FirstEdition
Your guide to the events, food, drink and free goings-on at The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival
Full Festival line-up inside
Eat, drink and be merry at the Festival Win the ultimate PG Wodehouse experience
Emma Thompson MEETS Peter Rabbit
Workshops, talks and drop-in events Free family fun
The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival line-up includes...
4–13 October 2013 cheltenhamfestivals.com/subscribe
Helen Fielding, Brian May, RAY DAVIES, JohnNY VEGAS, Amanda Holden, Ian Rankin, Richard and Judy, RONNIE O’SULLIVAN, Mary Berry, Derek Jacobi and many more... @cheltfestivals #cheltlitfest
facebook.com/cheltenhamfestivals
EE FR
Past Present Future T EN
RY
NEWSEUM 1785– 2013
The Times has been at the forefront of news gathering for more than 228 years during which time it has accumulated a wealth of artefacts, letters, photographs, dispatches, paintings and many other treasures. This year, to mark The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival and the re-opening of the Cheltenham Art 2
Gallery and Museum, the public will have the rare chance to see inside The Times Archive. How did the news of Nelson’s tragic victory in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805 reach London? Why did Tennyson base his famous poem on our man’s eyewitness account of the Charge of the Light Brigade? What was Soviet spy Kim Philby
doing claiming for a camel hair coat in his expenses in 1940? What does a modern day war reporter wear to work? All these and other secrets are revealed – exclusively, of course – at The Times Newseum Archive exhibition. l Open 5 October –
32 November at
Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum
FirstEdition CONTENTS
4 Eat, Drink and be Merry at the Festival
24 Joanna Trollope on Sense and Sensibility
38 Join the Discovery Trail 39 We Couldn’t Do It Without You!
6 How We Met Miss Jones
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10 24 10 Uncovering the History of News 12 Emma Thompson meets Peter Rabbit
28 Meet the Stars 30 Linwood Barclay 40 Montpellier Lights Up For Literature 41 Win the Ultimate PG Wodehouse Experience
30 16 16 Sebastian Faulks 18 Detecting Dementia
34 Douglas Coupland: From Generation X to the Worst. Person. Ever
36 22 41 44 Full Festival Line-up
22 Art Rocks
cheltenhamfestivals.com/subscribe
36 Growing Old Outrageously: Top 10 Travel Tips
@cheltfestivals #cheltlitfest
46 Festival Maps 48 Lit Fest Extra
facebook.com/cheltenhamfestivals 3
2 for 1
4
£5
Tea and Coffee
Weekday Lunch
2 cups of regular tea or filter coffee in Montpellier Café Bar
Soup and a sandwich for £5 in Montpellier Café Bar
Only valid with this voucher. No copies.
Only valid with this voucher. No copies.
Free
Tea or Coffee with Lunch Purchased in the Festival Restaurant Only valid with this voucher. No copies.
Eat, drink and be merry Montpellier Gardens and Imperial Square will be at the heart of the Festival this year and - with a feast of on-site cafés, bars and restaurants - it will also be transformed into a food lover’s dream! The gardens will spring to life with pop-up bars, coffee shops and restaurants bursting with taste bud-tantalizing delights. With free entry to the gardens throughout the Festival, a visit to the bustling foodie establishments is a great way to try out the Literature Festival for the first time. And with a chance to get last minute Festival tickets, and experience the free events and workshops throughout the Festival (see back cover for more details) – it’s also the ideal accompaniment to 10 days packed with outstanding entertainment. In Montpellier Gardens, the Montpellier Café Bar will be serving food all day including delicious breakfasts, hot carvery sandwiches, deli favourites, Barista coffees and homemade cakes. Also on offer in the Café Bar will be a mouth-watering selection of tapas, seafood and light dishes from the Champagne Bar. And there will be live cooking specials throughout the Festival, including our famous giant paella pan! Last but not least, the Henry Weston’s Magnificently Exceptional Literature Bar will be open all day every day; the perfect place to grab a drink and meet up with friends before or after your event. Brand new for 2013, the Relish Festival Restaurant will be opening its doors in Montpellier Gardens for the first time. Offering locally sourced produce and creative menus for afternoon tea, tapas and dinner, the restaurant experience is bookable by calling Relish on 01285 658444, and is available as a meal package with selected events. Visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/festivalrestaurant for more information. Plus, don’t forget the Café in the Pavilion, where you can take the weight off your feet with a coffee and a slice of cake before browsing the premium wares on offer in the boutique shopping area. On Imperial Square, The Times Café, opening onto the lovely Skillicorne Gardens
will be offering a range of hot and cold drinks, sandwiches, salads and other delicious snacks to keep you going throughout the day. In the Town Hall, the Pillar Room Restaurant will be serving a variety of hot meals in addition to the children’s options every day, whilst the outdoor Garden Bar in Imperial Gardens will also be open throughout the Festival so you can sit and watch the buzz of the Festival all around you while enjoying a drink and a light snack. Visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/ eatdrinkandbemerry for full details of the tasty treats on offer. Delicious hot drinks from our official hot beverage sponsor Café Direct
Don’t miss all the free events and activities for adults and families. See the back cover for more information.
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How We Met
Miss Jones Literature Festival Manager Nicola Tuxworth gets excited about the arrival of the next instalment of Bridget Jones’s Diary. In one of the most keenly-awaited literary events of 2013, the author Helen Fielding joins us at Cheltenham on Saturday 12th October to celebrate the return of Bridget Jones, in the third instalment of her diary: Mad About the Boy. I can’t wait to get my hands on this book, and to hear at first-hand what Helen has to say about reviving her much-loved fictional heroine after all these years. When Bridget Jones first stormed the bestseller lists in 1996 (Bridget Jones Diary The Singleton Years) – we thirty-somethings, raised on the air-brushed perfection of the Cosmo-style supermodels rejoiced in the arrival of Bridget, the blundering everywoman. Bridget is an imperfect and loveable heroine, chaotically but indomitably facing the challenges of becoming 30, being single and trying to have it all. Permanently remorseful about the number of alcoholic units, cigarettes and calories consumed, Bridget is given to sudden emergencies regarding her appearance: April 4, 9:10 a.m....realize hair is drying in weird shape. She has close friends (who worry about her) and dysfunctional parents (who worry about her) and is looking for love in all the wrong places. The distinctive voice ascribed to Bridget by Fielding is what makes the books so appealing, in the words of one reviewer at the time of publication, Bridget is confessional but not whiny, at sea but not drowning, funny but not begging for laughs.
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The book was a phenomenon; across the country on every bus and train, and that summer on every beach, readers were to be found chuckling away at Bridget’s antics. The commentariat swung into action – was Bridget a feminist? Was she the voice of a generation? Her readers and fans didn’t much care – they just knew she was incredibly funny, and told all their friends. Bridget Jones diaries spawned a whole series of chick-lit imitators with similarly ditzy protagonists, but the original was, and remains, by far the best. In 2013, Bridget will be older (how old? – she should be nearly 50, but my guess is that Fielding will have played with time a little to give us a Bridget in her early forties). She will not, I can confidently predict, be much wiser. Helen Fielding has been guarded about Bridget’s new life, but surely we can expect hilarious malfunctioning of social media in Bridget’s inept hands – we already know that she texts while drunk. As to her status – in or out of love? In or out of a job? Grappling with parenthood? These are mysteries still to be revealed. Roll on October! Helen Fielding: Bridget Jones’s Diary The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 7.45 – 8.45pm, Saturday 12 October Supported by Waterstones
Helen Fielding
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A message from
“Is it your first time?” “Yes, it will be,” I reply. Then they grab my arm, stare intensely at me with the starry-eyed passion of a true believer and exclaim “You will love Cheltenham. LOVE IT!” I’ve quickly discovered that a lot of my Times colleagues are not only veterans of the Literature Festival they are born-again Cheltonians: Festival fanatics, Cheltenham cultists. That explains why there is a legion of Times columnists and writers at the Festival this year. Here are a few Times highlights. You can watch Philip Collins and his fellow leader writers tussle with each other as they decide what the next day’s editorials should thunder about. Ben Macintyre will delve deep into The Times archives (see right); Simon Pearson will talk about his new biography of Roger Bushell, the “Great Escaper”; David Aaronovitch will discuss prisonomics with Vicky Pryce; Robert Crampton will host one of his special quiz nights --- it’s a new tradition, go to it; The Times will be chairing the flagship debate on the future of Britain, and columnists will also be debating Europe and Immigration. We will also be running a series of Times Eyewitness events: Fred Emery will recall how we reported the fall of Richard Nixon; Michael Binyon was there when the Berlin Wall came tumbling down; and our war correspondent Anthony Loyd will give us his ringside account of the war in Bosnia. And did I mention that Libby Purves, Daniel Finkelstein and Hugo Rifkind will be popping up at events too? You get the picture. Chuck a paperback and you’ll likely hit a Times journalist. The only question is: who’s writing the paper back in Wapping? Robbie Millen is Literary Editor of The Times
JUST A FEW OF THE EVENTS FROM THE TIMES The Times Live: Leader conference
The Salon, Montpellier Gardens 12 – 1pm, Friday 4 October 12 – 1pm, Sunday 6 October The Times Debate: Britain Great or Small? What Does the Future Hold?
