An illustrated talk Archives - Bridport Literary Festival

Event 1 | Simon Parker | Riding Out

£12.00

Simon Parker - Riding Out - A Journey of Love, Loss and New Beginnings

In March 2020, as Britain entered its first lockdown, Simon Parker’s life fell apart; his travel journalism career vanished overnight and shortly afterwards he received the tragic news that a close friend had died. Riding Out details the remarkable and inspirational true story of how one man battled grief and anxiety, one pedal stroke at a time, on a 3500-mile adventure around Britain. En route, he would meet hundreds of resilient Britons, and even in his gloomiest moments he began to see that a chink of light was never too far away..
An illustrated talk

When: Sunday 6th November 2022 @ 10.30am

Where: Electric Palace

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Event 13 | Benedict Macdonald | Cornerstones

£12.00

Benedict Macdonald - Cornerstones - Wild Forces That Can Change Our World

Our precious archipelago is ravaged by climate change, bereft of natural ecosystems, and lies at the mercy of global warming, flooding, drought and catastrophic biodiversity loss. But could restoring species that once helped protect our islands help turn this crisis around? Benedict Macdonald introduces us to 9 vital cornerstone species that shape Britain - bees, beavers, birds of prey, boar, cattle, horses, whales, wolves and finally humans. Benedict explains how humans can become the greatest stewards of the natural world.
An illustrated talk

When: Tuesday 8th November 2022 @ 10.30 am

Where: The Bull Ballroom

Sponsored by: ‘Soixante’

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Event 16 | Nicholas Jubber | The Fairy Tellers

£12.00

Nicholas Jubber - The Fairy Tellers - A Journey into the Secret History of Fairy Tales Fairy-tales are not just fairy-tales: they are records of historical phenomena, telling us something about how Western civilisation was formed. Award winning travel-writer Nicholas Jubber, explores their secret history: the people who told them, the landscapes that forged them and the cultures that formed them. Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Anderson are inextricably associated with fairy tales but Nick discovers significant tellers long buried in history and uncovers the wealth of their long lost lives. An illustrated talk

When: Tuesday 9th November 2022 @ 4.00 pm

Where: The Bull Ballroom

Sponsored by: Sue Robinson

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Event 20 | Vanessa Berridge | Borde Hill Garden

£12.00

Vanessa Berridge - Borde Hill Garden - A Plant Hunter’s Paradise

Renowned for its magnificent collections of trees and flowering shrubs from across the world, Borde Hill is one of Britain’s great heritage gardens. Vanessa Berridge, garden historian and former magazine editor, tells the story of this spectacular garden, explaining its botanical importance as a living link with the golden era of plant hunting and horticultural derring-do, and with wonderful photographs by John Glover. From 1893, Vanessa charts the history of its development as one of the nation’s most important gardens and woodland.

An illustrated talk

When: Wednesday 9th November 2022 @ 10.30 am

Where: The Bull Ballroom

Sponsored by: Sue and David Orr

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Event 21 | Roger Morgan-Grenville | Taking Stock

£12.00

Roger Morgan-Grenville - Taking Stock - A Journey Among Cows

Since highland cattle ransacked his grandmother’s vegetable patch when he was six, Roger Morgan-Grenville has been fascinated by cows. So much so that, at the age of 61, with no farming experience, he signed on as a part-time labourer at a beef cattle farm to tell their side of the story. The result is this lyrical and evocative book, part unsentimental manifesto for how we should treat cows and how blissfully unaware we are of the de-natured lives we often ask them to lead. Taking Stock explores the 10,000 years our lives have been intertwined with cattle and how we know so little about them.

An illustrated talk

When: Wednesday 10th November 2022 @ 12 noon

Where: The Bull Ballroom

Sponsored by: Rob and Alex Appelby

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Event 24 | Lucy Cooke | Bitch

£12.00

Lucy Cooke - Bitch - A Revolutionary Guide to Sex, Evolution and the Female Animal

Award-winning broadcaster and filmmaker Lucy Cooke demonstrates how the female of the species was marginalised and misunderstood by the scientific patriarchy. Starting with Darwin, who cast the female as passive, coy and monogamous, Bitch tells the story of the females (both animal and human) that have redefined the very forces that shape evolution. She introduces us to a riotous cast of animals, and the scientists studying them, who are recasting the female of the species.

An illustrated talk

When: Wednesday 9th November 2022 @ 6.00 pm

Where: The Bull Ballroom

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Event 25 | Gavin Mortimer | David Stirling

£12.00

Gavin Mortimer - David Stirling - The Phoney Major - The Life, Times and Truth about the Founder of the SAS

Best selling author and historian, Gavin Mortimer, gives a gripping and controversial account of David Stirling’s complex character. The formation of the Special Air Service in the summer of 1941 led to a new form of warfare and Stirling is remembered as the ‘father’ of special services soldiering. BUT was he really a military genius or shameless publicist who manipulated people and the truth? While instrumental in selling the SAS to Churchill, it was his second in command Paddy Mayne who, in the early days, really carried the Regiment. This is a riveting biography of Stirling; of a flawed character who remains legendary.
An illustrated talk

When: Thursday 10th November 2021 @ 10.30 am

Where: The Bull Ballroom

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Event 28 | Robert Twigger | 36 Islands

£10.00

Robert Twigger - 36 Islands - In Search of the Hidden Wonders of the Lake District
Many of us are accustomed to walking in the majestic hills and peaks of the Lake District - but what about the lakes themselves, and more specifically the islands? Robert Twigger spent 36 days sleeping a different night on a different island. He follows a route through the Lake District, wild swimming to islands and using a super lightweight pack-raft to transport his gear. Each chapter covers a different lake and woven into the narrative are stories, maps and fascinating historical material - from retreats for saints and kennels for hunting dogs, to Beatrix Potter and Arthur Ransome.
An illustrated talk

When: Thursday 10th November 2022 @3.30 pm

Where: The Bull Ballroom

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Event 33 | David Burnett | Lost Dorset

£12.00

David Burnett - Lost Dorset - The Towns 1880 - 1920
Author and publisher, David Burnett, presents a glorious illustrated talk of Dorset Towns between 1880 - 1920, and his book is a companion to a previous volume on the Villages and Countryside of Dorset. However, Dorset’s towns have a very distinct identity of their own, with social life taking place on the street, fostering a sense of community - be they on the coast, inland market towns, or scattered heathland settlements. For some, time stood still, as others grew dramatically. A few of the 375 postcards chosen for the book are extremely rare and combine to make a unique portrait of urban Dorset. An illustrated talk

When: Friday 11th November 2022 @10.30 am

Where: Electric Palace

Sponsored by: Felicity Fairbairn

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Event 38 | George Monbiot | Regenesis

£12.00

George Monbiot - Regenesis - Feeding the World without Devouring the Planet
From the bestselling author of Feral, George Monbiot gives a revolutionary vision of a future for food and for humanity. He argues that farming is the world’s greatest cause of environmental destruction - and one which we are least prepared to talk about. We criticise urban sprawl but farming sprawls across thirty times as much land. We have ploughed and grazed great tracts of land, felling trees, killing wildlife and poisoning rivers and oceans to feed ourselves. Now the system is faltering. Monbiot urges how to resolve this dilemma. In conversation with Samantha Knights

When: Saturday 12th November 2022 @ 10.30 am

Where: Electric Palace

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