCE

LANDSCAPE

VOICES IN THE CITY

MARK GRIST

HARRY MOUNT: HOW ENGLAND MADE THE ENGLISH

WON’T GET FOOLED AGAIN

8 – 9pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) B14 This year, millions watched an ex-English teacher defeat a teenage grime artist in a rap battle. Midrecession, Mark Grist quit his teaching job to embark on a series of challenges, leading him to become ‘an internet sensation’ (Sun) and ‘unlikely heart-throb’ (Guardian). His newest show, The Geek shall inherit the Earth, involves Mark crashing a cookery show being filmed in Abergavenny, travelling to America to compete in the world’s largest Risk Tournament and also becoming an unlikely battle rapper. Warning - contains poetry.

Supported by Bloomsbury

8 – 9pm Mineral Hospital £8 (£7) B15 Harry Mount, the bestselling author of Amo, Amas, Amat and A Lust for Window Sills, return to the Festival to tell our national history in a series of wonderfully arcane facts and astonishing stories. From hedgerows to Heathrow, the English have been shaped by the land’s unique geography, geology, climate and history. Mount explains why we drive on the left, the distinctive tint of kerbstones, the narrowness of our train seats, why we drink too much, are bad at speaking foreign languages and are particularly shy with the opposite sex.

8 – 11pm The Bell Inn Free event Come and celebrate with students from Bath Spa University as they showcase the best bits from their street performances over the weekend – plus some other bits specially reserved for indoors and after dark – hosted by Bath bard and storyteller David Metcalfe. Presented by our Creative Partner

Supported by Penguin Sponsored by

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BAILLIE GIFFORD LITERARY FESTIVAL SPONSORSHIP

LITERATURE ADDS TO REALITY, IT DOES NOT SIMPLY DESCRIBE IT. IT ENRICHES THE NECESSARY COMPETENCIES THAT DAILY LIFE REQUIRES AND PROVIDES; AND IN THIS RESPECT, IT IRRIGATES THE DESERTS THAT OUR LIVES HAVE ALREADY BECOME. C. S. LEWIS 1898 -1963

The story of long-term investment continues. Baillie Gifford is delighted to continue supporting The Independent Bath Literature Festival by becoming Principal Sponsor. We are one of the UK’s largest investment trust managers. In our daily work in investments we do our very best to emulate the diligence and imagination that successful writers bring to the creative process. Our free tri-annual Trust magazine offers you an engaging and insightful overview of the investment world along with details of our literary festival activity throughout the UK.

To find out more about our sponsorship or to enter our prize draw, visit us* at www.bgtrustonline.com/bath *To access the prize draw page you must use the full URL stated above. Baillie Gifford Savings Management Limited (BGSM) produces Trust magazine and is wholly owned by Baillie Gifford & Co, which is the manager and secretary of eight investment trusts. Your personal data is held and used by BGSM in accordance with data protection legislation. We may use your information to send you details about Baillie Gifford products, funds or special offers and to contact you for business research purposes. We will only disclose your information to other companies within the Baillie Gifford group and to agents appointed by us for these purposes. You can withdraw your consent to receiving further marketing communications from us and to being contacted for business research purposes at any time. You also have the right to review and amend your data at any time.


MONDAY 4 MARCH

MORNING WALK

WORKSHOP

VOICES IN THE CITY

MORNING TALK

BATH IN 1713

SARAH SIMBLET

10am start Streets of Bath (meeting place on ticket) £7.50 (£6.50) C1

10am – 1pm Holburne Museum £30 (£28) C2

TINY MONUMENTS COLLECTIVE – ‘MY VOICE IN THE CITY’

A.N. WILSON ON WEDGWOOD

Bath in 1713 was still a medieval city hemmed in behind high walls, yet Queen Anne’s patronage of the hot springs had made it one of the most fashionable places in Europe. Join Andrew Swift and Kirsten Elliott on a walk to rediscover a city on the brink of an extraordinary transformation.

The wonderful Sarah Simblet returns to take a drawing workshop which takes a close look at natural forms – particularly trees, branches, plants and leaves.

Open daily 10am – 4pm Bath Central Library Free event What does your voice look like? Tiny Monuments, a collective of local visual artists, writers and creatives, will be showing work exploring the theme of ‘My Voice in the City’. This will include film, installations, artworks, poetry, interactive exhibits and dialogue.

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £8 (£7) C3 In 1774, Josiah Wedgwood, master craftsman possessed with a burning scientific vision, embarked upon the thousand piece Frog Service for Catherine the Great. At the same time, Josiah’s nephew Tom travelled to America to buy clay from the Cherokee for this exquisite china. A novel of epic scope, rich in warmth, intellect and humanity, The Potter’s Hand explores the lives and loves of one of Britain’s greatest families, the Wedgwoods, whose travails are both ordinary – births, deaths, marriages, opium addiction, depression – and utterly extraordinary.

£3 tickets On the door for Under 25’s & full time students 30 minutes before the event* *T&C’s apply see p.62

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 23


MONDAY 4 MARCH

LANDSCAPE

NATURE WRITING WITH JEAN SPRACKLAND

HISTORY

ENVIRONMENT, RESOURCES AND ECONOMY

BEE WILSON: CONSIDER THE FORK

1 – 2pm Guildhall £8 (£7) C5

1 – 2pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) C6 Bee Wilson is the beloved food writer and historian who writes as the ‘Kitchen Thinker’ in the Sunday Telegraph, and is the author of Swindled! Her charming and original new book, Consider the Fork, explores how the implements we use in the kitchen have shaped the way we cook and live. Encompassing inventors, scientists, cooks and chefs, this is the previously unsung history of our kitchens.

Supported by Jonathan Cape

Is it too late? How do we balance our handling of the economic crisis with protecting the environment? Is British wildlife heading for extinction? Can business really save the planet? Michael McCarthy, The Independent’s awardwinning environment writer discusses the issues with Andrew Simms (Cancel the Apocalypse: Why We Need to Stop Growing and Start Living), Jason Drew (The Story of the Fly and How It Can Save the World) and Matthew Davidson, Director of the Centre for Sustainable Chemical Technologies at the University of Bath.

Sponsored by

Sponsored by

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) C4 A series of meditations prompted by walking on the wild estuarial beaches of Ainsdale Sands between Blackpool and Liverpool, Strands is about what is lost and buried then discovered. It’s about all the things you find on a beach, dead or alive, flotsam and jetsam, mutability and transformation – and sea-change. Jean Sprackland, a prize-winning poet and natural storyteller, guides us through the process of observation and discovery: study, transformation, and understanding.

Supported by Penguin Sponsored by

24 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

LUST, INFIDELITY AND BAD LIVING 4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall Free event Join local musicians and community groups as they take part in our Festival Challenge to perform every song from Steve Roud and Julia Bishop’s The New Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs. No subjects are barred to folk songs and this chapter explores risqué tales featuring cuckolded husbands, cunning cobblers and farmers’ wives.


MONDAY 4 MARCH

WRITING LAB

FICTION

THE GLOBAL VIEW

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

BOOK ILLUSTRATION MASTERCLASS

SANDI TOKSVIG

PAUL ORMEROD: POSITIVE LINKING

JASON DREW: THE STORY OF THE FLY

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) C9

Keynsham Library 6.15 – 7pm Free but booking required C10

4.30 – 6pm Holburne Museum Age 13+ £10 C7 Join Hannah Broadway the brilliant illustrator of Monkey & Robot for this handson workshop. She will share her experience as a published picturebook illustrator, showing you how to work through the process of creating a book from an initial text, to storyboarding to character development. This relaxed workshop will give you an opportunity to sketch out your own picture book while sharing ideas with other people who are also interested in drawing and making pictures with advice and encouragement. Bring your favourite pen or pencil to draw with!

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £10 (£9) C8 The eternally divine Sandi Toksvig returns to Bath to talk about her new novel Valentine Grey, a story of gender, liberty, Empire and injustice, set during the Boer War. Sandi is as riveting on the page as she is in real life. Now you can enjoy both as she teases out a series of untold stories. Sponsored by

Leading economist Paul Ormerod believes that the increasing interconnectedness of the world requires us to completely rethink the basis of both economics and public policy. Join him for a stimulating discussion on positive linking, the possibilities of economic networking and why in the current economic crisis, businesses and politicians ignore this at their peril. Sponsored by

The fly exists on every inhabited continent, yet few if any of us understand its importance and use and fewer still how it could be at the core of a new industry. Jason Drew, a self-confessed ‘environmental capitalist’, discusses his book The Story Of The Fly, which takes a fun and businesslike look at an animal that most of us think of as a pest but could help save the world.

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MONDAY 4 MARCH

POETRY

SCIENCE

SCIENCE

VOICES IN THE CITY

JAMES RUNCIE ON KEATS

OCEAN OF LIFE

ANATOMIES WITH HUGH ALDERSEYWILLIAMS

POETRY AND A PINT

8 – 9pm Guildhall £8 (£7) C11 The last letters of John Keats, sent from Rome at the age of twenty-five, are a heartbreaking account of friendship, love and death. How much do they unlock our understanding of the life that went before and the poems that helped define the Romantic Movement? Bath Literature Festival Artistic Director James Runcie looks at the life and work of one of our greatest poets. Sponsored by

8 – 9pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) C12 Ninety-five percent of habitable space on Earth lies in the oceans, and marine plants produce half the world’s oxygen. The oceans themselves absorb vast quantities of carbon dioxide sparing us the worst of global warming… so far. In Ocean of Life Callum Roberts shows how we can arrest and reverse the damage we are doing. Tantalisingly, it is within our grasp to restore the life of the oceans. There is still time. Find out why. Supported by Penguin Sponsored by

8 – 9pm BRLSI £7.50 (£6.50) C13 A tour through the art, science and literature of the human body with the author of the bestselling book Periodic Tables: Hugh Aldersey-Williams. His new book Anatomies: The Human Body, Its Parts and The Stories They Tell, is a complete survey of flesh, muscle and bone, encompassing everything from the first finger-printing to the physiology of angels; and from the death-mask of Isaac Newton to the afterlife of Einstein’s brain. In collaboration with

Supported by Penguin

26 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

8 – 10pm St. James Wine Vaults Free event Keen to try out your new poem or show off your favourite song? Come and enjoy a drink while listening to some of Bath’s best poets and singers. All are welcome to listen or join in, with open mic slots throughout the evening.


