Sunday 29 March – Sunday 5 April 2009 at Christ Church, Oxford Featuring Mario Vargas Llosa Ian McEwan Vince Cable Simon Schama P D James John Sentamu Robert Harris Joan Bakewell David Starkey Richard Holmes A S Byatt John Humphrys Philip Pullman Michael Holroyd Joanne Harris Jeremy Paxman Box Office 0870 343 1001 www.sundaytimes-oxfordliteraryfestival.co.uk The Radcliffe Camera, The Bodleian Library. The Library is a major new partner of the Festival. WELCOME Welcome We are delighted to welcome you to the 2009 Sunday Particular thanks this year to our partners at Times Oxford Literary Festival - our biggest yet, The Sunday Times for their tremendous coverage spread over eight days with more than 430 speakers. and support of the Festival, and to all our very We have an unprecedented and stimulating series generous sponsors, donors and supporters, of prestige events in the magnificent surroundings especially our friends at Cox and Kings Travel. of Christ Church, the Sheldonian Theatre and We have enlarged and enhanced public facilities Bodleian Library. But much also to amuse and divert. in the marquees at Christ Church Meadow and in the Master’s Garden, which we hope you will Ticket prices have been held to 2008 levels, offering enjoy. We are very grateful to the Dean, the outstanding value for money, so that everyone Governing Body and the staff at Christ Church for can enjoy a host of national and international their help and support. speakers, talking, conversing and debating throughout the week on every conceivable topic. Hitherto, the Festival has been a ‘Not for Profit’ Company, but during 2009 we will move to establish The Sunday Times Oxford Festival is dedicated a new Charitable Trust. to the pursuit of excellence in a friendly and welcoming environment, reflecting the outstanding One of the enduring pleasures of the Festival for traditions of creative discourse and scholarship many of our writers and festival goers is the for which the University of Oxford and its Colleges opportunity to spend a few days or a week are famous throughout the world. When Thomas at Christ Church, eating in the Great Hall, with Bodley established his great library, he envisaged good food, wine, company and conversation; a ‘Republic of Learning’, a concept that inspires walking through the college cloisters, gardens us all still, and constitutes a remarkable heritage. and meadows, the perfect backdrop to a celebration of books and their authors. We are very pleased to welcome Corpus Christi, Jesus, Oriel and Pembroke Colleges to the Festival this year and honoured to stage the first Bodleian SALLY DUNSMORE Library Programme. Festival Chief Executive CONTENTS EVENTS CALENDAR EVENT INFORMATION 3 Welcome 10 Sunday 29 March 120 The Bodleian Library 4 Sponsors, Patrons 11 Monday 30 March 122 Venues and Festival Team 16 Tuesday 31 March 124 Accessibility & Safety 6 Christ Church 30 Wednesday 1 April 127 Exhibitions 52 Thursday 2 April 128 Booking form For your copy of the 68 Friday 3 April 132 Index of Events by Subject programme for Young People’s 88 Saturday 4 April and Children’s Events 103 Sunday 5 April contact: 01865 286 074 116 Walking Tours 3 Title Sponsor Special Edition Sponsor Limited Edition Sponsors Belgravia Gallery Broadcast Media Partner Critchleys Fortnum & Mason HSBC Global Education Trust Oxford University Press Purcell Miller Tritton The Macdonald Randolph Hotel Reader’s Digest Festival Venue Ian and Carol Sellars Wedgwood Associates The Arts Club Conference Oxford Festival Bookseller Christ Church Cathedral School The English Speaking Union The Litmus Partnership Ltd Maison Française The Orwell Prize Regional Media Sponsor Oxford Access Audits Ltd The Oxford and Cambridge Club Oxford Playhouse Pushkin House The Royal Society of Literature Partners The Tablet The Times Literary Supplement The Bodleian Library Corpus Christi College First Edition Sponsors Jesus College City Audio Visual Oriel College Felicity Bryan Literary Agency Pembroke College Oxford College of Marketing Oxford Tube Grant aid Thames and Hudson The Sunday Times Oxford Literary Festival gratefully acknowledges major grants from: With special thanks to: Luigi Bonomi Associates The North Wall Panache PR Writers in Oxford Patrons Colin Blakemore FRS John Carey Richard Dawkins FRS Joanne Harris Robert Hariis Baroness James of Holland Park OBE Peter Kemp Mark Lawson The Rt Hon Baron Patten of Barnes CH Philip Pullman CBE 4 Sir Peter Stothard Special Edition Sponsor SPONSORS, PATRONS & FESTIVAL TEAM & FESTIVAL SPONSORS, PATRONS Festival Chief Executive Health and Safety Manager Sally Dunsmore Stephen Bartlett Limited Edition Sponsors Festival Board Directors Historic Food Advisor Belgravia Gallery Critchleys Graham Benson Anne Menzies Fortnum & Mason Sally Dunsmore HSBC Global Education Trust Brian Hardy Schools and