The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 4.30 – 5.45pm, Saturday 5 October The Times Archive Uncovered: Getting the News
The Salon, Montpellier Gardens 12 – 1pm, Saturday 5 October
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Uncovering the
history of news Robbie Millen, Literary Editor at The Times, explores The Times Archive and finds some journalistic gems.
The Times Newseum opens on 5 October at Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum
“Journalism is the first rough draft of history” feels less of a cliché when you work for a venerable newspaper such as The Times. In our archives, you can see that first rough draft in all its hastily scribbled or wonkily typed glory. Historic telegrams from reporters, memos from Editors and extracts from notebooks, as well as other items from the archives of The Times, will be making their way to the revamped Cheltenham Art Gallery and Museum this Festival. This special Newseum --- which tells the story of how the news got from the scene of the action, whether a battlefield or from the heights of the Himalayas, back to the newsroom in London --won’t be packed up after the Festival but will stay open until 3 November. So what’s in this travelling Newseum? You can take a look at the note and sketch books of William Howard Russell, the first and the greatest of war correspondents, who covered the Crimean War for The Times. “They swept proudly past, glittering in the morning sun in all the pride and splendour of war. We could scarcely believe the evidence of our senses! Surely that handful of men were not going to charge an army in position?” he wrote of the doomed men of Balaclava, inspiring Tennyson to compose the Charge of the Light Brigade. You can find reports, returned home by carrier pigeon, from Lionel James, our war correspondent caught up in the Siege of Ladysmith in 1899. Despite the best efforts of our correspondents and his winged sidekicks, the news did not always arrive. A crate of carrier pigeons sent to James was intercepted by the Boers who greedily ate them and sent a message thanking “The Times correspondent for a basket of nice fat pigeons.” The Times had to grapple with censorship in the First World War. You can read Arthur Moore’s letter from August 1914 pleading with the censors to let his reports pass: “It is important that the nation should know and realise certain things. Bitter truths, but we can face them... I have nothing to say that is not known and noted already by the German General Staff. There is no reason, either in strategy or tactics, why every word I write should not be published.” In 1923, The Times indulged in a bit of cheque
book journalism. It paid £7,500 (equivalent to about £350,000 today) for the privilege of being the sole publisher of the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb. But the costs kept rising. The Times man sent a memo from the Winter Palace Hotel in Luxor saying that “the expenses are the devil” and complaining how quickly money was disappearing on hiring donkeys. It’s sixty years since Everest was conquered. And The Times had the only correspondent with the team that made the ascent. The code words the paper used to protect its scoop are great fun. There’s a letter dated 22 May, 1953, from Arthur Hutchinson detailing the code words that would be used to get the news out: “snow conditions bad” meant success, “wind still troublesome” failure. Alas, the code for the Summit was “Golliwog”. What else? The Times will be displaying the camera that took the first aerial photographs of Everest in 1933. And there will also be a flavour of the modern digitatistic newsroom --- with live news and picture feeds, as well as modern kit such as satellite phones that Times correspondents use to report from today’s conflicts. Proper journalism, past and present. So stick that in your pipe, bloggers.
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Emma Thompson meets
Peter Rabbit Book It! Director Jane Churchill delves into the world of Beatrix Potter, which has recently been revisited and revived by actress and screen writer Emma Thompson. Beatrix Potter’s The Tale of Peter Rabbit has never been out of print since it was first published by Frederick Warne in 1902 and has gone on to become one of the bestselling children’s classics of all time, translated into 35 languages and loved the world over. Beatrix Potter wrote a further 22 titles featuring a cast of endearing animal characters all illustrated with her beautiful naturalistic watercolours. Oscar-winning actress and screen writer Emma Thompson grew up with the Beatrix Potter tales and has loved them ever since, continuing her passion for them as a mother herself reading them with her daughter. So when Puffin sent her an intriguing package in the post with a half-eaten radish or two and a letter from Peter Rabbit suggesting that she would be just the right person to create a new story for the cheeky rabbit, she couldn’t resist the invitation. Emma set the first adventure, The Further Tale of Peter Rabbit, in Scotland as like Beatrix Potter herself, she had spent many happy childhood holidays there with her family. The latest adventure, The Christmas Tale of Peter Rabbit, is set in Beatrix Potter’s beloved Lake District and features Peter, his comical cousin Benjamin Bunny and feathery friend William but to find out exactly what inspired Emma to write their story you will have to wait until October!
Emma Thompson on Beatrix Potter Sky Arts Garden Theatre, Imperial Square 12 – 1pm, Sunday 6 October Phyllida Law and Emma Thompson The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 4 – 5pm, Sunday 6 October
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imagination Capture
INSPIRE
CREATIVITY
writtenword and engage in the
Join us during the festival for education and illustration workshops and photography talks (5th and 6th only) to suit all ages whilst taking the opportunity to view our entries for the Illustration Awards. Visit the University of Gloucestershire marquee in Imperial Gardens or go online – www.cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature to find out more.
web:
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www.glos.ac.uk
tel:
0844 846 4 846
Next OPEN DAYS
12 October and 9 November email:
enquiries@glos.ac.uk
LIKE A GOOD BOOK, WE CAN TAKE YOU ANYWHERE... Don’t just read about it – live it! Come along to the Festival Pavilion and meet the Steppes Travel team or attend the Steppes travel inspired speaker events. Steppes Travel - pioneering travel beyond the ordinary for over 24 years. Exclusive Travel sponsor of The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival 2013
01285 880 980
enquiry@steppestravel.co.uk www.steppestravel.co.uk
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“There’s usually somewhere where you find a way in – a little door into the world you’re going to write about. What ends up coming out of it is not necessarily what you think will come out of it.”
Sebastian Faulks’ Birdsong Book Groups Queen’s Hotel 4 – 5pm, Tuesday 8 Oct The Exchange, Montpellier Gardens 12 – 1pm, Monday 7 Oct 12 – 1pm, Wednesday 9 Oct 4 – 5pm, Sunday 13 Oct Sebastian Faulks on Birdsong The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 12 – 1pm, Saturday 5 Oct Supported by Vintage Classics
PG Wodehouse: In Words and Music The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 2 – 3.15pm, Saturday 5 Oct Supported by The Times
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Sebastian
Faulks Waterstones blogger Dan Lewis talks to the author about his latest novel, A Possible Life.