TUESDAY 5 MARCH

WORKSHOP

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

VOICES IN THE CITY

VOICES IN THE CITY

WRITING IN THE SOCIAL MEDIA AGE

BOOK CHAT

WISH YOU WERE HERE...

MEET THE ARTISTS: TINY MONUMENTS COLLECTIVE

10am – 4pm Holburne Museum £50 (£48) D1 Using social media means it has never been easier to get your words out there, but how can you be sure you’re being read? Using personal experience and practical exercises, Sarah Salway will look at effective ways of developing your online presence to promote your writing. The workshop will be suitable for all levels of expertise, whether you love the idea of social media, hate it or just don’t see the point of it!

10.30 – 11.30am Keynsham Library Free event An informal session of ideas and inspiration led by Read Around Bath. For this session in Keynsham all are invited to chat about their favourite books or poems – perhaps there is one that holds special meaning in your life?

10.30am – 12.30pm Hall & Woodhouse Free event Choose a postcard and let yourself go. Compose a message to someone you miss, your worst enemy or a lover you can’t forget. Write a short story, a poem or a haiku. Confess a secret you never dared tell anyone, post it in our box and walk away with a lighter heart. Alex and Jude of Writing Events Bath will be there to inspire and help you. In collaboration with

11am – 12.15pm Bath Central Library Free event Take part in a discussion circle and meet the local visual artists, writers and creative minds behind Tiny Monuments Collective, who have created a fascinating exhibition for the Festival exploring the theme of ‘My Voice in the City’. This will include film, installations, artworks, poetry, interactive exhibits and dialogue. The exhibition will be open from 10am – 4pm.

Great ticket offers for schools & young people See page 63 for our special ticket offers

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 27


TUESDAY 5 MARCH

MORNING TALK

MY CRAFT

JOHN BATCHELOR ON TENNYSON

MEMOIR

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £8 (£7) D2 Resolving never to be anything except ‘a poet’, Alfred Lord Tennyson wore his hair long, smoked incessantly and sported a cloak and wide-brimmed Spanish hat. The tragic loss of Arthur Hallam, a brilliant friend and fellow Apostle at Cambridge, fed into some of his most successful and best-known poems. But it took Tennyson seventeen years to complete his great elegy, In Memoriam, a work which established his fame and secured his appointment as Poet Laureate. John Batchelor tells his story.

11.15 – 12.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) D3 Researcher and curator, Susan Swingler discusses the art of writing memoir and talks about her moving and startling book The House of Fiction. Through letters, diaries and photographs Swingler set out to search for her father who disappeared with one of Australia’s most revered writers Elizabeth Jolley. But as memories and intricate secrets surfaced how did she untangle the fact from the fiction and can the two ever really be separated?

Supported by Chatto & Windus

THIS LIFE

THE DRUGS TRADE 1 – 2pm Guildhall £8 (£7) D4 Britain sits at a crossroads in the legalisation-versusintolerance debate. Today, you can order every conceivable pill or powder with the click of a mouse but the online market in narcotics isn’t just changing the way drugs are bought and sold; it’s changing the nature of drugs themselves. Narcomania authors Max Daly and Steve Sampson are joined by journalist and former Latin America correspondent Mike Power to discuss dealers, users, the police and politicians and whether the drug subculture in Britain can remain one step ahead of the law. Supported by William Heinemann

Join the conversation @bathfestivals #bathlitfest /bathlitfest

28 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

SARAH LEFANU: S IS FOR SAMORA 1 – 2pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) D5 Samora Machel led FRELIMO, the Mozambican Liberation Front, to victory against Portuguese colonialism in 1974, and the following year became independent Mozambique’s first President. He died eleven years later in a mysterious plane crash. Drawing on stories, speeches, documents, and the memories of those who knew him, Sarah LeFanu presents the many different faces of the man Nelson Mandela called ‘a true African revolutionary’. Sponsored by


TUESDAY 5 MARCH

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

TRADITIONAL RELIGIOUS SONGS 1.15 – 2.15pm Holburne Museum Free event Join local musicians and community groups as they take part in our Festival Challenge to perform every song from Steve Roud and Julia Bishop’s The New Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs. This special Festival edition of the Holburne Museum’s regular lunchtime concert will include a chapter of spiritual songs which flourished outside the Church as part of the Folk tradition.

POETRY

WRITING LAB

THIS LIFE

ANTHOLOGISE

WRITING ONLINE

THE OLDIE EVENT

4.30 – 6pm Holburne Museum Age 13+ £10 D7

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £8 (£7) D8

2.45pm – 3.45pm Guildhall Free but booking required D6 Join pupils from Monkton Combe Senior School who won Anthologise, the national poetry anthology competition for secondary schools spearheaded by Poet Laureate, Carol Ann Duffy. They will share poems from their winning entry, entitled The Poetry of Earth is Never Dead, which includes poetry from as far afield as China and as ancient as Virgil’s Gathering the Honey.

Learn everything you need to know about how to get people reading your writing. Mez Packer, author of The Game is Altered, will explore with you the ins and outs of blogging, interactive storytelling and how to use social media to develop your work and get it noticed.

The Independent called The Oldie ‘the most original magazine in the country’. We are delighted to welcome the editor Richard Ingrams back to the Festival for an intimate chat with Bel Mooney about the first twenty years of The Oldie with plenty of quips, quotes, cartoons and memories. Not to be missed!

Sponsored by

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TUESDAY 5 MARCH

THIS LIFE

VOICES IN THE CITY

THE GLOBAL VIEW

THIS LIFE

FREEDOM FROM TORTURE: WRITE TO LIFE

DEVOTED TO RHYME

CHINA’S GROWTH WITH LINDA YUEH

TRACEY THORN

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall Free but booking required D9

Eat, drink and be merry! The Bath Poetry Cafe launches its new evening venture at the delectable Roscoff Deli. Come and hear poets from across the West Country show off the very best of their formal skills while sharing the convivial Festival meal cooked up and hosted by Rosario. And if you can turn a nice rhyming couplet or two, bring and share your work. Rivals to John Betjeman will be especially welcome.

Stories and Poems from Amazing Lives. Writers/performers from Freedom from Torture’s renowned creative writing programme will make you laugh, cry, and see the world in a new way ever afterwards. Supported by

6 – 8pm Roscoff Deli Free Event

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £8 (£7) D10 China’s economic growth has transformed the country from one of the poorest in the world to its second largest economy. Dr Linda Yueh’s China’s Growth is an engaging exploration of the littleunderstood drivers of China’s impressive development and explains the country’s unique position as both a transition and a developing economy. Dr Yueh is a Fellow in Economics at Oxford University, Adjunct Professor of Economics at the London Business School and host of Economic Edge for Bloomberg TV. Supported by Oxford University Press Sponsored by

30 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) D11 ‘I’ve been in the charts, out of them, back in. I’ve seen myself described as an indie darling, a middle-ofthe-road nobody and a disco diva’. Tracey Thorn was one half of internationally successful group Everything But The Girl and collaborated with Paul Weller, Massive Attack and dance legend Todd Terry. This is the funny, perceptive and candid story of her 30-year pop career: Bedsit Disco Queen. Supported by Virago Sponsored by


TUESDAY 5 MARCH

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

THIS LIFE

HISTORY

MEET THE AUTHOR: SUSAN SWINGLER

AFTER HOURS: POETRY LIAISON

CLIVE STAFFORD SMITH: INJUSTICE

NOISE: A HUMAN HISTORY OF SOUND AND LISTENING

6.15 – 7pm Radstock Library Free but booking required D12 Come along for an informal session to meet Susan Swingler, the step-daughter of one of Australia’s most revered writers, Elizabeth Jolley, and hear about her startling new family memoir The House of Fiction. Your chance to find out more about life writing.

Midsomer Norton Library 7 – 8pm Free event Join us for a Festival edition of Midsomer Norton Library’s regular meeting for lovers of poetry, whether you write your own or enjoy reading poems. Share your favourites, hear new poems and make new connections and friends. There’ll be other poetry lovers, local poets (published and unpublished) and a great mix of poems written or selected by participants.

8 – 9pm Guildhall £9 (£8) D13 In 1986, Kris Maharaj, a British businessman living in Miami, was arrested for the brutal murder of two exbusiness associates, found guilty and sentenced to death. It wasn’t until a young lawyer working for nothing, Clive Stafford Smith, took on his case that strong evidence began to emerge that the state of Florida had got the wrong man on Death Row. Twenty-six years later, Maharaj is still in jail. Stafford Smith untangles the Maharaj case and the system that makes disasters like this inevitable. His conclusions will act as a wake-up call for those who condone legislation which threatens basic human rights.

8 – 9pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) D14 In prehistoric caves, drummers used natural acoustics to recreate natural sound. In classical Europe, orators turned the human voice into a lyrical instrument; and in modern metropolises we are battered by the roar of sound that surrounds us. In the first narrative history of the subject which puts humans at its centre, and coinciding with the author’s major Radio 4 series on the same subject, acclaimed historian David Hendy describes the history both of noise – and of listening. Supported by Profile

Supported by Harvill Secker

£3 tickets On the door for Under 25’s & full time students 30 minutes before the event* *T&C’s apply see p.62

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 31


Mr B’s Emporium of Reading Delights 14-15 John Street, Bath, BA1 2JL Our enthusiastic and book addicted team are chomping at the bit ready to take care of all your book-buying needs at the 2013 Festival. to the Guildhall but do also visit our online, independent bookshop at www.mrbsemporium.com, and the beautiful bookshop itself to * Unique ‘Reading Spa’ and ‘Reading Year’ gifts for book-lovers * ‘Book Lovers Unite’ themed literary evenings combining author talks with food, music and lots of audience book discussion * Enthusiastic, hands-on service from our * Next-day ordering service and foreignlanguage, American and out-of-print book ordering capability * Close work with local schools and other cultural institutions * Fully transactional website featuring lots of carefully compiled, quirky book lists - 2011 and 2008 UK Independent Bookshop of the Year, - Four time Independent Bookshop of the Year (South West) (British Book Awards)


WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH

The Bookshop Band Our resident band, The Bookshop Band, will be popping up during the festival to serenade occasional book signings, playing songs they have written inspired by books and authors visiting this year’s festival

VOICES IN THE CITY

WORKSHOP

TINY MONUMENTS COLLECTIVE – ‘MY VOICE IN THE CITY’

WE MAKE BOOKS

Open daily 10am – 4pm Bath Central Library Free event What does your voice look like? Tiny Monuments, a collective of local visual artists, writers and creatives, will be showing work exploring the theme of ‘My Voice in the City’. This will include film, installations, artworks, poetry, interactive exhibits and dialogue.

