Darwin Festival in Cambridge in July

[anef]

I'm posting this as my friend Rebecca has asked people to publicise it:

There will be events to celebrate the life and work of Charles Darwin all over the world in 2009 - it is the bicentenary of his birth and 150 years since the publication of the Origin of Species.

 

Three years ago Professor Patrick Bateson established a committee in Cambridge made up of academics from all disciplines which gave itself  the task of setting up a Festival to celebrate the legacy of Charles Darwin. I was one of the members given the task of organising a Darwin and the Arts series of events for the Festival.

 

The Festival programme is now complete and Festival booking has now gone live. You can see the full programme on:

 

http://www.darwin2009.cam.ac.uk/

 

It is to be a week long. Each day academics, philosophers and intellectuals such as Dawkins, Attenborough and Dennett will give lectures but there will also be a significant number of arts events - poets, artists, novelists and playwrights will talk about Darwin or give readings. This includes two significant highlights - a major event with Ian McEwan and A.S. Byatt at the Corn Exchange and a major exhibition showing Darwin's influence on the arts at the Fitzwilliam.

 

Do have a look at the Festival website and please forward this email to other people you know who might be interested in attending these events.

 

Many thanks, Rebecca Stott

Comments

[fjm.livejournal.com]

Now, did we know we had Rebecca in common? I've been acquainted with Rebecca, off and on, since I was 18.

I'll go look at the festival, thank you for the heads up.

[anef.livejournal.com]

You know Rebecca! That shouldn't surprise me actually. I met her through rowing.

[fjm.livejournal.com]

She was this terribly glam PhD student at York when I was a scrubby first year. We cross paths occasionally through the science and lit link. I loved her book on Darwin and the barnacle.

[anef.livejournal.com]

Fortunately I really liked Ghostwalk - I don't know what I would have said to her if I hadn't. The first time I met her and said "What do you do?" she said "Oh I teach on this creative writing course at the UEA." And I said "What, *the* creative writing course - don't you have to be a published author to do that?" And she said, "Well actually my novel is coming out in November" (or whenever it was). So, colour me embarrassed. But she was very nice about it, and has forgiven me.

[fjm.livejournal.com]

Aw!
But I teach Creative writing, and am an editor rather than a writer.