Sebastian Faulks has just walked past me in the reception of his publisher’s office. I’m sure very few of his readers could fail to recognise his distinctive crop of curls, but I’m equally sure even fewer would recognise my own, and Mr Faulks is one of them... After an awkward moment of chasing and introduction, we find ourselves sat in a room overlooking the sprawling maze of Pimlico’s streets. I take the opportunity to tell him how I often get lost in their Escher-like patterns, and he offers me a few tips on finding my way. As we talk, I’m reassured that he appears to find that life is full of such challenges and that the process of writing itself is in some ways a microcosm of this. “There’s usually somewhere where you find a way in – a little door into the world you’re going to write about. What ends up coming out of it is not necessarily what you think will come out of it.” In fact, Faulks’ latest novel, A Possible Life, will be not at all what some of his readers may expect when they open it for the first time. A novel in five parts, it is the link between form and theme that is just as important as those more obvious elements linking the narratives themselves. “I very much liked the idea that the form of a book is that which best serves the theme. Themes are what I’m interested in; ideas are what I’m interested in.” As he himself points out, “there’s nothing new in fictional form” but he hopes that its employment here is such that it in fact becomes ultimately invisible to the reader. “When people read it, I hope to them it’ll be just like hearing a piece of music – a symphony in 4 or 5 movements. You don’t come out of Beethoven’s 5th Symphony and think ‘I’ve just heard four very interesting pieces of music’, you come out thinking ‘I’ve
just heard one very interesting piece of music’, I hope.” And it is an ambitious undertaking. At 59, the veteran author has written a novel with the experimental flavour of a debut – and perhaps one which could not have been written when he was any younger. “It’s quite exhilarating really. I remember being 6 and my biggest ambition in life was to be 7. And I just thought it would never happen! I now find that Christmas comes about three times a year, it’s barely worth taking down the decorations. And what this means is that middle age actually becomes rather exhilarating because it’s like you’re going down the Cresta Run - you can’t get off.” This sense of inevitability runs throughout the novel, with characters being carried along by events rather than necessarily being able to influence them significantly. Yet even at the end of their lives there’s a sense of the possibility of recurrence; a fear that they may have to live through it all again, a fear which Faulks himself shares. “I think life is pretty tough actually. It’s really pretty grim, life, and I don’t want to have to go through it again.” Not that we’re talking about re-incarnation in the spiritual sense, his interpretation is far more rational and scientific. “Even if I die there’ll be thousands of children born within the hour whose consciousness is so similar to my own as to be essentially indistinguishable.” There are probably those to whom an endless supply of Sebastian Faulkses sounds like no bad thing, but to the writer himself “it is an anxiety. I mean, in the great economy of the universe, everything is reused. But I’d rather a complete termination. That’s my greatest hope.” I should add at this point that all of this is said with palpable good humour and a cheeky
half-grin. At one point, during a particularly deep discussion of what Faulks describes as the “very grand, but also very banal” nature of death, he has to begin to speak considerably louder so as to be heard over the sound of twelve boxes of his novel being unloaded from a trolley just behind me, ready for him to sign once I am gone. Much like A Possible Life itself, Faulks could not be described as sombre. His wit appears in subtle flashes, often when he’s discussing the most serious of concepts, but it’s never forced and only ever compliments his arguments. “My sort of self imposed rule has always been if the humour comes, let it stay. But don’t try and flag it up to the reader and nudge them in the ribs – just let it stay. There’s nothing more embarrassing as a reader than to read something which you know the writer thinks is funny... but you don’t find is.” Though not quite yet in my middle age, I feel the pressure of time speeding me along when I feel I’ve just hit my stride. But, life continues regardless of my own cares or wishes. The boxes filled with possible lives are ready to fill the next hour or so of Faulks’ time, and I’m aware I need to leave him to it very shortly. But, before I do, I pull out my trump card. With the middle section of A Possible Life being a foray into science fiction, has he ever wanted to write a Christmas special of Dr Who? “There’s that radio programme called I’ve Never Seen Star Wars - I’ve never seen Dr Who.” “Great! Neither have I!” I respond. I leave joyful with the thought that I may well have a tiny bit of the same consciousness of Sebastian Faulks, even if my hair isn’t as memorable. A Possible Life is out now. Appeared courtesy of Waterstones.com/blog
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S C I E N C E @ L I T E R AT U R E
Detecting
Dementia
Charlotte Morris from Cobalt discusses how brain imaging could help treat those with dementia.
‘I’ve a grand memory for forgetting’ – Robert Louis Stevenson
Dementia: Brain Scan Live! Sky Arts Garden Theatre, Imperial Square 8.45 – 10.15pm, Friday 4 October Supported by Cobalt
Wounded Memory lapses and problems with concentration are very common. It’s not unusual for people of any age to experience these symptoms and there are a range of causes including stress, anxiety, depression, vitamin deficiencies or thyroid problems. A common cause of memory problems especially in middle to late age is a cluster of conditions known as the dementias. Due to our ageing and growing population, dementia is fast emerging as the biggest public health burden. If dementia is diagnosed early, the person affected may benefit from treatment and support services when it is needed, allowing a normal lifespan with a good quality of life. Yet only 43% of the 800,000 people currently living with dementia in the UK get a diagnosis. In Gloucestershire, since the Memory Assessment Service (MAS) was
set up in late 2009, this figure has increased to around 55%. Brain imaging is being used more and more in the investigation of patients with suspected dementia and Cobalt, based in Cheltenham, has been collaborating with NHS Gloucestershire and 2gether NHS Foundation Trust in several unique research projects that aim to categorise the diseases that cause dementia. This research could lead to more appropriate and effective treatments for patients. In an innovative event at The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival, consultant radiologist Iain Lyburn, psychiatrist Tarun Kuruvilla and the team from Cobalt will carry out a live brain scan so you can see for yourself how this technique works and learn more about how the future of dementia detection is being influenced by research right here in Cheltenham.
The Salon, Montpellier Gardens 5.15 – 6.15pm, Monday 7 October Supported by Society of General Microbiology
Dirt: The Filthy Reality of Everyday Life The Studio, Imperial Square 8.45 – 9.45pm, Tuesday 8 October Supported by Society of General Microbiology
How Do We Grieve? The Salon, Montpellier Gardens 12 – 1pm, Wednesday 9 October Supported by The British Psychological Society
Robert Winston Sky Arts Garden Theatre, Imperial Square 10 – 11am, Sunday 13 October Supported by Baillie Gifford
‘It’s a physical disease, not some mystic curse; therefore it will fall to a physical cure’ – Terry Pratchett
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Savills is pleased to sponsor Ian Botham at The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival 2013.
No-one knows Cheltenham like Savills.
Savills Cheltenham The Quadrangle Imperial Square Cheltenham GL50 1PZ
01242 548000
cheltenham@savills.com
savills.co.uk 21
Image taken from Peter Blake: Design, published by the Antique Collectors’ Club
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ArtRocks
Literature Festival Manager Charles Haynes looks forward to seeing two of the UK’s most celebrated contemporary artists at the Festival this year. There is a special place in the programme for art at Cheltenham. Every year the most celebrated – or hotly tipped – exhibitions are represented in talks by the country’s keenest curatorial minds. This year they’ll be sharing their insight into artists including Michelangelo, Van Gogh, William Morris, Lowry and Paul Klee, to name a few. For the first time at the Festival, we’ll also be joined by celebrated contemporary artists, with keynote interviews with Peter Blake and Cornelia Parker. Blake was a sensation in the 60s; a breath of fresh air on the art scene, and a pop artist on a par with Hockney, jostling at the elbow of Kitaj. You will know Blake’s work – just check the signature on the back of your copy of The Beatles’ Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Blake is as important now as he ever was, and now in his 80s is a tour de force of artistic experience and creativity. Parker, on the other hand, is one of contemporary art’s most original and inventive sculptors and installation artists. Controversial, striking and always thought provoking, Parker’s work has included a startling exploded shed and a vitrine of actress Tilda Swinton. Her interview will no doubt be a highlight. I confess, the events I sneak in to most during the quiet hours are on art. In silence, art manages to communicate complex often exhilarating emotions and themes, and under the professional guidance of our visiting experts and contemporary artists there is – perhaps – nothing more moving or inspirational.
Lowry The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 12 – 1pm, Friday 4 October Michelangelo The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 2 – 3pm, Friday 4 October Peter Blake The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 4 – 5pm, Friday 4 October Paul Klee Town Hall Main Hall, Imperial Square 10 – 11am, Saturday 5 October William Morris The Inkpot, Imperial Square 4 – 5pm, Sunday 6 October Van Gogh’s Sunflowers The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 12 – 1pm, Thursday 10 October Cornelia Parker The Studio, Imperial Square 8.45 – 10pm, Friday 11 October
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Joanna Trollope
on Sense and Sensibility Bestselling novelist Joanna Trollope discusses her new adaption of the Jane Austen classic. What was it about the idea of a modern re-telling of Jane Austen’s novel, Sense and Sensibility, that caught your imagination? My first – and I have to say, last – reaction when the idea of updating those novels was put to me, was: how brilliant! Jane Austen’s pre-occupations – romance, money and class – are timeless, which is one of the main reasons that puts her at the head of the much beloved, as well as classic, category. She is also completely serious about any character or emotion that requires respect, while at the same time displaying a wonderful capacity for mockery and spot on censure for folly and unkindness in any form. And so, while determined that any novel I wrote would be unquestionably a tribute to her genius, and in no way an imitation, I could immediately see that her characters and her narrative would translate absolutely seamlessly to 2013 – which, indeed, they have. The characters that Austen creates are timeless but still, transferring them to current times must have been an enthralling task. Did you find the presence of an existing plot and characters liberating or limiting? The whole process was a liberation. The characters almost felt that they were transferring themselves to recognisable modern people with very little help from me, so vivid are they. And being freed from the need to invent a theme, a narrative or a cast list for myself, I felt little short of exhilarated the whole time. Of course there were elements that had to be modernised since the characters in the original, a lot of them living on the proceeds of the slave trade, although that is never mentioned as it would have been such a contemporary commonplace, have the kind of leisure that is absolutely unthinkable nowadays. And the outrages – Willoughby’s impregnating of Eliza, say – have to be updated to convey the same level of shock. But these changes were really details in what was an extraordinarily engaging project. In Chapter 5 Belle says: ‘Then he’d be at complete odds with my Marianne. And me for that matter. We believe in the
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love of a life, you see.’ Marianne really is the living embodiment of the sensibility that was so fashionable in the eighteenth century. How did you manage to update her romantic fervour and make her so likeable? The thing is – that Marianne is likeable, as well as close to impossible, in the original ... We know that by the time Jane Austen came to write Sense and Sensibility, her own appreciation of the qualities of level headedness that Elinor displays far outweighed the current philosophical vogue for sensibility. But Marianne is as much a child of her times – 1809 – as she is, with a slightly different modern interpretation, of ours. It’s just that we have a different way of describing, and of seeing, the same utter belief in emotional self-indulgence and the prioritising of individualism, as she does. What she would call sensibility, we recognise as entitlement. Her belief in finding the love of her life equates to our desire for a soul mate. She may exhibit an exasperating level of selfinvolvement which is very recognisable today, but she is also warm and welcoming and sincere in her attachments. And she loves her sister, Elinor, she really does. We can all look round our circles of friends and see people in it who are Mariannes – maddeningly selfabsorbed, and emotional, but also sweet and responsive and sympathetic. Jane Austen’s Marianne is a very modern girl, with all the plusses and minuses that that entails. Do you tend to read when you are writing a novel and if so, what? I read all the time... And what I read is not particularly deliberate, but more often than not, whatever is next on the pile of books waiting to be read because I have been asked to read them or am longing to, anyway! This year, one of my huge reading joys was the entire shortlist for the Womens’ Prize for Fiction – six dazzling books. I can’t think when there has been a stronger shortlist – every one a winner in my view! Did you re-read Austen’s Sense and Sensibility and if so, did you refer to it as you wrote or did you prefer to keep a distance between you and the text?