Children’s Events Manager Oxford University Press John Harris Ceila MacLachlan Purcell Miller Tritton Chris Jones The Macdonald Randolph Hotel David McLaren Green Room Managers Reader’s Digest Matthew Patten Rachel Byrne and Jill Dunsmore Ian and Carol Sellars Angela Prysor-Jones Wedgwood Box Office Special Advisor Associates Nick Jordan and Nick Manby-Brown Tony Byrne The Arts Club Volunteer Co-Ordinators Conference Oxford Oxford Literary Festival Charitable Trust Christ Church Cathedral School Executive Director Yvonne Maxwell and Frankie Marlton The English Speaking Union The Litmus Partnership Ltd Angela Prysor-Jones Publicity Maison Française Tei Williams, Press and Arts Marketing The Orwell Prize Trustees Oxford Access Audits Ltd Danielle Battigelli Programme Designer The Oxford and Cambridge Club Roy Blatchford Oxford Playhouse Sue Matthew www.socialuk.com Pushkin House Peter Mothersole The Royal Society of Literature Nick Paladina Photography The Tablet Mari Prichard K T Bruce, Graham Harrison, The Times Literary Supplement Eddie Gallacher, Matthew Morgan Film & Television Consultant and Ralph Williamson First Edition Sponsors Graham Benson City Audio Visual With special thanks to Felicity Bryan Literary Agency Director of Academic Programmes Mike Farley, Leslee Holderness, Oxford College of Marketing Jem Poster Julie Summers, Susan Walker, Lucy Atkins Oxford Tube Thames and Hudson Operations Manager We also thank all the voluntary Festival stewards for their time and generous support throughout the Festival. With special thanks to: Alex Simmons The Oxford Literary Festival is a non-profit making Luigi Bonomi Associates company limited by guarantee. The North Wall Festival Administrator Panache PR Matt Brown Registered office: Writers in Oxford 301 Woodstock Road, Oxford OX2 7NY Patrons Company number 4339438 Colin Blakemore FRS John Carey Richard Dawkins FRS VAT Registration Number GB 807 4855 11 Joanne Harris Oxford Literary Festival Charitable Trust is a company Robert Hariis limited by guarantee. Registered at 301 Woodstock Road, Baroness James of Holland Park OBE Oxford OX2 7NY. Company number 5435063. Peter Kemp Charity Registration Number 1109268 Mark Lawson The Rt Hon Baron Patten of Barnes CH Philip Pullman CBE Wren’s Tom Tower of 1682 Sir Peter Stothard 5 CHRIST CHURCH OXFORD Christ Church is the most magnificent and architecturally imposing of all the Oxford Colleges. Cardinal’s College Home was founded by Thomas Wolsey - Lord Chancellor of England - in 1525. Following Wolsey’s fall from power, of the it was re-founded by King Henry VIII in 1546 - as a unique dual foundation of both College and Cathedral. Celebrated Festival old members include 13 British Prime Minsters (see list opposite), John Locke, William Penn, John Wesley, Lewis Carroll and W H Auden. 6 The Great Hall - built by Wolsey, and the venue Christ Church today is one of the foremost for Festival dinners, talks and tastings, Colleges in the University of Oxford - with CHRIST CHURCH the largest Tudor College Hall in either Oxford undergraduate and postgraduate students or Cambridge. from home and overseas and reading a great During the English Civil War, Oxford was the range and variety of academic subjects. It has Royalist capital, with the King and court based a major contingent of research fellows and at Christ Church (1642-1646). King Charles I leading scholars. The Cathedral (and College addressed both houses of the Royalist Parliament Chapel) serves the diocese of Oxford, as well in the Great Hall - which was the focus for all as the student body - and the world-famous court pomp and ceremony. The Hall also Christ Church Cathedral Choir reflects a provided the setting for the Hogwarts Hall in tradition established by Cardinal Wolsey, who J K Rowling’s Harry Potter films. appointed John Taverner as the first organist. CHRIST CHURCH HAS EDUCATED 13 PRIME MINISTERS Sir Alec Douglas-Home George Canning Anthony Eden Earl of Liverpool Marquess of Salisbury Lord Grenville Earl of Rosebery Earl of Shelburne William Ewart Gladstone Duke of Portland Earl of Derby George Grenville Sir Robert Peel 7 £25 to spend at Waterstone’s when you enjoy The Times for less Subscribe today and pay just £5.50 per week instead of £8 A saving of 30% when you pay by direct debit Hundreds of pounds worth of exclusive rewards from our Culture+ arts and entertainment programme Handpicked rewards every quarter, just for subscribers Put your subscription on hold if you go on holiday JUST VISIT timesonline.co.uk/subscribe Quoting P2060 OR CALL 0800 096 5248 Quoting P2060 Subscription does not include home delivery. Discount is on cover price. Five weeks’ holiday per 48-week subscription. Free Waterstone’s voucher available only for seven-day-a-week subscription customers. 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