10am – 4pm Holburne Museum £50 (£48) E1 Join WE MAKE BOOKS for a hands-on book arts workshop where participants will have the opportunity to work on two projects to create a limited edition artist book and a one-of-a-kind book structure. During the workshop participants will experiment with bookbinding, printmaking and collage to create their own visual narratives and storytelling.

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 33


WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH

VOICES IN THE CITY

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

MORNING TALK

MY CRAFT

COMIC BOOK SLUMBER PARTY

WRITERS SURGERY

BIOGRAPHY

10am – 11pm The Raven Free but booking required E2

11am – 12 noon Keynsham Library Free event

1922: CONSTELLATION OF GENIUS

Comic Book Slumber Party debuts with an explosive first year. Showcasing exciting work from female comics creators around the country our special guests include Lizzy Stewart, Isabel Greenberg, Philippa Rice, Donya Todd and more. Join in with a workshop, sit in on a panel discussion, or enjoy a glass or two at the Drink & Draw.

Are you interested in writing poetry and fiction, but don’t know where to begin? Whether you are putting pen to paper for the first time or suffering from a case of writer’s block, experts from Bath Spa University will help you to find your inspiration. Presented by our Creative Partner

Visit comicbook slumberparty.com for times and more details about each session.

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £8 (£7) E3 Ezra Pound referred to 1922 as Year One of a new era. It was the year in which a skinny, shabby Irishman and a natty, quietly sinister American entered the cultural landscape, hell-bent on exploding everything that realistic fiction and Georgian poetry held dear. It began with Ulysses and ended with the publication of The Waste Land: the most influential English-language novel and the poem of the century. Kevin Jackson lights up the frenzy of innovation that marked the beginnings of our modern age.

Schools £2.50 ticket offer for debates Schools can book tickets for any lunchtime debates for £2.50.

34 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) E4 Edward VII (known as ‘Bertie’) gave his name to the Edwardian Age but was only king for the last nine years of his life. This richly entertaining biography reveals his power struggle with Queen Victoria as one of the stormiest mother-son relationships in history. Jane Ridley discusses the art of biography; how she found her subject matter, researched and then wrote the life of a man. Supported by Chatto & Windus


WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH

THIS LIFE

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

VOICES IN THE CITY

VIOLENT CONFLICT

RUNNING WITH THE PACK

BOOK CHAT

1 – 2pm Guildhall £8 (£7) E5

1 – 2pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) E6

MEET THE AUTHOR: JANE RIDLEY

How do you report from the world’s most violent places? Aminatta Forna talks to Ben Rawlence, a senior researcher on Africa for Human Rights Watch and author of Radio Congo, a book which aims to see the Congolese as people, rather than victims.. He is joined by James Fergusson, an expert on Somalia and author of The World’s Most Dangerous Place. What do these places say about the future of Africa, and how do you get to the truth without being killed?

‘Most of the serious thinking I have done over the past twenty years has been done while running.’ Mark Rowlands has run for most of his life. He has also been a professional philosopher. And for him the two – running and philosophising – are inextricably connected. Running with the Pack is a profound meditation on mortailty, midlife and the meaning of life that will make the philosophically inclined want to run, and those who love running become intoxicated by philosophical ideas.

Supported by Transworld, Oneworld Publications and Bloomsbury

2.30 – 3.15pm Keynsham Library Free but booking required E7 Come along for an informal session to meet the author Jane Ridley, who teaches history and runs the MA in Biography at the University of Buckingham. Your chance to ask an award-winning biographer about her craft.

3 – 4pm Bath Central Library Free event Read Around Bath is a Bath-based charity that brings people together through the love of reading. Share your favourite reads, prose and poetry, get recommendations and listen to some reading aloud. readaroundbath.org

Supported by Granta

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 35


WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH

HISTORY

WRITING LAB

LITERARY WALKS AROUND BATH

NOT A GAMES PERSON? SPORTS WRITING FOR ALL

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) E8 Few cities have been so immortalised in print as Bath. This legacy is celebrated by Andrew Swift and Kirsten Elliott in Literary Walks Around Bath. Join them to discover why authors such as Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Tobias Smollett, Georgette Heyer, Fanny Burney and John Betjeman were captivated by Bath – and why it remains one of the best cities in the world to explore on foot.

4.30 – 6pm Holburne Museum 13+ £10 E9 Modern sport has become a gigantic global spectacular, a multi-billion dollar business and an instrument of international politics but is it a suitable subject for writing and literature? In this Writing Lab David Goldblatt makes the case for the brilliance and beauty of sports writing. Drawing on writers as diverse as Julie Myerson, David Foster Wallace, Don DeLillo the session will look at the best of contemporary sport writing and give participants the chance to explore and develop their own passions, dislikes and experiences into prose and poetry.

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

RURAL LIFE AND OCCUPATIONS 5.30 – 6.30pm Keynsham Library Free event Join local musicians and community groups as they take part in our Festival Challenge to perform every song from Steve Roud and Julia Bishop’s The New Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs. Today’s performances demonstrate the two sides of pastoral folk songs – true tales of countryside life sung by and for country people, and tales of idealised rural existences peddled to townsfolk.

36 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

SCIENCE

BEN GOLDACRE: BAD PHARMA 6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £9 (£8) E10 Ben Goldacre, the bestselling author, broadcast and medical doctor returns to the Festival to discuss his new book Bad Pharma, which turns a gimlet eye of the claims of the pharmaceutical industry. If you read his hugely popular Bad Science column in the Guardian you already know that this will be an event unpicking scientific claims made by scaremongering journalists, government reports, PR companies and quacks. Hear a passionate case for good science. Sponsored by


WEDNESDAY 6 MARCH

FICTION

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

FICTION

HISTORY

AMINATTA FORNA

KEYNSHAM VOICES

NINJA

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) E11

7.30 – 8.30pm Keynsham Library Free event

HELEN DUNMORE AND JAMES LONG

We are proud to celebrate the launch of The Hired Man, Aminatta Forna’s powerful new novel about the indelible effects of war and the memories which stir beneath the silence of a quiet Croatian town. Aminatta’s previous novel The Memory of Love was our Big Bath Read in 2011, short-listed for the Orange Prize and won the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize. ‘Forna is a writer of great talent who does not shy from tackling the toughest questions about why humans do the things they do: from the smallest act of betrayal to the greatest acts of love.’ Monica Ali.

This small group of Keynsham poets will read some of their own poetry and painting word pictures on the theme of Landscape. Come and enjoy poetry in an intimate and cosy atmosphere.

8 – 9pm Guildhall £8 (£7) E12 Two great contemporary novelists look at the way in which the past haunts the present. In Helen Dunmore’s story of haunting and possession, an old RAF greatcoat brings the past to terrifying life, and in James Long’s The Lives She Left Behind, a teenage boy confronts a teacher with a story he should know nothing about. These fine novels are as unsettling as they are impressive. Chaired by Sara Davies.

8 – 9pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) E13 The Ninjas today are the stuff of myth and legend in comics, film and electronic games. But once they were real, the medieval equivalent of the SAS: spies, saboteurs, and assassins. In Ninja John Man takes us from their origins over 1,000 years ago, from their heyday in the civil wars to the ‘last of the ninjas’, Hiroo Onoda, who held out in the Philippine jungle for 30 years.

Supported by Hammer Sponsored by

Supported by Bloomsbury

Sign up Sign up for all the latest news from the festival. bathfestivals.org.uk

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 37


THURSDAY 7 MARCH

MORNING WALK

WORKSHOP

VOICES IN THE CITY

MORNING TALK

BATH IN 1813

HELEN CROSS: CREATING EXPRESSIVE CHARACTERS

MEET THE ARTISTS: TINY MONUMENTS COLLECTIVE

CECIL BEATON’S THEATRE OF WAR

10am – 4pm Holburne Museum £50 (£48) F2

11am – 12.15pm Bath Central Library Free event

10am start Streets of Bath (meeting place on ticket) £7.50 (£6.50) F1 Bath in 1813 was the tenth largest city in England and a byword for refinement and sophistication, yet alongside the social gatherings portrayed by Jane Austen in Persuasion, food riots in the streets and political agitation in the Guildhall spoke of harsher realities. Join Andrew Swift and Kirsten Elliott on a walk to discover what life was really like in Bath two centuries ago.

Spouting, squeaking, squealing and spilling the beans: How do you make your characters walk the walk and talk the talk? Novelist, Helen Cross will guide you in creating complex, memorable and story-supple characters for all kinds of stories from novels to radio plays and show ways of giving these characters bold, brilliant and believable voices. By the end of the workshop you will have taut subtle dialogue alive with subtext that can effectively reveal your characters and power your stories forward.

Take part in a discussion circle and meet the local visual artists, writers and creative minds behind Tiny Monuments Collective, who have created a fascinating exhibition for the Festival exploring the theme of ‘My Voice in the City’. This will include film, installations, artworks, poetry, interactive exhibits and dialogue. The exhibition will be open from 10am – 4pm.