I read and re-read it exhaustively, to the point of cannibalising several paperbacks of it to work out the scenes I was going to use, and where I would have to add scenes to bring the narrative circumstances up to date. So I ended up with a tattered re-configured sequence of the original, heavily highlighted. I have left one line of the original in the updated version – I wonder if you can find it? As a hugely successful, bestselling novelist, would you have any guidance or advice for young writers starting out today? The first thing I would say is that there is plenty of time. You can be too young to write – simply because you haven’t had time to live enough – but you can hardly be too old. Think of the wonderful P. D. James, in the bestseller lists at 94! I remain of the opinion that most people write better after 35 than before, for that very reason. So, don’t be in a hurry! And while you are waiting, train your powers of observation, because that is the hallmark of all successful novelists. Maybe even keep a notebook – not a diary, but a notebook you have with you in which you can record ideas or observations, or snatches of a conversation you overhear, or scraps of dialogue. No amount of noticing of other people is ever, ever wasted, for a writer... Good luck!
Joanna Trollope Town Hall Main Hall, Imperial Square 12 – 1pm, Saturday 12 October Supported by Cotswold Life
Paula Byrne: The Real Jane Austen Sky Arts Garden Theatre, Imperial Square 6 – 7pm, Sunday 13 October Supported by The University of Gloucestershire
A Room of One’s Own The Inkpot, Imperial Square 4 – 5pm, Sunday 13 October
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A fresh approach to art. Original paintings, sculpture and signed limited editions from 30 local, UK and international artists. Explore a wide diversity of extraordinary art. Browse with a coffee or a glass of wine. Please email us for information about exhibitions.
The Paragon Gallery 4 Rotunda Terrace, Montpellier Street, Cheltenham GL50 1SW
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Opening Times: Tuesday - Saturday 10am - 6pm Sunday 11am - 4pm
Tel: +44 (0)1242 233 391 eleanor@paragongallery.co.uk www.paragongallery.co.uk
Wealth & Investment
Read up on our integrated approach to Wealth Management Investec Wealth & Investment are proud sponsors of The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival. Our specialist team in Cheltenham has managed money on behalf of private clients, charities, trusts and pensions across the Cotswolds for over 40 years, seeking the best and most tax-efficient returns on their capital. We provide a bespoke and integrated financial planning and investment management service that reflects our traditional values and industry expertise. Please bear in mind that the value of investments and the income derived from them can go down as well as up and that you may not get back the amount that you have put in. For more information, or to arrange a meeting to see how we can help you, contact Peter Horton on 01242 514 756 or email peter.horton@investecwin.co.uk Out of the Ordinary
Individuals
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Member firm of the London Stock Exchange. Member of NYSE Liffe. Authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Investec Wealth & Investment Limited is registered in England. Registered No. 2122340. Registered Office: 2 Gresham Street, London EC2V 7QP. Offices at: Bath Belfast Birmingham Bournemouth Cheltenham Edinburgh Exeter Glasgow Guildford Leeds Liverpool London Manchester Reigate Sheffield
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Meet the Stars Get the inside stories with RT at The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival Radio Times is once again giving you the chance to hear some of the biggest stars of television and radio talk about their life and work at The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival, which runs from 4–13 October. Famous names taking part in Radio Times’s events include Derek Jacobi, one of our most celebrated theatrical stars, whose TV CV ranges from I, Claudius to Last Tango in Halifax and Vicious, and Pilou Asbaek, who plays spin doctor Kaspar Juul in acclaimed Danish drama Borgen. Asbaek will be joined by Alastair Campbell and Michael Dobbs (creator of House of Cards) to talk about how to make a compelling political drama. Other RT events to look forward to include an afternoon with the hosts of BBC1’s hit game show Pointless and an evening with the stars of Radio 4’s The Unbelievable Truth.
MEET RADIO TIMES TV AND RADIO EXPERTS
Free, but advance booking is required CELIA IMRIE
You’re the Editors! Plan a fantasy edition of RT The Exchange, Montpellier Gardens Saturday 12 October 6-6.45pm
Celebrate 90 years of Britain’s favourite magazine with editor Ben Preston and TV editor Alison Graham. Bring along your ideas for cover stars, columnists and interviewees to help compile your dream issue.
Read Any Good Films Lately? The Exchange, Montpellier Gardens Saturday 12 October 7.30-8.15pm
Join Radio Times film editor Andrew Collins as he extols the immersive joy of subtitled cinema. With foreign-language drama taking TV by storm he celebrates movies that require reading glasses.
Cover Stories
The Exchange, Montpellier Gardens Sunday 13 October 6-6.45pm Radio Times art director Shem Law will take you through 90 years of iconic RT covers. He will also explain just what it takes to create an arresting cover today.
Is The End Of Radio Nigh?
The Exchange, Montpellier Gardens Sunday 13 Oct 7.30-8.15pm Are the forecasts right? Is radio in its seventh age? Will scheduled programmes soon bite the dust? Radio Times radio editor Jane Anderson hosts a debate on this hot topic.
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Craig Revel Horwood: Tales from the Dance Floor
the scenes stories of life on set and the pleasures and pitfalls of their enduring writing partnership. Chaired by Rachael Castell.
Join the multitalented dancer, director, choreographer and fab-u-LOUS judge on Strictly Come Dancing for a frank, funny and revealing interview, turning the CRAIG REVEL HORWOOD spotlight behind the scenes and uncovering some sensational stories from his life and times onstage.
Alexander Armstrong and Richard Osman
The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens Tuesday 8 October 6.30-7.30pm
DAVID MITCHELL
The Unbelievable Truth – The Book
The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens Friday 4 October 6.15-7.45pm Comedian, writer and broadcaster David Mitchell hosts a celebration of his popular and critically acclaimed Radio 4 panel game, marking the publication of The Unbelievable Truth – the Book. Join David and the series regulars for a hilarious evening as they lie and compete against one another to see who’s able to smuggle past their opponents the greatest number of genuine, amazing and – they hope – completely unbelievable truths.
Town Hall Main Hall, Imperial Square Sunday 6 October 8-9pm
Over their long, hugely successful acting careers Celia Imrie, Larry Lamb and Alison Steadman have played some of the small screen’s most memorable figures. But what are the secrets of bringing unusual, often eccentric characters to life? Join us for lively conversation with three of our bestloved actors, who starred together in the warm-hearted ITV comedy drama, Love and Marriage. LARRY LAMB
Alison Steadman
From the braying Beverly in Abigail’s Party to the loveable Pamela in Gavin & Stacey, the much-admired actor has played many unforgettable roles. She joins us in ALISON STEADMAN conversation to look back on a stellar career lasting almost four decades. Chaired by Fiona Lindsay.
The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens Saturday 5 October 8.45-10pm
Celia Imrie, Larry Lamb and Alison Steadman: In Character
Which is better, KitKat or Crunchie; Home and Away or EastEnders; the Rolling Stones or the Beatles…? Comedian and presenter of TV’s Pointless Alexander Armstrong and fellow quiz master Richard Osman argue these contentious issues and many more. The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens Sunday 6 October 6-7pm
Stephen Poliakoff
Stephen Poliakoff joins us for a revealing interview about the power of the moving image and how quality drama can save our television. Stephen will be joined in discussion by one of the many actors with whom he has shared his work during the past 40 years of his illustrious career. Keep checking the website for news.
The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens Sunday 6 October 2-3pm
PILOU ASBAEK
Writing Political Drama
The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens Friday 11 October 8.45-10pm Jed Bartlet (The West Wing), Francis Urquhart (House of Cards) and Birgitte Nyborg (Borgen) – we find fictitious politicians far more mesmerising than our real ones. And what do politicians themselves make of their fictional counterparts? Taking a straw poll of these fascinating questions are political guru and diarist Alastair Campbell, actor Pilou Asbaek, who plays troubled spin doctor Kasper Juul in Danish drama Borgen, and House of Cards creator Michael Dobbs.
Derek Jacobi: As Luck Would Have It
The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens Sunday 13 October 8.15-9.15pm Derek Jacobi is one of the most beloved and distinguished British theatre actors of the past 50 years. Expect a frank, funny and moving account as he joins us in conversation to lift the veil for the first time on his extraordinary life, from time spent in the company of such luminaries as Laurence Olivier, Noël Coward and Peter O’Toole, to star roles in I, Claudius and Cadfael and and numerous acclaimed Shakespeare productions.
Jesse Armstrong and Sam Bain The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens Saturday 12 October 8.45-10pm
In this fascinating and revealing interview, the comedy geniuses behind the longrunning, hugely popular Channel 4 comedy series Peep Show and the outrageous student comedy drama Fresh Meat share their tips for writing comedy, their behind-
DEREK JACOBI
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“Great entertainment from a suspense master.” – Stephen King
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LinwoodBarclay Bestselling thriller writer Linwood Barclay discusses the inspiration behind his 2012 novel, Trust Your Eyes. When I wrote the acknowledgements for Trust Your Eyes, I thanked many of the people you might expect to be thanked. My agent, my editors, my family. Publicists and booksellers. The usual suspects. But I realize now I forgot someone. Winston. No last name. Just Winston. Winston is a dog. A big, white furry thing of a dog. He belongs to friends of ours, and while I like these friends very much, I don’t drop in to see them since they got Winston because, as much as I love dogs, I am allergic to them. Half an hour in Winston’s company is likely to send me to the local emergency room, gasping my last breath. But Trust Your Eyes might not have happened without Winston. Our friends commented one day that if you go on Google Street View and look up their house, you can spot Winston looking out of the window, head up, transfixed by something. It probably wasn’t a squirrel. It was more likely that the car, with a weird contraption strapped to its roof, was passing by at the time. (I must add, with all the fur hanging in Winston’s eyes, it’s a wonder he can see anything.) It’s a funny shot, an amusing moment in time. And it got me wondering. What if something far more sinister was going on in that window than a curious pooch? What if the Google camera car, in the instant that it passed a particular address, caught someone in the act of committing a murder? And that every person on the planet with an Internet connection was a potential witness, if only they knew where to look? Trust Your Eyes started cooking. Of course, there was much more to figure out. The first thing I did was invent a new website, modelled on Google Street
View, that I called Whirl360. (We even made T-shirts!) Then I had to come up with a believable way that someone could, while travelling virtually through New York city, happen upon this one particular window in a lower Manhattan tenement building. The odds of someone just finding it like that were too long to calculate. But suppose you had someone – a savant-like character – who did nothing, all day long, except sit at his computer and wander, without ever leaving his bedroom, the great cities of the world? Someone obsessed with maps. Someone who not only viewed every street he could, but committed them to memory, too. That’s when Thomas Kilbride was born. Thomas, a schizophrenic who is looked after by his brother Ray, spends every waking moment working his way through the streets and avenues of Paris, Rome, London, San Francisco – you name it. And then one day, while virtually walking down Orchard Street in New York, he sees what appears to be a woman being suffocated in a window. He manages to persuade Ray to look into it. Bad idea. Little wonder that when my editor first read the manuscript, he called it Rain Man meets Rear Window. (If you read the book carefully, you might find someone saying something that’s nearly word for word for a line in the movie. My tip of the hat to Alfred Hitchcock.)
When I set out to write Trust Your Eyes, my goal was to produce the best thriller of my career. But I think I ended up doing a little more than that. I got people thinking about the nature of our wired world, where every move we make, on the very street where we live, is very likely being watched. And not just by the government or the police, but by total strangers anywhere on the planet. It’s an unsettling notion. Although not to Winston. He’s still happy to look out the window to see who’s going by. If they end up making a movie of Trust Your Eyes (it’s currently in development) Winston probably deserves a walk-on. But not a speaking part. Trust Your Eyes is out now. Appeared courtesy of Waterstones.com/blog
Linwood Barclay and Ian Rankin Sky Arts Garden Theatre, Imperial Square 8.45 – 10pm, Friday 11 October Supported by City of London School
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PAV
Welcome to The Pavilion, the perfect place to indulge in a bit of retail therapy, meet with friends and get all the latest Festival information and tickets. Situated in Montpellier Gardens, The Pavilion marquee houses the Box Office, Festival and Baillie Gifford Information Point alongside a relaxed café and boutique shopping area. With plenty of space to sit and relax, the Pavilion Café is the perfect place to enjoy a drink and a delicious snack between events. The Pavilion Boutique Shopping Experience has been created exclusively for the Festival, and showcases exquisite hand-crafted items not found on the high street as well as exhibits from our sponsors, including The Coexist Foundation and the University of Cambridge Inter-Faith Programme, Steppes Travel and Baillie Gifford. For full details of the stands visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/thepavilion At weekends there will also be a range of culinary treats to sample and buy under The Pavilion Canopy – a great opportunity to seek out local suppliers and discover something new.
UPLOAD THIS... Reading about the world we inhabit has its place and often inspires travel, but nothing beats the real life visceral thrill of actually being there! Experience incredible sights and sounds that will stay with you and your loved ones forever. With over 40 specialists, over 100 destinations and an infinite number of possibilities Steppes Travel create truly bespoke and personalised holidays designed just for you. Whether you fancy following the great explorers or yearn for a life as a wildlife photographer – take your holiday to the next level. Talk to the team at the Steppes Travel clinic in the Festival Pavilion for exciting and inspiring ideas and exceptional travel advice.
Win a luxury weekend in Edinburgh Baillie Gifford, principal sponsor and supporter of the Business and Economics events, is offering Festival goers the opportunity to win a luxury weekend in Edinburgh! The prize is for two people and includes two night’s B&B accommodation in the 5 star Caledonian Waldorf Astoria, with dinner in the Galvin Brasserie de Luxe. Also included are Royal Edinburgh tour tickets which give you entry to Edinburgh Castle, the Palace of Holyroodhouse and The Royal Yacht Britannia. To enter the prize draw visit bgtrustonline.com/cheltenham and complete the registration form. Terms and conditions apply. The competition is only open to UK residents aged 18 or over. Offer closes at midnight on Sunday 20 October. Visit cheltenhamfestivals.com for more info about the Business and Economics events at the Festival.
Steppes Travel, pioneering travel beyond the ordinary for over 24 years. Tailormade & Family adventures / Wildlife & Expert led group tours / Honeymoons steppestravel.co.uk / 01285 880980
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Baillie Gifford has been managing investments since 1909 and is one of the UK’s largest investment trust managers with over £93bn* in funds under management and advice. For more information visit bailliegifford. com. *as at 31 July 2013.
The Exchange Free events and workshops
Join us in The Exchange in Montpellier Gardens for free events and workshops from Sky Arts, Radio Times, Ordnance Survey and many more. SATURDAY 5 OCTOBER
WEDNESDAY 9 OCTOBER
Brain Surgery: Don’t Lose Your Head! 12pm, 2pm, 4pm Interactive workshops in a simulated operating theatre.
Jennie Farley, Angela France and Chris Hemingway 4pm Join poets Angela France, Chris Hemingway and Jennie Farley for an afternoon of great poetry. Ticket required.
Supported by Wellcome Trust and Imperial College
SUNDAY 6 OCTOBER Sky Arts Ignition Memory Palace Throughout the day A day of creative workshops based on the theme of memory, curated by Sky Arts Ignition partner, the Victoria and Albert Museum, including... • Workshop: DIY Memory Relics with illustrator Isabel Greenberg • Workshop: Memory Trace with artist Sam Winston • Remember when a seagull stole your legs? With children’s book writer and illustrator Alexis Deacon
THURSDAY 10 OCTOBER
You’re the Editors: Plan a Fantasy Edition of the Radio Times 6pm Join the Radio Times editorial team to help put together part of a dream issue of the magazine. Ticket required.
The Proust Experiment 11.15am, 12.30pm Take part in a unique sensory experiment with psychologist Jonathan Silas. Ticket required.