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £8 (£7) F3 Historian Hilary Roberts and Editor Mark Holborn discuss Cecil Beaton and his theatre of war in relation to his wider career and to the tradition of war photography. Roberts is head curator of the Imperial War Museums’ photograph archive and recently worked with Holborn, editor at Jonathan Cape responsible for illustrated books, on Cecil Beaton: Theatre of War. This authoritative talk looks at some of the most iconic of the 7000 images Beaton took during his war time travels to the Western desert, Iraq, Palestine, Syria, India and Burma. Supported by Jonathan Cape

Great ticket offers for schools & young people See page 63 for our special ticket offers

38 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

Sponsored by The Roper Family Charitable Trust


THURSDAY 7 MARCH

MY CRAFT

SOCIAL HISTORY 11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) F4 Neighbours can enrich or ruin our lives. They fascinate and worry us in equal measure. Soap operas watched by millions play with every lurid permutation of relationships in fictional neighbourhoods. Disputes over gigantic Leylandii and noise nuisance turn nasty and fill newspaper columns. In this intimate discussion, Emily Cockayne tells how she constructed the social history of the British neighbour through nine centuries.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN GOOD RELIGION GOES BAD? 1 – 2pm Guildhall £8 (£7) F5 In general terms, one of the principal aims of most faiths is to change people’s lives for the better, providing a renewed sense of moral purpose and meaning. How does it turn to violence? Are feelings of persecution key to understanding religious fervour? And would a secular world be a better world? Join Rabbi Laura Janner-Klausner, the first Movement Rabbi of the Movement for Reform Judaism, Francis Spufford (Unapologetic: Why, Despite Everything, Christianity Can Still Make Surprising Emotional Sense), Linda Woodhead, Professor of Sociology of Religion at Lancaster University and Centri’s Rashad Ali who has a deep interest in Islamic issues.

THIS LIFE

FICTION

THE HIDDEN LIVES OF DAPHNE DU MAURIER AND HER SISTERS

LINDSEY DAVIS

1 – 2pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) F6

Lindsey Davis is best known as the author of the Falco series of crime stories set in ancient Rome and featuring Marcus Didius Falco, a Roman ‘detective’. Her many prizes include the Premio Colosseo, awarded ‘for enhancing the image of Rome’ and the Crimewriters’ Association Cartier Diamond Dagger for lifetime achievement. Come and hear this doyenne of crime fiction talk about her life, work and her brand new book Ides of April featuring Falco’s adopted daughter Flavia Alba.

The middle sister in a celebrated artistic dynasty, Daphne du Maurier is one of the master storytellers of our time, author of Rebecca, Jamaica Inn and My Cousin Rachel. But her fame overshadowed her sisters Angela and Jeanne, a writer and an artist, living quiet lives even more unconventional than Daphne’s own. Historian Jane Dunn now considers the three sisters side by side in a group biography that reveals lives full of social non-conformity, creative energy and compulsive make-believe.

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £8 (£7) F7

Supported by Hodder and Stoughton

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 39


THURSDAY 7 MARCH

PERFORMANCE

WRITING LAB

THE BOOKSHOP BAND

EXTRAORDINARY WRITING

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall Free but booking required F8 The Bookshop Band began as collaboration with Bath’s very own Mr B’s Emporium of Reading Delights, where they play songs inspired by books at author events. They have since completed a debut tour around UK bookshops and literary festivals and have been featured on Radio 4’s Today Programme and Front Row. We welcome back Bath’s own for this special afternoon concert of old, new, and no doubt brand new songs inspired by books.

4.30 – 6pm Holburne Museum 13+ £10 F9 Join Kids Big Bath Read award winning author, Elen Caldecott, as she shares her top tips for finding ideas for stories, developing characters and much more. Whether you have some experience or are just starting to write, this masterclass will help you take your stories to a new level.

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

VOICES IN THE CITY

SONGS OF DEATH AND DESTRUCTION

WRITERS SURGERY: SPECULATIVE FICTION

5 – 7pm Radstock Library Free event

6 – 7.30pm Roscoff Deli Free event

Join local musicians and community groups as they take part in our Festival Challenge to perform every song from Steve Roud and Julia Bishop’s The New Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs. The folk tradition encompasses all aspects of life and death, and the tales told in this chapter range from grizzly murders to lost loves and the stories of those left behind.

Have you always wanted to have a go at writing horror, fantasy or science fiction? Is your mind full of fantastical ideas? Writers from Bath Spa University will help you to explore these genres in an informal workshop.

World Book Day Join us to celebrate World Book day — Sign up for one of our schools’ projects (page 62) or contact us to book an author visit.

40 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

Presented by our Creative Partner


THURSDAY 7 MARCH

THE GLOBAL VIEW

HISTORY

THIS LIFE

PERFORMANCE

GAVIN ESLER: LESSONS FROM THE TOP

THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY: JOURNEYS AMONG THE DEAD

THE STATE OF THE WORLD ATLAS

BBC STORIES

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £9 (£8) F10 Great leaders have always understood the power of stories to educate, persuade and bring about change. Now leading journalist Gavin Esler presents the secrets of those who achieve power based on over thirty years’ experience interviewing world famous figures – from Bill Clinton to Angelina Jolie. Esler explains how creating a leadership story can promote success at all levels, whether running for the United States presidency, or applying for a place at university. Supported by Profile Sponsored by

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) F11 Carl Watkins, a lecturer on Medieval History at Cambridge, explores the ideas of heaven, hell and purgatory, of body and soul, ghosts and remembrance from the Middle Ages to the present day. Join him for an unusual and fascinating talk with tales from the Yorkshire moors, séances in Victorian kitchens, Druidic ceremonies in the Welsh valleys, a hanging at a Bristol gaol and the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior in Westminster Abbey – each story revealing the changing and enduring beliefs about death and what lies beyond. Supported by Bodley Head

8 – 9pm Guildhall £8 (£7) F12 Dan Smith, Secretary General of the international peacebuilding organisation International Alert, and former Director of the International Peace Research Institute in Oslo celebrates publication of The State of the World Atlas. This invaluable reference work analyses the key indicators and statistics of modern life; whether it be the fact that someone commits suicide every forty seconds, 85% of refugees come from just 8 countries, or the scandal that the amount of money invested in legal tax havens is $21 trillion. In this witty and subversive talk Dan’s use of accurate global statistics helps us re-think the world.

8 – 9pm Guildhall Free but booking required F13 Come and join the audience for three new short stories specially recorded on stage for BBC Radio 4’s Afternoon Reading slot.

VOICES IN THE CITY

PITCH PERFECT St. James Wine Vaults 8 – 10pm Free event Writers don’t just write: they have to research their books. Topics range from the nature of genre and issues of gender to how to create a world and write authentic historical voices. Come and hear a group of Bath Spa University’s distinguished Creative Writing PhD students pitch their projects to a panel of academics. Then vote for the winner... Presented by our Creative Partner

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 41


Extraordinary Life Stories Begin Here Read all about us at www.royalhighbath.gdst.net or please get in touch to arrange a visit by emailing l.bevan@bat.gdst.net

Nursery • Junior School • Senior School • Sixth Form College Lansdown Road, Bath BA1 5SZ t: 01225 313877 e: royalhigh@bat.gdst.net www.royalhighbath.gdst.net


FRIDAY 8 MARCH

MORNING WALK

WORKSHOP

VOICES IN THE CITY

MORNING TALK

BATH IN 1913

HOW TO GET PUBLISHED

TINY MONUMENTS COLLECTIVE – ‘MY VOICE IN THE CITY’

JENNIFER SCOTT

10am start Streets of Bath (meeting place on ticket) £7.50 (£6.50) G1 Our commemoration of the year 1913 continues with this illuminating tour. It may be tempting to think of Bath in 1913 as a city where teacups clinked to the strains of the Pump Room Orchestra and the sun always shone. Yet this was a city in turmoil, with arson attacks by suffragettes, trade union rallies and soaring unemployment. Join Andrew Swift and Kirsten Elliott on a walk to discover what life in Bath was like a century ago.

10am – 1pm Holburne Museum £30 (£28) G2 Do you have a brilliant idea for a book of nonfiction? Whether you are writing about your own life, a big idea or a historical subject, this workshop will cover writing a proposal as well as to how to contact literary agents and what to send them. Rebecca Gray is a commissioning editor at independent publisher Profile Books, and its imprint Serpent’s Tail. She will be running the workshop and offering her invaluable advice.

Bath Central Library Open daily 10 am – 4pm Free event What does your voice look like? Tiny Monuments, a collective of local visual artists, writers and creatives, will be showing work exploring the theme of ‘My Voice in the City’. This will include film, installations, artworks, poetry, interactive exhibits and dialogue.

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £8 (£7) G3 The ever popular Royal Collection curator Jennifer Scott returns for a third successive year, this time to discuss the portrayal of women in Old Master paintings; clothed, naked and nude. She explores the contrasting approaches of male and female artists (comparing, among others, Titian, Rubens and Goya with Artemisia Gentileschi and Sofonisba Anguissola), and analyses what these works say about art, sexuality and the viewer’s gaze. Sponsored by

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 43


FRIDAY 8 MARCH

MY CRAFT

THIS LIFE

POETRY PRESCRIPTION

THE REAL JANE AUSTEN WITH PAULA BYRNE

EXTREMES WITH KEVIN FONG

12 – 1pm Theatre Royal Bath £10 (listen only) (for £22.50 ticket including lunch visit theatreroyal. org.uk) G5

1 – 2pm Guildhall £8 (£7) G6

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) G4 Poetry evangelist and Forward Prize founder William Sieghart takes poetry out of the bookcase and places it firmly at the centre of everyday life. He will be on hand with his Pencil Poetry Pharmacy, offering hand-written prescriptions to cure everything from a blue day to a broken heart. Supported by Faber and Faber

Who was the real Jane Austen? A spinster who sat in a vicarage confining her novels to the small canvas of village life? Or a woman who knew the turbulent world around her and who took the bold decision to remain unmarried and fashion herself as a professional writer? In this new biography, bestselling author Paula Byrne (Perdita, Mad World) explores the forces that shaped the interior life of one of Britain’s most beloved novelists.