Read any Good Films Lately? 7.30pm Join the Radio Times film editor Andrew Collins as he celebrates movies with subtitles. Ticket required.
Supported by AHRC and Memory Network
SUNDAY 13 OCTOBER FRIDAY 11 OCTOBER British Council Day A series of drop-in talks, debates and role plays with the British Council.
TUESDAY 8 OCTOBER
SATURDAY 12 OCTOBER
Afternoon Tea with Oxford University Afternoon Discuss sleep and genetics over afternoon tea with Prof. Russell Foster and Dr Jenny Taylor. Ticket required. Including... • 2pm – Can your genes predict your fate • 3pm – Tea • 4pm – Sleepless in Cheltenham
How Your Baby Inherits Your Experiences 10am Explore how our lives and environment play a part in a baby’s development. Ticket required.
M E M O R I E
S
Ordnance Survey Workshop 2pm Find out about map and compass reading.
Supported by BSPED
Ordnance Survey Workshop 12pm Find out about map and compass reading. Cover Stories 6pm Radio Times art director Shem Law takes you through 90 years of Radio Times covers. Ticket required. Is the End of Radio Nigh? 7.30pm Radio Times radio editor Jane Anderson hosts a debate on the future of radio. Ticket required.
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Check details and book tickets at cheltenhamfestivals.com
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MAKE A DATE FOR NEXT YEAR CHELTENHAM JAZZ FESTIVAL 30 APR – 5 MAY 2014 THE TIMES CHELTENHAM SCIENCE FESTIVAL 3 – 8 JUNE 2014 CHELTENHAM MUSIC FESTIVAL 2 – 13 JULY 2014 THE TIMES CHELTENHAM LITERATURE FESTIVAL 3 – 12 OCT 2014 34
Douglas Coupland
From Generation X to the Worst. Person. Ever Literature Festival intern Helen Pouncett reveals her love for the novels of the celebrated writer Douglas Coupland. When I first heard that Douglas Coupland was doing an event at the Festival this year, I was nothing short of thrilled. This was the kind of opportunity I knew an internship at The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival would provide in abundance, allowing me to work alongside the great names and great works that as yet, I had only studied in theory. I read two of Coupland’s novels during my degree, and I can honestly say that his flair for uncovering intimate and provocative moments amongst the mundane scenarios of everyday life made for some of the most enjoyable contemporary literature I have read. His debut novel Generation X threw Coupland into the lime light in 1991, and arguably remains his most celebrated novel to date – perhaps due to its increasing relevance to present-day society. Highlighting the artificiality of modern life, the novel offers a satirical stance on the ever-expanding epidemic of consumerism. In spite of a begrudging obligation to their
‘mcjobs’, Coupland’s characters are always in search of a richer, purer existence – using their own imaginations to transcend earthbound trivialities, and bring significance and purpose back into their lives via stories and childlike ethereal thinking. Coupland’s writing is cynical, yet with hints of optimism, regretful yet redemptive, pragmatic but poignant. His forthcoming novel Worst. Person. Ever. seems set to challenge this pattern however, announcing its protagonist as one ‘with absolutely no redeeming social value’. Coupland will undoubtedly exercise his skill in deadpan humour through such a detestable individual; yet I find it hard to believe that the author will denounce humanity entirely. Whatever faith or hope is lost for Coupland’s characters, an inherent belief in life itself seems to will them onwards. Are we creatures of good or evil, united or alone? These are the questions that pervade his writing, and the answers are always closer to home than we think.
Douglas Coupland The Inkpot, Imperial Square 8 – 9pm, Sunday 6 October Private Eye: Remembering Paul Foot Town Hall Main Hall, Imperial Square 6.30 – 7.30pm, Monday 7 October Supported by Charles Russell
Roddy Doyle and Kevin Mayer The Studio, Imperial Square 2 – 3pm, Friday 11 October
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Growing Old
Outrageously Top travel tips from two intrepid travellers Here, co-author Hilary Linstead gives her top 10 tips for travelling with a friend… Growing Old Outrageously is a delightful memoir of travel, food and friendship, telling the story of two old school friends who reconnect unexpectedly after thirty five years and discover that they both love travelling. Not having a clue whether they will get along, the eccentric pair embark on a trial journey to Morocco, which tentative beginning has turned into a series of wonderfully unusual holidays, and Hil and Liz have been circumnavigating the globe ever since.
TOP 10 JOINT TRAVELLING TIPS 1. Forget about home and revel in the differences between people and countries. It’s not easy because sometimes abroad seems disturbingly strange and disconcerting. But look closely because there are connections and similarities and travelling is the best of fun. 2. Join a Frequent Flyer Club. Not just for the free flights on points but also for the preferential check-in facilities and the comfy lounges in which to relax, especially when in transit. Delicious free snacks, drinks, email facilities, newspapers, magazines and even showers all take the pain out of hanging round airports. 3. Travel light. Liz is always haranguing me about bringing far too much luggage. She travels with one bag. I wouldn’t be able to get all my pills, potions and medicines into one bag! 4. Invest in tough luggage which will survive the most strenuous use even if it is more expensive. It will save you money in the long run. I made the mistake last year of buying a cheap case which looked smart; within three weeks the wheels had collapsed and it was useless. 5. Just as important as the luggage that comes with you is your choice of travel companion. You will spend an enormous amount of time with them under sometimes quite stressful conditions. Make sure you have a supply of earplugs for the persistent snorer and eye masks in case you want to sleep and your travel companion wants to watch late night CNN. A sense of humour is the key. 6. Work out in advance arrangements about money. Liz remembered a nephew saying with some surprise how little he had realised he knew his friends until he went on a Greek holiday with them. They proved to be mean with money always assuming they were being ripped off, and never prepared to splash out for a special meal or excursion. 7. One needs to be fit - something I am definitely not. If you are on a tour this is particularly important because the travel companies put together very strenuous programmes which can be physically demanding. A recent trip to South America convinced me that these tours are assault courses for the recently retired. Dragged from your bed at an unearthly hour, put on coaches which zigzag up perilous mountain roads, dragged on endless long treks round archaeological ruins in the hot sun, downing huge school dinners twice a day and feeding out of vast troughs of food at breakfast needs the fitness of an Olympian athlete. Try to have the occasional rest. 8. Record your journey as you go. Keep a journal, take photos and, if you can get hold of the equipment, make a video. It’s surprising how quickly you can forget even the basics of a holiday: it all seems so vivid and unforgettable at the time. 9. Responsible tourism. If you can learn a small amount of the language and customs of the country you are visiting, people will respond well. Listen to the local radio and get an inkling of what is happening locally. It makes bonding with the locals easier and the journey more fruitful. Buy the country’s music and listen to it on the car radio. Try not to be an ‘ugly’ tourist: pick up your rubbish for a start. The latest guide books often have a section entitled ‘Responsible Tourism’ with excellent tips on how not to offend the local people. 10. Don’t forget security. Thieves are everywhere just waiting for the opportunity to pinch something and tourists are a soft touch.
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WIN A COPY OF GROWING OLD OUTRAGEOUSLY! Growing Old Outrageously Sky Arts Garden Theatre, Imperial Square 10 – 11am, Thursday 10 October Travelling Wild Town Hall Main Hall, Imperial Square 2 – 3pm, Wednesday 9 October
To be in with a chance of winning a copy of Liz and Hil’s travel memoir just email literature@cheltenhamfestivals.com and tell us what your top travel tip for prospective travellers would be. Two winners will be chosen at random from all entries received by the closing date of 14 October 2013.
The Great Explorers Sky Arts Garden Theatre, Imperial Square 2 – 3pm, Thursday 10 October
For full terms and conditions visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/ terms-conditions
Supported by Steppes Travel
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Join the
Fo Kidsr
Discovery Trail
As part of the free family fun at the Festival, children of all ages can follow the Discovery Trail around Imperial Gardens and take part in a quiz , on some of our best-loved children s characters. Sound easy? Why not try out our little quiz on the story of Mrs Grunt by Philip Ardagh. Just read about the book below and answer the questions. Answers are at the bottom of the page.
Mrs Grunt Author: Philip Ardagh Introducing Meet Mrs. Grunt. She’s the one on the right with the bunny slippers. (The man on the left is her husband, Mr Grunt.) The boy in the middle is their adopted son, Sunny. When I say ‘adopted’ I suppose I mean stolen. Mrs Grunt wanted a child and Mr Grunt found Sunny hanging from a washing line by the ears as a baby. (Don’t ask about the dress.) They all live together in a horrible caravan. More about I’m not sure I’d like Mrs Grunt if I met her in real life. I think she’d frighten me. I love writing about her, though. She has lots of ridiculous arguments with Mr Grunt and these are brilliant fun to write. They call each other the most meaningless names - numbskull, toolbag, armpit, trenchcoat - which really annoys the other but impresses them at the same time. The thing is that, underneath it all, the Grunts love each other, and that’s an important part in making the reader care about the characters. Mrs Grunt may enjoy giving Mr Grunt a swift kick once in a while, but if anyone else does it, they’d better watch out.
Top tips I find Mrs Grunt easy to write because I understand her. When creating a character, it’s useful to imagine what they’d do in certain situations - even if you never actually put them in those situations in a story - to help you get a better idea of who they are and how they behave. What would Mrs Grunt do if confronted by an escaped lion? Turn and run away? No. Try giving it a saucer - well, an upturned hubcap - of milk? No. Try punching it in the nose? Yes, probably, whilst shouting “What are you roaring at?” Mrs Grunt is not a person who really thinks about the consequences of her actions - of what might happen when she does something. She just goes ahead and does it. When a person behaves this way it’s usually because they’re very brave or very stupid. Guess which one Mrs Grunt is?
Mrs Grunt Quiz
, Q1 What is Mrs Grunt s son called? Q2 Where do the Grunts live? Q3 What would Mrs Grunt do if she came face to face with a lion? Q4 What is a character trait of people who are very brave or very stupid?
Pick up your question sheet at the Dean Close Marquee. Supported by Dean Close School Answers Q1 Sunny Q2 In a horrible caravan Q3 Try punching it in the nose and shouting at it Q4 They do things without thinking
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We couldn’t do it without you! As a charity, Cheltenham Festivals relies on our supporters, Patrons and gifts in wills as well as sponsors and grant-givers to create The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival. Ticket sales cover just 40% of Cheltenham Festivals’ costs and it is only thanks to the donations and sponsorship we receive that we are able to bring the finest authors to Cheltenham and widen access to culture through free events. Last year this support helped Cheltenham Festivals to bring more than 1,200 speakers, writers and musicians to engage with our audiences, and to involve over 24,000 young people and adults with our expanding education programme. If you are passionate about our work then please consider making a donation when you book your tickets. Every gift makes a real difference and is greatly appreciated.
Imagine The Big Book Nelson Thornes is delighted to be sponsoring this public art installation by Diana Bell, standing 2.2m tall and written by 2,700 people in 78 languages. You are invited to open the book, walk inside and release your imagination in words.
To find out more, or make a donation today, please visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/support-us or call 01242 537262. Thank you.
How your donation helps… £10 can contribute to free events for the community which create a buzz about literature. £30 could help to give an emerging author their first opportunity to engage with audiences by taking part in the Festival. £100 could help to provide transport for school children who wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to be inspired by the Festival.
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Montpellier lights up for Literature
Montpellier window display from 2012
Shops in Cheltenham’s popular shopping district, Montpellier, are celebrating the Literature Festival with a series of Festival themed window displays. Traders from the exclusive shopping area will be adorning their stores with special displays throughout the Festival. Following from last year’s “Living Library” windows, traders from the area’s quirky, specialist stores will again bring their shop fronts to life, taking inspiration from the titles featured at this year’s literary extravaganza. Situated just across the road from the Montpellier Gardens Festival site, Montpellier is packed with specialist shops, bars and cafés. Dating from the 1830s, it’s an ideal place to stroll, shop, eat, drink and meet friends.
Margaret Cavanagh from the Montpellier Traders’ Association said, “We’re delighted to work with the Literature Festival again, and get creative with our own take on the Festival. We can’t wait to show off our stores to all the festival goers.” Look out for the special window displays in Montpellier throughout the Festival. Which one is your favourite?
Did you know that CFTicketing also sells tickets for other events and that all our profits go to Cheltenham Festivals? For more info on buying or selling other tickets through us please visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/cfticketing Keep an eye out at the festival for our new range of merchandise – wonderful gifts that support the festivals
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Win the Ultimate PG Wodehouse Experience To build excitement for November’s new Jeeves and Wooster novel, Jeeves and the Wedding Bells, by Sebastian Faulks, Arrow Books have reissued eight Wodehouse novels in a delightfully jazzy new look. There is a whole range of activity planned, including sampling, a pop-up event in London Cocktail week and Jeeves video tutorials. And once you’ve finished reading, you can get your theatre fix with Jeeves & Wooster in Perfect Nonsense at the Duke of York Theatre, London, from 30th October. Starring Stephen Mangan as the effervescent, aristocrat fool Bertie Wooster and Matthew Macfayden as his dutiful valet, join two of our finest comic actors as they revive Wodehouse’s iconic double act. jeevesandwoosterplay.com
PLUM PRIZES
One lucky winner will enjoy a pair of tickets to Perfect Nonsense and a complete set of the reissued novels. Four runners up will also receive a set of the eight classic works.
How to enter Simply find all the bowler hats hidden throughout The First Edition, and email literature@cheltenhamfestivals.com to tell us how many there are. T&Cs apply; see cheltenhamfestivals.com for full details. Closing date 14/10/13.
Events at the Festival… PG Wodehouse: In Words and Music The Times Forum, Montpellier Gardens 2 – 3.15pm, Saturday 5 October Just Jeeves: Martin Jarvis Sky Arts Garden Theatre, Imperial Square 8.30 – 10pm, Saturday 5 October
How do the Festivals make you feel? Cheltenham Festivals, in association with Plymouth and Warwick universities, is at the forefront of exciting new Qualia research, designed to get a better understanding of audiences and how you experience the Festivals, using new digital technology. We experimented with smile recognition and sensor probes at the Festivals earlier in the year and are now launching the prototype of a new Qualia app at the Literature Festival. We will be putting out a call for users to trial it at the Festival so look out for more news on this in the run up to the Festival, on the Cheltenham Festivals website and qualia.org.uk. You will also find computer pods around the Festival inviting you to contribute feedback and offering up to date Festival information. The end result will, we hope, be a new and more efficient way of capturing and measuring the impact of arts events whilst also giving us immediate insight into what our audiences like and don’t like during the course of the Festivals.
For latest news, findings and updates, visit cheltenhamfestivals.com 41
Offering The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival Supporters the chance to win £2,500 off their dream kitchen plus two signed books from The Ginger Pig Winner to be chosen in store on 10th October by Festival Speakers Nicola Swift and Tim Wilson from The Ginger Pig, followed by a Q&A. Nicola and Tim will kindly answer any questions that you might have about their new cookery book, and more - and expert staff from Joseph & Kingsley will be on hand to assist with any kitchen-related queries! COMPETITION DETAILS: Entering our fantastic Festival competition is easy - simply answer the following question correctly: Top-notch butchery is at the heart of The Ginger Pig's business, and we're keen to support this in our kitchens, too. As such we offer a range of solid wood butchers' blocks... but what part of the timber do we use? A) End grain B) End plain C) End pain Name
To be in with a chance of winning the £2,500 prize*, please drop your selected answer and preferred contact details into our Cheltenham showroom by 9th October. Our flagship kitchen showroom - situated next to Cheltenham’s Montpellier Gardens, a most convenient location for the Festival - is open for visitors on weekdays and Saturdays. *Discount applies to a kitchen order with a minimum value of £10,000. Competition terms and conditions apply: please visit www.josephkingsley.co.uk for full details.
www.josephkingsley.co.uk 1 Montpellier Avenue, Cheltenham, GL50 1SA 42
…WITH CHELTENHAM FESTIVALS MEMBERSHIP With a Cheltenham Festivals Membership, you’ll belong to all four Festivals, be amongst the first to book tickets and hear the latest news. Join today to save with ticket discounts and offers and enjoy exclusive events all year round. Available for individuals, couples and families, Advance Booking is £15 and a year’s Full Membership just £30. To start enjoying the benefits straight away, visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/membership or ask at the Box Office or Membership Desk.