LANDSCAPE

Drawing on his experiences as a doctor specialising in anaesthesia and intensive care medicine, Kevin Fong explores the human body’s response when tested by the extremes of fire, ice, space flight, trauma, age and disease. Extremes probes the very limits of our biology, and returns us with a better appreciation of how our bodies work, what life is, and what it means to be human. Supported by Hodder & Stoughton Sponsored by

In association with

MICHAEL JACOBS: A RIVER JOURNEY THROUGH COLOMBIA 1 – 2pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) G7 Running through the heart of Colombia is the Magdalena, a river emblematic of the fascination and tragedy of South America. Considered by some to be the most dangerous place in the world, the riverbanks are home to a group of townships with the world’s highest incidence of early onset Alzheimer’s. In 2011, Michael Jacobs travelled its length and here he recounts his journey through a heartland of mystery, magic and darkness and reflects on the lives of his parents – sufferers from Alzheimer’s and dementia – and our experience of memory. Supported by Granta

£3 youth standby tickets On the door for Under 25’s & full time students 30 minutes before the event* *T&C’s apply see p.62

44 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

Sponsored by


FRIDAY 8 MARCH

VOICES IN THE CITY

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

MY CRAFT

WRITERS SURGERY

HOW DOES PUBLISHING WORK

THE MYSTERY OF WRITING A MYSTERY

Radstock Library 3.30 – 4.15pm Free but booking required G8

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) G9

Jacob’s Café 3.30 – 5pm Free event Explore your writing ideas in this informal workshop. Writers from Bath Spa University will give you inspiration and help you to refresh and renew. Come along and fix your writer’s block over a cup of tea! Presented by our Creative Partner

Rebecca Gray is a commissioning editor at independent publisher Profile Books, and its fiction imprint Serpent’s Tail. If you are considering a career in publishing or are an aspiring writing with a burning question on how to get published then join Rebecca for this whirlwind tour of the industry.

Three writers, Sara Sheridan (Brighton Belle), Laura Wilson (A Willing Victim) and James Runcie (The Grantchester Mysteries) talk about the Golden Age of mystery writing and discuss why the 1950s is such a potent setting for whodunits and murder mysteries. Supported by Quercus Sponsored by

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

LOVERS’ TRICKS, DISGUISES AND OBSTACLES OVERCOME 5.30 – 7.30pm Bath City Centre Free event Join local musicians and community groups as they take part in our Festival Challenge to perform every song from Steve Roud and Julia Bishop’s The New Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs. Today’s performances will take place around the city centre (see website for details), and explore what happens when the path of true love does not run smoothly – whether due to interfering relatives, the confines of social class or deceitful ruses.

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 45


FRIDAY 8 MARCH

THIS LIFE

SCIENCE

FESTIVAL ON TOUR

HISTORY

POLLY TOYNBEE AND DAVID WALKER: DOGMA AND DISARRAY

THE SECRET ANARCHY OF SCIENCE

POETRY PRESCRIPTION WITH WILLIAM SIEGHART

TOUR DE FRANCE 100

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £9 (£8) G10 Compassionate, caring, green: this is how David Cameron presented himself before the election. Once in Downing Street, he threw off his disguise. The laid-back old-school Tory emerged as the leader of a party on a break-neck mission to fulfill Margaret Thatcher’s vision. Looking in detail at the government’s policies during their first two years in power, Polly Toynbee and David Walker warn that by the next election the welfare state may be in irrecoverable ruins. Supported by Granta

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) G11 For more than a century, science has cultivated a sober public image for itself. But as bestselling author Michael Brooks explains, the truth is different. This thrilling exploration of some of the great breakthroughs in science reveals the lengths some scientists go to in order to make their theories public. Fraud, suppressing evidence and unethical or reckless PR games are frequent. To succeed, knowledge must be pursued by any means: in science, anything goes.

7 – 8pm Midsomer Norton Library Free but booking required G12 Poetry evangelist and Forward Prize founder William Sieghart takes poetry out of the bookcase and places it firmly at the centre of everyday life. This evening he will be on hand with his Pencil Poetry Pharmacy, offering hand-written prescriptions to cure everything from a blue day to a broken heart. Supported by Faber and Faber

8 – 9pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) G13 Join television’s quintessential roving sports reporter Ned Boulting and journalist and former racing cyclist Richard Moore to celebrate the world’s greatest bike race. Together they look back at the 99 previous tours and discuss their predictions for the centennial edition which stays in France for the first time since 2003. What will the unprecedented double ascent of the iconic Alpe d’Huez hold in store for British cyclists? Supported by Bloomsbury and Yellow Jersey Press

Supported by Profile Sponsored by

Sponsored by

Become a friend today. Enjoy. Save. Support. www.bathlitfest.org.uk/penfriends

46 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


FRIDAY 8 MARCH

FICTION

VOICES IN THE CITY

J.K. ROWLING

WHAT A PERFORMANCE!

8 – 9pm Forum £15 (£12) G14 J.K. Rowling needs no introduction. A storyteller like no other, she has brought the pleasure of reading to a whole generation, and we are delighted to welcome her to Bath to talk about her first novel for adults The Casual Vacancy. This is an opportunity to meet one of the bestselling authors of all time. Chaired by The Independent Bath Literature Festival Artistic Director James Runcie. After the event, J.K. Rowling will be signing copies of her new book for ticket holders only. Please make sure you retain your ticket if you want your copy of The Casual Vacancy signed. Please note, the author will NOT be signing anything other than The Casual Vacancy.

St James Wine Vaults, Gallery Room 8 – 11pm Free event Stories, poems, verbal antics, amusing anecdotes, music and more from the What A Performance! regulars and friends.

The Casual Vacancy is a book for adults. This event is not suitable for under 16s. Supported by Little, Brown

PRIOR PARK COLLEGE PROUDLY SUPPORTING THE INDEPENDENT BATH LITERATURE FESTIVAL

OPEN DOOR DAY Friday 8 March 2013, 11.30am–1.30pm

T: 01225 835 353 E: reception@priorpark.co.uk www.thepriorfoundation.com 3-18 Boarding 11-18 Day HMC Established Co-educational Catholic Senior School


SATURDAY 9 MARCH

VOICES IN THE CITY

TINY MONUMENTS COLLECTIVE – ‘MY VOICE IN THE CITY’ 10am – 4pm Open daily Bath Central Library Free event What does your voice look like? Tiny Monuments, a collective of local visual artists, writers and creatives, will be showing work exploring the theme of ‘My Voice in the City’. This will include film, installations, artworks, poetry, interactive exhibits and dialogue.

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

HAPPY RELATIONSHIPS 10.30am – 12.30pm Midsomer Norton Library Free event Join local musicians and community groups as they take part in our Festival Challenge to perform every song from Steve Roud and Julia Bishop’s The New Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs. This chapter celebrates the joy of young love and marriage set in pastoral idylls of times past.

48 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

MY CRAFT

PR FOR WRITERS 11am – 12.30pm Guildhall £9 (£8) H1 With publicity budgets being slashed at traditional publishing houses and the e-book revolution enabling authors to upload their own material and reach readers directly, writers need to develop new marketing skills and take control of their own career. Bestselling writer Sara Sheridan (Brighton Belle, The Secret Mandarin) will give you insider, industry information to help you promote both yourself and your work.


SATURDAY 9 MARCH

MORNING TALK

SCIENCE

WORKSHOP

JONATHAN BATE ON FIRST WORLD WAR LITERATURE

THE GEEK MANIFESTO: WHY SCIENCE MATTERS

MAKE AN APP!

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £8 (£7) H2

11.15am – 12.15pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) H3

From the poetry of Wilfred Owen, Siegfried Sassoon, and Rupert Brooke, to the novels of Ford Madox Ford, Erich Maria Remarque and Ernest Hemingway, the First World War has had an extraordinary influence on literature. How can experiences that were, for so many ‘beyond words’, be described and why do they still exert such fascination? Leading literary critic Jonathan Bate, Provost of Worcester College, Oxford, discusses the literature of World War One with James Runcie.

There has never been a better time to be a geek. What was once an insult used to marginalize the curious has become a badge of honour. If we want improved education, to cut crime or enhance healthcare, we need the experimental methods of science. Leading science communicator Mark Henderson explains why and how we need to entrench scientific thinking more deeply into public life, gather a new agenda-setting movement and turn it into a force our leaders cannot ignore. Inspiring stuff!

Sponsored by

11.30am – 1pm Holburne Museum Age 6 – 11 £12 H4 Make your very own iPad app with Bibliodome. Create a piece of narrative artwork based on a character taken from The Penguin Book of English Folk Songs. You will draw the character, and write a very short story featuring that character, and in the final hour you will see it animated for the iPad. Around 8 weeks later (the time it takes to process through Apple’s app store) participants will be notified via email that their work will be available around the globe as a free download.

THE YOUTH VIEW 1 – 2pm Guildhall £8 (£7) H5 A panel of young people discuss the current news stories with The Independent’s Owen Jones and you! Your chance to hear the thoughts and opinions of those whose futures are being shaped by today’s news. The panel will include University of Bath Students’ Union Community Officer, Hanna Wade and representatives from The Royal High School, Prior Park College, St Gregory’s Catholic College and Hayesfield School.

Supported by Transworld

£3 tickets in advance For ‘The Youth View’ (H5) for Under 25’s & full time students

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 49


SATURDAY 9 MARCH

HISTORY

MY CRAFT

1913

FICTION

HAYEK, FRIEDMAN, AND THE BIRTH OF NEOLIBERAL POLITICS

CRIME: HOW TO PLOT

THE SUFFRAGETTE AND THE JOCKEY

NEW VOICES: ANTHEA NICOLSON, BEATRICE HITCHMAN AND KATIE WARD

1 – 2pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) H6 How did American and British policymakers become so enamoured with free markets, deregulation, and limited government? Daniel Stedman Jones argues the Neoliberal breakthrough was contingent on the economic crises of the 1970s and the acceptance of the need for new policies by the political left. This is an event for anyone who wants to understand the history behind the Anglo-American love affair with the free market, as well as the origins of the current economic crisis.

1 – 2pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) H7 Plot is central to any good crime novel but how do you go about it? Does everything have to be planned in advance or can you change things as you write? What are the tips and tricks of the trade? Two great crime writers, Parker Bilal (Dogstar Rising) and Anne Zouroudi (The Feast of Artemis) discuss the art of plotting. Supported by Bloomsbury

Supported by Princeton University Press

2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £8 (£7) H8 Emily Wilding Davison’s deathly dash at the Derby of 1913 guaranteed her a place in history, something she craved ever since resigning her position as a governess to become a militant campaigner for votes for women. Her protest, which was captured on a few jerky feet of silver nitrate film made her the most famous suffragette of all. Di Atkinson discusses the events surrounding that extraordinary moment when two worlds collided – and the King’s Jockey, Bertie ‘Diamond ‘Jones, was caught up in the militant campaign for the vote.

£3 tickets On the door for Under 25’s & full time students 30 minutes before the event* *T&C’s apply see p.62

50 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) H9 Get a taste of the future with these three great new writers. The event will be divided into 10 minute slots for each writer to talk about their book (in conversation with a chair person), followed by a general discussion with the audience about writing, first novels, and getting published. Tickets include a free chapter or download sample of each book. Supported by Little, Brown, Granta and Serpent’s Tail Sponsored by


SATURDAY 9 MARCH

THIS LIFE

PERFORMANCE

MY CRAFT

ON THE MAP

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS GOES DIGITAL

2.45 – 3.45pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) H10 Maps fascinate us. They chart our understanding of the world and they log our progress, but above all they tell our stories. In this richly illustrated talk, Simon Garfield shares these stories: from the quest to create the perfect globe to the challenges of mapping Africa and Antarctica; from spellbinding treasure maps to the naming of America; from Ordnance Survey to the mapping of Monopoly and Skyrim; and from rare map dealers to cartographic frauds. Supported by Profile

2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £15 (£12) H11 Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the world’s most loved books. This is a rehearsed reading of the trial scene at its centre, staged in our very own court room. The reading will be narrated by Harriet Walter, with the celebrated American actor Guy Paul as Atticus Finch, students from Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, and the amazing black gospel choir Nitrovox. Directed by Marilyn Imrie, there will just be four performances of this opportunity to share the drama of one of the most famous scenes in all literature. Casting is subject to availability.

THE ART OF LOOKING

ALEX DANCHEV ON CÉZANNE

2.45 – 3.45pm Holburne Museum £7.50 (£6.50) H12

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £9 (£8) H13

Bibiodome (three men and a broom cupboard) have produced a fully animated, interactive adaptation of the classic children’s story, The Wind In the Willows by Kenneth Grahame, specifically for the iPad. This event is a detailed exploration of how they did it.

Beginning with the restless teenager from Aix who was best friends with Émile Zola, Alex Danchev carries us through the trials of a painter who always remained an outsider. Cézanne: A Life delivers not only the fascinating days and years of the visionary who would ‘astonish Paris with an apple’ but also a complete assessment of Cézanne’s ongoing influence through artistic imaginations in our own time. He is, as this talk will show, a cultural icon comparable to Marx or Freud. Supported by Profile

Sponsored by Morny and Ian Hay Davison

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 51


SATURDAY 9 MARCH

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

POACHERS, HIGHWAYMEN AND OTHER CRIMINALS 4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall Free event Join local musicians and community groups as they take part in our Festival Challenge to perform every song from Steve Roud and Julia Bishop’s The New Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs. In the fitting setting of the Guildhall Courtroom, hear tales of a dubious cast of characters poaching, pilfering and smuggling their way into the folk tradition.

FICTION

1913

1913

JIM CRACE: HARVEST

THE WORLD BEFORE THE GREAT WAR

PAT BARKER

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) H14 A remote English village wakes on the morning after harvest, looking forward to hard-earned day of rest and feasting. But two mysterious columns of smoke mar the sky, raising alarm and suspicion. In effortless, expertly crafted prose, Harvest details the unravelling of rural life in the face of economic progress. The tale is timeless and unsettling; and Jim Crace is one of our greatest writers. Supported by Picador

4.30 – 5.30pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) H15 Rather than reducing 1913 to either its most frivolous or to its most destructive features, Charles Emmerson proposes a different and more expansive portrait of 1913; a year in which a truly global society was emerging for the first time in human history. Through stories of cities from Detroit to Bombay, Winnipeg to Durban, Tokyo to Algiers he reminds us of the true nature of the times: optimistic, modern and internationalist as much as pessimistic, archaic and nationalist. Supported by Bodley Head

52 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £9 (£8) H16 Pat Barker returns to the First World War and to the characters of Life Class with her new novel Toby’s Room, a dark, compelling story of human desire, wartime horror and the power of friendship. ‘On every level, Toby’s Room anatomises a world where extreme emotion shatters the boundaries of identity, behaviour, gender. Through the mask of Apollo bursts an omnipresent Dionysus.’ Independent. Supported by Hamish Hamilton Sponsored by


SATURDAY 9 MARCH

THE GLOBAL VIEW

PERFORMANCE

KARL POLANYI AND THE GREAT TRANSFORMATION

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) H17 Gareth Dale discusses the ascendancy and possible future trajectories of neoliberal globalisation in the light of economic historian Karl Polanyi’s seminal text The Great Transformation: The Political and Economic Origins of our Time, with Maureen Freely. This is the classic description of the change from the preindustrial world to the era of ‘market fundamentalism,’ and the shifts in social and economic policy, that accompanied it. Sponsored by

THE ART OF LOOKING

HELLO WORLD

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £15 (£12) H18

6.15 – 7.15pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) H19

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the world’s most loved books. This is a rehearsed reading of the trial scene at its centre, staged in our very own court room. The reading will be narrated by Harriet Walter, with the celebrated American actor Guy Paul as Atticus Finch, students from Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, and the amazing black gospel choir Nitrovox. Directed by Marilyn Imrie, there will just be four performances of this opportunity to share the drama of one of the most famous scenes in all literature. Casting is subject to availability.

Alice Rawsthorn is the design critic of the International Herald Tribune, the global edition of the New York Times. In her weekly Design column, published in the IHT every Monday, Alice explores new directions in every area of design and its impact on our lives. Hello World: Where Design Meets Life looks at design and why it matters, from the good to the bad, and the stylish to the downright inept. Supported by Penguin Sponsored by The Roper Family Charitable Trust

Sponsored by

Join the conversation @bathfestivals #bathlitfest /bathlitfest

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 53


SATURDAY 9 MARCH

FICTION

FICTION

VOICES IN THE CITY

JENNIE ROONEY AND AMITY GAIGE

HILARY MANTEL

QL (QUITE LITERATE)

6.15 – 7.15pm Holburne Museum £7.50 (£6.50) H20 Costa short-listed author Jennie Rooney (Inside the Whale) discusses her new novel Red Joan, a spy story set in wartime Cambridge and Cold-War London. American writer Amity Gaige introduces her much anticipated UK debut Schroder in which the protagonist’s white lie sets him on an improbably and ultimately tragic course. These two talented and impressive writers discuss hidden identities, secrets and the literary thriller.

8 – 9pm Forum £12 (£10) H21 Hilary Mantel is one of our greatest writers. She has won the Booker Prize twice in the last five years, for both Wolf Hall and Bring up the Bodies, her audacious vision of Tudor England constructed around the life of Thomas Cromwell. In 2013, she will appear at only two public events. This is one of them. Don’t miss it. Sponsored by

Supported by Vintage and Faber and Faber

54 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

8.30 – 10pm Bath Spa Live, Burdall’s Yard, London Road Free event Know your Dante from your Defoe? Your Austen from your Aubrey? We might not, so come and laugh at our attempts to figure it out at ‘Quite Literate’, an irreverent panel show hosted by Bath Spa Comedy Club. Presented by our Creative Partner


SUNDAY 10 MARCH

MORNING TALK

MY CRAFT

HISTORY

THE SILENCE OF ANIMALS

THE NOVEL

DI ATKINSON ON MRS NORTON

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £8 (£7) J1 Writers as varied as Ballard, Borges, Freud and Conrad are mesmerised by forms of human extremity. What happens to us when we starve, when we fight, when we are imprisoned? John Gray’s The Silence of Animals delights in the conundrum of our existence – an existence which we decorate with countless myths and ideas, where we twist and turn to avoid acknowledging that we too are animals, separated from the others perhaps only by our self-conceit.

11.15am – 12.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) J2 Rachel Joyce discusses the construction and creation of her beautifully unpretentious and moving novel, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, the story of a man who left home to post a letter and then carried on walking the length of the country to deliver it in person. How did she come up with the idea; and how does she write? Supported by Doubleday

Supported by Allen Lane

11.15am – 12.15pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) J3 The Criminal Conversation of Mrs Norton is the extraordinary story of one woman’s fight for the rights of women after she was publically accused, by her husband, of adultery with the Prime Minister. The accusation sparked ‘the scandal of the century’, and despite her acquittal, Mrs Norton was ruined. For the next thirty years she campaigned for women and battled male-dominated Victorian society, helping to write the Infant Custody Act (1839), and influenced the Matrimonial Causes (Divorce) Act (1857) and the Married Women’s Property Act (1870). Di Atkinson tells the story of one of the first great feminists.

£3 tickets On the door for Under 25’s & full time students 30 minutes before the event* *T&C’s apply see p.62

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 55


SUNDAY 10 MARCH

THE INDEPENDENT DEBATE 1 – 2pm Guildhall £8 (£7) J4 In our very own version of the BBC’s Question Time, Chris Blackhurst, the Editor of The Independent, brings leading journalists from his newspaper and Lynne Fernquest, the Editor of Bath Chronicle to answer questions and debate topical issues from this week’s news.

HISTORY

1913

FOLK SONGS

BAN THIS FILTH!

FROM THE RUINS OF EMPIRE

FOLK TALES

1 – 2pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) J5 The launch of Mary Whitehouse’s ‘Clean Up TV’ campaign (in 1964) made her a byword for censoriousness. Her letters are now preserved in the archives of her National Viewers and Listeners Association. Sifting through this unique compendium of outrage and affront, Ben Thompson uncovers a startling new perspective on Mary Whitehouse’s stand against a tsunami of swearing and sexual license. But far from the last of a dying breed, might she actually have been the harbinger of change in the tide of cultural history? Supported by Faber and Faber

1 – 2pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) J6 The Victorian period, viewed in the West as a time of self-confident progress, was experienced by Asians as a catastrophe in which the British gunned down the last heirs to the Mughal Empire, burned down the Summer Palace in Beijing, and humiliated the bankrupt rulers of the Ottoman Empire. Pankaj Mishra explores how the Asian resistance, a powerful, contradictory and ultimately unstoppable series of ideas now lies behind everything from the Chinese Communist Party to Al Qaeda. Supported by Penguin

56 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

2pm, 3pm & 3.30pm Holburne Museum All ages Free event Take a pew, bend an ear and listen to a tale or two of Simple Simons and Silly Sallys, black dogs and eerie will o’ the wisps, haunted green hills, giant jumping stones and trees that talk. You might meet Jack and one of the wee folk, hear a tune played by a cat on the fiddle, be blown by the North Wind across land and sea, join in with a song about the coming and going of the seasons and feel the Earth move beneath your feet as it spins ‘widdershins’ around the Sun. Told by Michael Loader Director of Somerset Storyfest In association with


SUNDAY 10 MARCH

1913

FICTION

THE GLOBAL VIEW

PERFORMANCE

CHRISTOPHER CLARK: THE SLEEPWALKERS

NADEEM ASLAM WITH KAMILA SHAMSIE

AN OPTIMIST’S TOUR OF THE FUTURE

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £8 (£7) J7

2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) J8

2.45 – 3.45pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) J9

In The Sleepwalkers Christopher Clark retells the story of the outbreak of the First World War and its causes. Starting with the brutal assassination of Alexander I of Serbia in 1903, Clark shows how, far from being the place of enviable stability it appears to us, Europe was racked by chronic problems: a fractured, multicultural world of clashing ideals, terrorism, militancy and instability, which was, fatefully, saddled with a conspicuously ineffectual set of political leaders sleepwalking inevitably to war.

The author of The Wasted Vigil gives us a searing, exquisitely written novel set in Pakistan and Afghanistan in the months following 9/11 – a story of war, of one family’s losses, and of the simplest, most enduring human impulses. In language as lyrical as it is piercing, in scenes at once beautiful and harrowing, The Blind Man’s Garden unflinchingly describes a topical yet timeless world, powerfully evoking a place where the line between enemy and friend is indistinct and where the desire to return home burns brightest of all.

Mark Stevenson has been to the future a few years ahead of the rest of us – and reckons it has a lot going for it. His voyage of discovery takes him to Oxford to meet Transhumanists (they intend to live forever) and to Boston where he confronts a robot with mood swings. He clambers around space planes in the Mojave desert, gets to grips with the potential of nanotechnology, has his genome profiled, and glimpses the next stage of human evolution. Perhaps the future is not all doom and gloom?

Supported by Faber and Faber

Sponsored by

Supported by Penguin Sponsored by The Roper Family Charitable Trust

Supported by Profile

2.45 – 3.45pm Guildhall £15 (£12) J10 Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the world’s most loved books. This is a rehearsed reading of the trial scene at its centre, staged in our very own court room. The reading will be narrated by Harriet Walter, with the celebrated American actor Guy Paul as Atticus Finch, students from Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, and the amazing black gospel choir Nitrovox. Directed by Marilyn Imrie, there will just be four performances of this opportunity to share the drama of one of the most famous scenes in all literature. Casting is subject to availability. Sponsored by

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 57


SUNDAY 10 MARCH

VOICES IN THE CITY

HISTORY

THIS LIFE

FICTION

BOOK CHAT: JACOB’S CAFÉ

SPELL IT OUT: THE SINGULAR STORY OF ENGLISH SPELLING

UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTHS

TRACY CHEVALIER AND RUPERT THOMSON

3 – 4pm Jacob’s Café Free event As the Festival draws to a close, Read Around Bath invites you to share your love of reading with others. Which works of literature have inspired you? Which book will you always remember? Come along for an informal chat about your favourite books over a cup of tea.

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £9 (£8) J11 Why is there an ‘h’ in ghost? William Caxton, inventor of the printing press and his Flemish employees are to blame: without a dictionary or style guide to hand in fifteenth century Bruges, the typesetters simply spelled it the way it sounded to their foreign ears, and it stuck. Seventy-five per cent of English spelling is regular but twenty-five per cent is complicated, and in Spell It Out, our foremost linguistics expert David Crystal extends a helping hand to the confused and curious alike.

4.30 – 5.30pm Guildhall £7.50 (6.50) J12 In A Very British Killing Andrew Williams tells how, on 15 September 2003, Baha Mousa, a hotel receptionist, was killed by British Army troops in Iraq, after being subjected to forty-eight hours of violence. Yet according to Ian Cobain’s Cruel Britannia, the official line is clear: the UK does not ‘participate in, solicit, encourage or condone’ torture. As the enquiries into the on-going abuse of terror suspects uncover an ever more sinister chain of complicity, it’s time to re-examine the assumption that the British don’t ‘do’ torture.

Join the conversation @bathfestivals #bathlitfest /bathlitfest

58 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362

4.30 – 5.30pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) J13 Tracy Chevalier, the author of the bestselling Girl with a Pearl Earring returns with a stunning new novel The Last Runaway set in the tangled forests and sunlit cornfields of 1850s Ohio. Rupert Thomson author of the award-winning memoir, This Party’s Got to Stop sets his sights on Florence in 1960’s with Secrecy, a love story, a murder mystery and a portrait of a famous city in an age of austerity. Two of our best contemporary writers go back in time. Supported by Harper Collins and Granta


SUNDAY 10 MARCH

THIS LIFE

1913

HISTORY

FICTION

JON RONSON: LOST AT SEA

POETRY AND FASCISM WITH LUCY HUGHESHALLETT

THE PHANTOM ARMY OF ALAMEIN

GEORGINA HARDING AND MICHÈLE ROBERTS

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £9 (£8) J14 Jon Ronson has been on patrol with America’s real-life superheroes and to a UFO convention in the Nevada desert with Robbie Williams. He’s interviewed a robot and asked her if she has a soul. He’s fascinated by madness, strange behaviour and the human mind, and has spent his life meeting extraordinary people. Frequently hilarious, sometimes disturbing, always entertaining, these compelling stories of the chaos that lies on the fringe of our daily lives will have you wondering just what we’re capable of. Supported by Picador Sponsored by

6.15 – 7.15pm Guildhall £7.50 (£6.50) J15 In September 1919 Gabriele D’Annunzio, successful poet and occasional politician, declared himself Commandante of the city of Fiume in modern day Croatia. His intention - to establish a utopia based on his protofascist and artistic ideals. It was the dramatic pinnacle to an outrageous career. Lucy HughesHallett charts the controversial life of a debauched artist who became a national hero: a figure as deplorable as he is fascinating. Supported by Jonathan Cape

6.15 – 7.15pm Masonic Hall £8 (£7) J16 In 1940 a group of artists, sculptors, film makers, theatre designers and set painters came together to form the Camouflage Unit. Led by Major Geoffrey Barkas and including the internationally renowned magician Jasper Maskelyne, the unit’s projects became a crucial battlefield weapon, most famously at El Alamein where they made 600 tanks seem to disappear and reappear fifty miles away. Rick Stroud (The Phantom Army of Alamein) tells the amazing story of how the stage effects of some of Britain’s most creative men played a vital role in winning the war.

6.15 – 7.15pm Holburne Museum £7.50 (£6.50) J17 Two great novelists describe the effects of war. Georgina Harding’s A Painter of Silence was shortlisted for the Orange Prize for Fiction in 2012 and is an intimate and devastating portrait of Romania during and after the Second World War. Ignorance is a mesmerising exploration of guilt, faith, desire and judgment set in war-time France from Booker-shortlisted author Michèle Roberts. Both writers have a consummate understanding of how to be lyrical and shocking at the same time. Supported by Bloomsbury

Supported by Bloomsbury

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 59


SUNDAY 10 MARCH

FOLK SONG CHALLENGE

ANIMALS AND NONSENSE 8 – 9pm Guildhall Free event Join local musicians and community groups as they take part in our Festival Challenge to perform every song from Steve Roud and Julia Bishop’s The New Penguin Book Of English Folk Songs. Some of our bestknown and oldest folk songs are apparently nonsensical and this chapter includes farfetched yarns set to lively tunes with their roots in party games and drinking songs.

PERFORMANCE

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD 8 – 9pm Guildhall £15 (£12) J18 We end the festival with a final performance of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. This is a rehearsed reading of the trial scene at its centre, staged in our very own court room. The reading will be narrated by Harriet Walter, with the celebrated American actor Guy Paul as Atticus Finch, students from Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, and the amazing black gospel choir Nitrovox. Directed by Marilyn Imrie, there will just be four performances of this opportunity to share the drama of one of the most famous scenes in all literature. Casting is subject to availability. Sponsored by

60 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


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Proud media partner of Bath Literature Festival 2013

MAKE A DATE WITH BATH FESTIVALS IN 2013 Bath International Music Festival 22 May - 2 June 2013 The Telegraph Bath Children’s Literature Festival 27 Sept - 6 Oct 2013

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For more information: bathfestivals.org.uk Bath Box Office 01225 463362

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LEARNING AND PARTICIPATION Bath Festivals offer children, young people and adults the best opportunities to engage with and explore literature as part of everyday life. Our programmes encourage reading and writing for pleasure and support participants to develop their literacy and writing skills inspired by the world-class writers and thinkers that we bring to Bath. YOUNG WRITERS Festival Writing Lab There are numerous festival workshops for teenagers aged 13+ that aim to develop their writing skills across a variety of genres, as well as giving encouragement and advice on writing and careers in the industry. Run by professional writers and held in a creative environment, the workshops will cover writing for fiction and poetry, writing online, blogging and book illustration.

Great ticket offers for schools & young people See page 63 (opposite) for our special ticket offers

SCHOOLS AND TEACHERS World Stories Our World Stories project will enable over 150 children and young people to explore folk traditions using storytelling, music and visual art to support the development of language and literacy. Inspired by the New Penguin Book of English Folksongs, this project will use writing, singing, music, visual art and creative play to explore folk traditions from England, Africa and India. Our INSET session for teachers will offer creative and practical ways into exploring folk traditions with children and young people, leaving a legacy with the schools long after the project has finished. KS2 & KS3 — £250 Kids Big Bath Read Our annual Kids Big Bath Read (page 13) aims to encourage reading for pleasure in primary schools in Bath and North East Somerset. This year’s book The Mystery of Wickworth Manor is written by award-winning author Elen Caldecott; local schools will receive free copies of the book and young readers are encouraged to send their reviews and responses to the story to us and take part in the Kids Big Bath Read events at the festival. KS2 — £20

World Book Day Join us to celebrate World Book day on Thursday 7 March — Sign up for one of our projects or contact us to book an author visit for your school

For more information For more information on any of our projects and year round Learning & Participation programme please e-mail Louise Betts on education@bathfestivals.org.uk

Teacher Training: Exploring Creative Writing In this newly launched programme we offer teachers the opportunity to develop their understanding and expertise in teaching creative writing to support learning and writing outcomes for children. The programme offers three INSET sessions and online support to introduce creative writing activities and techniques and reflect on the practice introduced by the programme to the classroom. Together we will identify further opportunities to stimulate creative writing and ways for schools to get involved with our vibrant literature festivals. KS2 — £295 (£200 each for two or more teachers from the same school) With gratitude for the generous support of The Joyce Fletcher Charitable Trust.

62 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


BOOKING

BATH BOX OFFICE Bath Visitor Information Centre Abbey Chambers Abbey Churchyard Bath BA1 1LY 01225 463362 boxoffice@bathfestivals.org.uk www.bathlitfest.org.uk Box Office opening hours Monday to Saturday 9.30am–5.30pm Sunday 10am–4pm

Concessions Concession prices are available to under–18s, full– time students, unemployment benefit claimants, visitors with a disability and those whose sole source of income is a DSS state retirement pension. Concessions are only available when a separate price is given in brackets. Only one concession may apply per ticket. Schools ticket offer: £2.50 for lunchtime debates Tickets to the weekday Independent Voices Debates cost just £2.50 for school bookings. Young Persons ticket offer: £3 standby tickets Under 25’s and full-time students may purchase unsold tickets for £3 on the door 30 minutes before the event. This does not apply to events at the Holburne Museum, the Morning Walks and the Kids Big Bath Read. Group bookings We offer one free seat for every ten purchased to the same event when booked at the same time.

By post to Bath Box Office at the above address – cheques made payable to Bath Box Office

Bath Literature Festival welcomes visitors with disabilities Please advise the Box Office of your requirements when making a booking. Access details can be found on page 65 or by visiting the Access Statement on our website www.bathlitfest.org.uk. Visitors with a disability who need to bring a personal assistant are offered one free ticket. If you require a BSL interpreter, please enquire at the Box Office and we will do our best to accommodate this.

WHEN TO BOOK

A large print version of the brochure is available on request from Bath Box Office.

HOW TO BOOK In person at Bath Box Office By telephone on 01225 463362 Online at www.bathlitfest.org.uk

Patrons Booking 18 December 2012 Penfriends Booking 18 December 2012 Penpals Booking 2 January 2013 Bath Chronicle Priority Booking 3 January 2013 Independent Priority Booking 5 – 6 January 2013 General Booking 9 January 2013

BOOKING DETAILS Your tickets will be posted to you for a charge of 50p, or free of charge if you include a stamped addressed envelope with your booking. Otherwise your tickets will be held for collection at the Box Office, or at the venue from one hour before the event. Booking by credit and debit card incurs a £1.50 transaction charge. All online bookings incur a transaction charge of £2.

Other booking information Please quote the event code when booking. Event times are approximate and doors open 15 minutes before each event. Tickets are non-refundable, but if an event sells out we are happy to offer returned tickets for resale. A £2 per ticket handling charge will apply on all resold tickets. Please note we cannot refund card transaction or online booking fees. Programmes and performers may be subject to change. All information in this brochure was correct at the time of going to press. Filming Some events or shows may be filmed or photographed. Buying a ticket affirms your consent to the filming, sound recording or photographing of yourself as a member of the audience.

Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362 63


HOTELS

OFFICIAL HOTEL PARTNER Best Western Abbey Hotel Set in the centre of the city, the 60-bedroomed hotel is brilliantly located for the Roman Baths, Thermae Spa, Abbey, main shopping area and festival venues. The much-acclaimed Allium Brasserie serves a varied and seasonal menu all day from 12 until 9pm including light dishes and salads, and the contemporary lounge, with its exhibition of modern art, is perfect for coffee, cocktails and afternoon teas. Terrace dining when the weather is warm. 1–3 North Parade, Bath BA1 1LF 01225 461603 www.abbeyhotelbath.co.uk

The Carfax Hotel A Georgian town house hotel in the famous Great Pulteney Street. Car park, lifts and affordable prices. 13–15 Great Pulteney Street Bath BA2 4BS 01225 462089 www.carfaxhotel.co.uk

Henrietta House Henrietta House is an elegant, double fronted Georgian townhouse located in a quiet central area of Bath. Privately owned, we provide guests with an excellent personal service. All rooms have en-suite bathrooms, and each room is individually decorated with art and antiques. 33 Henrietta Street, Bath BA2 6LR 01225 632632 www.henriettahouse.co.uk

The Halcyon The Halcyon, contemporary boutique townhouse hotel, centrally located within 2 minutes walk of major attractions, train station and parking. From £99. 2–3 South Parade, Bath BA2 4AA 01225 444100 www.thehalcyon.com

Hilton Bath City Hilton Bath City is centrally located in the historic city of Bath, close to shops, local attractions and train station. The hotel has been fully refurbished offering 173 air conditioned bedrooms, lobby bar serving Costa Coffee and a brand new French style restaurant “Atelier”.

Pratt’s Hotel Built in 1743 by John Wood, Pratt’s Hotel is in a great location to explore the city’s many historic attractions. Full of character rooms, a classic Georgian restaurant and lounges with open fireplaces. South Parade, Bath BA2 4AB 01225 460441 www.forestdale.com

Royal Crescent Hotel 5 Star Relais & Chateaux Hotel located at the centre of the Royal Crescent. 16 Royal Crescent, Bath BA1 2LS 01225 823333 www.royalcrescent.co.uk

Bath Boutique Stays Bath Boutique Stays offer a unique collection of Georgian apartments and houses, with a contemporary style, to visitors of this beautiful architecturally rich city. Stay at 4 Sydney Place where Jane Austen lived and gained inspiration for her novels, particularly Northanger Abbey.

Walcot Street, Bath BA1 5BJ 01225 463 411 www.hilton.co.uk/bathcity

1 Park View, Bath BA1 3AW 07723 617486 www.bathboutiquestays.co.uk

Kennard Hotel A Georgian town house with its own special charm and character quietly situated within minutes of the city centre.

Tasburgh House Set in 7 acres of beautiful gardens Tasburgh House is a 3 minute taxi ride or 20 minute canal walk from the City centre. 12 stylish rooms with extraordinarily comfy beds and breathtaking views all set in a relaxing atmosphere. Helpful knowledgeable staff will happily recommend and reserve restaurants, tours, taxis etc. Licensed, great breakfasts and free parking.

For more information

11 Henrietta Street, Bath BA2 6LL 01225 310472 www.kennard.co.uk

Warminster Road, Bath BA2 6SH 01225 425096 www.tasburghhouse.co.uk

about accommodation in Bath, visit www.visitbath.co.uk or call Bath Tourist Information Centre on 0906 711 2000 (50p/min).

Macdonald Bath Spa Hotel The five star Macdonald Bath Spa Hotel is the perfect accommodation venue for Bath’s five star Festivals. Sydney Road, Bath BA2 6JF 0844 8799106 macdonaldhotels.co.uk/bathspa

64 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 50%

100%

BATH FESTIVALS

Board of Trustees Jane Drabble OBE Chair Carol Baines, John Cullum, Councillor Katie Hall Margaret Heffernan, Celia Mead, Louise Mitchell Professor Rod Morgan, Ian Stockley, Dr John Thomas, Richard Turner CMG OBE, Anna Williams in association with

Chief Executive Belinda Kidd

Artistic Director James Runcie

Finance Director Alison Parker

Literature Producer Zoë Steadman-Milne

Development & Marketing Director Owen McNeir

Bath Festivals would also like to thank the following for their invaluable support:

Development Clare Diacono, Martin Barnes, Laura Keating

The festival volunteers, events managers, freelance production team and the managers and staff of all the Festival venues.

Finance Rebecca Wheeler

150%

PHOTO AND ILLUSTRATION CREDITS Cover Page + 48 — Photo: Canadian troops with fixed bayonets leaving their trenches for a raid on the Somme during WWI. (Photo by Time Life Pictures/ Mansell/Time Life Pictures/Getty Images). Page 3 — Photo: Bath Literature Festival 2012 copyright Julian Foxon. Page 5 — Photo: Bath Literature Festival 2011 copyright Julian Foxon. Page 14 — Illustration: Book cover of Death comes to Pemberley by P.D. James, Faber and Faber Ltd. Page 15 — Illustration: Book cover of What Are You Looking At? 150 Years of Modern Art in the Blink of an Eye by Will Gompertz, courtesy of Penguin Books Limited. Page 16 + 29 — Illustrations: The New Penguin Book of English Folk Songs by Steve Roud, courtesy of Penguin Books Limited. Page 19 — Photo: Darcey Bussell copyright Anthony Crickmay. Page 20 + 23 — Illustrations: Sarah Simblet. Page 36 — Illustration: Literary Walks Around Bath, courtesy of Andrew Swift. Page 39 — Photo from Cecil Beaton: Theatre of War by Hilary Roberts and Mark Holborn, courtesy of Jonathan Cape Ltd. Page 40 — Illustration: Book cover of The Undiscovered Country: Journeys Among the Dead by Carl Watkins, courtesy of The Bodley Head. Page 43 + Back Cover — Art by Artemisia Gentileschi, Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting (‘La Pittura’), Oil on canvas,1638-9, Royal Collection Trust / © Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II 2012. Page 51 — Art by Cézanne, Apples (c. 1878) Courtesy of the Provost and Fellows of King’s College, Cambridge and the Syndics of the Fitzwilliam Museum. Page 60 — Illustration: Book cover To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, courtesy of The Random House Group.

Bath Festivals Third Floor, Abbey Chambers Kingston Buildings Bath BA1 1NT Registered Charity No. 801617

Festival Officers Laura Cook Kate Hall Learning & Participation Louise Betts, Alex Lupo Marketing and PR Juliet Simpson, Tamsin Treverton Jones Emma Stanley, Beth Cutter Box Office Alison Sully, Beth Cutter, Christina Popejoy June Price, Melodie Robson, Isabel Snowden Jean Saint, Pam Twohig Brand and Festival Design Smith and Milton Bristol

in association with

THE TELEGRAPH BATH CHILDREN’S LITERATURE FESTIVAL Guest Artistic Director David Almond

BATH INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL Artistic Director Alasdair Nicolson Music Producer Bethany Alexander

66 Book online at bathfestivals.org.uk or call 01225 463362


ENJOY SOMETHING

NOVEL

AT HALL & WOODHOUSE

Proud supporters of the Bath Literature Festival.

1 Old King Street, Bath. Tel: 01225 469259 www.hall-woodhousebath.co.uk



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