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Full Festival Line-up Friday 4 OCTOBER Jung Chang L001 12-1pm Philip Bobbitt L002 12-1pm Lowry L003 12-1pm The Times Live L004 12-1pm Life in Churchill’s School for Spies L005 2-3pm Diarmaid MacCulloch L006 2-3pm James Joyce’s Ulysses L012 2-3pm Michelangelo L008 2-3pm Richard Holmes L009 2-3pm William Dalrymple L010 4-5pm Fallen Hero: The Anatomy of a Modern Scandal L007 4-5pm Re-wired: Memory in the Digital Age L013 4-5pm Peter Blake L011 4-5pm Hitler’s Furies L015 4-5pm Pascal Lamy L114 4-5pm The Unbelievable Truth: The Book L014 6.15-7.45pm Vicky Pryce L016 6.30-7.30pm A S Byatt L017 6.30-7.30pm Religion Without God? L018 6.30-7.30pm Mark Billingham and Mark Lawson L019 6.30-7.30pm Brian May and Denis Pellerin L021 6-7pm What It’s Like to be a Surgeon: Then and Now L326 7.15-8.15pm The Old Woman, the Buffalo and the Lion of Manding L022 8.30-10.30pm The Times Eyewitness: Watergate L027 8.30-9.30pm Jonathan Miller L023 8.45-10pm Ros Barber and Charles Nicholl L025 8.45-10pm Live Aid L026 8.45-10pm Dementia: Brain Scan Live! L024 8.45-10.15pm Saturday 5 OCTOBER The Full English LT01 9.30-11am Paul Klee L028 10-11am The Great Escaper L029 10-11am David Starkey L030 10-11am The Coalition: An Insider’s Guide L032 12-1pm Brian Sewell L033 12-1pm Sebastian Faulks L034 12-1pm The Times Archive Uncovered L035 12-1pm Lunch with Alexandra Shulman and Nicholas Coleridge LT02 12.30-2pm Charles Moore L036 2-3pm The Times Eyewitness: 9/11 L037 2-3pm P G Wodehouse: In Words and Music L038 2-3.15pm A Nation Remembers? L039 2-3pm The Hutchinson Proof Party LT03 3.30-5pm A C Grayling L040 4-5pm Moby Dick L041 4-5pm Sheikh Ali Gomaa L042 4-5pm The Times Debate L043 4.30-5.45pm Memory, Prediction and the Invisible Future L044 4-5pm J R R Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings L045 6-7pm Oliver James L047 6.30-7.30pm James Buchan L048 6.30-7.30pm Scenes From Early Life L062 7.15-8.15pm The Cambridge Spies L049 6.45-7.45pm A Commonplace Killing by Siân Busby L046 6.45-7.45pm Art and Surgery on the Frontline L050 6.30-7.30pm Dinner with Simon Hoggart LT04 7.30-10pm Just Jeeves! L051 8.30-10pm Conspiracy Theories L052 8.45-10pm Laurence Olivier L053 8.45-10pm Stephen Poliakoff L054 8.45-10pm Lionel Shriver L055 8.45-10pm Sunday 6 OCTOBER The Times Archive Private Breakfast Tour John Suchet Middlemarch Body Image Everest–60 Years On Jay Rayner Alexander McCall Smith, Alistair Moffat and James Naughtie Life in the Trenches The Times Live Ray Davies The Modern Woman’s Guide to Life John Suchet
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L330 9-10am L057 10-11am L058 10-11am L059 10-11am L060 10-11am L061 10-11am L063 12-1pm L064 12-1pm L066 12-1pm L065 12-1pm LT05 12.30-2pm L067 12.30-3pm
House of Fun: 20 Glorious Years in Parliament L073 2-3pm The Times Eyewitness: Berlin 1989 L069 2-3pm Alexander Armstrong and Richard Osman L070 2-3pm Empire, Memory and Us L071 2-3pm Just William! L068 2-3.30pm The Many Worlds of Alexander McCall Smith LT06 3.30-5pm Simon Schama L074 4-5pm William Morris L075 4-5pm Phyllida Law and Emma Thompson L076 4-5pm Juliet Stevenson L077 4.15-5.15pm Pause for Thought: Radio 2’s Search for a New Voice L078 4.15-5.15pm The Cold War and the Sixties L081 6-7pm The Samuel Johnson Prize L082 6-7pm Alison Steadman L083 6-7pm Sky Arts Ignition: Memory Palace Screening L084 6-7pm Sylvia Plath: Drawings L085 6.15-7.15pm Robert Crampton’s Quiz Night LT07 7-10pm You Heard it Here First L079 7.45-9pm Celia Imrie, Larry Lamb and Alison Steadman L086 8-9pm Hyde Park on Hudson L087 8-9pm Douglas Coupland L088 8-9pm Jeremy Paxman L089 8-9pm The King of Lies L090 8-9pm Kafka’s Wound: A Live Performance L091 8.30-10pm Monday 7 OCTOBER The Shard L092 10-11am Beyond El Dorado L093 10-11am The Great Train Robbery L094 10-11am Dementia, Memory and Age L095 11.45am-12.45pm Alison Weir L096 12-1pm Nijinsky L097 12-1pm Rehanging Tate Britain L098 12-1pm Birdsong Book Group L099 12-1pm Victoria Hislop and Penelope Lively L100 2-3pm Wisden 2013–The 150th Anniversary Event L101 2-3pm Great War Fashions L102 2-3pm Simon Jenkins L103 2-3pm Making Memories Last L104 2-3pm Private Eye L105 4-5pm The Countess of Carnarvon L106 4-5pm Romantic Women L107 4-5pm The King’s Grave: The Search for Richard III L108 4-5pm Psychology Café L109 4-5pm Wounded L110 5.15-6.15pm Maitreyabandhu and Michael Symmons Roberts L111 5.30-6.15pm Graham Nash L112 5.45-6.45pm Private Eye: Remembering Paul Foot L113 6.30-7.30pm The Ashes L115 6.30-7.30pm Florence Nightingale L116 7-8pm Rorke’s Drift: As It Happened LT08 7-10pm No, I Just Don’t Believe It! L118 7.45-10pm Gloucestershire Writers’ Network L117 8-9.15pm The Times Eyewitness: Tsunami L122 8.45-9.45pm Matt Dawson’s Lions Tales L119 8.45-10pm Futurology L120 8.45-10pm Johnny Vegas L121 8.45-10pm Tuesday 8 OCTOBER Breakfast with Agnès Poirier CAM 9-9.45am Life as a Wildlife Photographer L123 10-11am Gloucestershire and the First World War L124 10-11am Chagall L125 10-11am Albert Camus: The Outsider L126 10-11am Victorian Values L127 11.45am-12.45pm Carol Klein L128 12-1pm C S Lewis: Narnia and Beyond L129 12-1pm The Conquest of the Ocean L130 12-1pm Albert Camus: In Context L131 12-1pm Andrew Davies L132 2-3pm Louis De Bernières L133 2-3pm Flappers: Women of a Dangerous Generation L134 2-3pm Roy Hattersley L136 2-3pm Gloucestershire and the First World War Coach Tour L135 2-5pm Saving Britain’s Heritage L137 3.45-4.45pm War and Peace L138 4-5pm
Kate Clanchy and Penelope Lively Birdsong Book Group Desmond Morris and Will Gompertz Fred D’Aguiar and George Szirtes Psychology Café Duncan Bannatyne The New Silk Road Craig Revel Horwood Tim Vine The Translation Duel! Understanding Islam The Ukelele Handbook Amanda Holden Dirt: The Filthy Reality of Everyday Life Megacities George Goodwin How To Make The Most of Your Memory
L139 4-5pm L140 4-5pm L141 5.15-6.15pm L142 5.30-6.15pm L143 6-7pm L144 6.30-7.30pm L145 6.30-7.30pm L146 6.30-7.30pm L147 7-8pm L148 7-8pm L149 7-8pm LT09 7.30-10pm L150 8.45-9.45pm L153 8.45-9.45pm L151 8.45-10pm L152 8.45-10pm L155 8.45-10pm
Wednesday 9 OCTOBER Breakfast with Lucian Freud L156 10-11am Napoleon Bonaparte L157 10-11am Lucy Worsley L158 10-11am What is Memory? L159 10.15-11.15am Bees: From Honey to Hive L160 11.45am-12.45pm The Art of Selling L161 12-1pm The Borgias L162 12-1pm Kate Adie L163 12-1pm How Do We Grieve? L164 12-1pm Birdsong Book Group L165 12-1pm The Book That Made Me LT10 12.30-2pm Travelling Wild L166 2-3pm James Holland L167 2-3pm Pam Ayres L168 2-3pm Are All Memories Fiction? L169 2-3pm Francis Kilvert’s Diary L170 2-3pm Andrew Marr L171 4-5pm John Eliot Gardiner L172 4-5pm The Académie Française L173 4-5pm Dany Nobus and Ruby Wax L174 4-5pm Sacred Paths L175 4-5pm Jennie Farley, Angela France and Chris Hemingway L176 4-5pm Dannie Abse and Jean Sprackland L177 5.30-6.15pm Virginia Ironside L178 6.30-7.40pm Hammer: Screen, Page and Beyond L179 6.30-7.30pm Inside the New Africa L180 6.30-7.30pm Kate Humble L181 6.30-7.30pm The World Outside My Window L182 6.30-7.30pm Psychology Café L183 6.30-7.30pm Climate Change and the Art of Memory L184 7-8pm The Great Gatsby LT11 7-9pm Barry Norman L185 8.30-9.45pm Inside the New China L186 8.45-10pm Hammer: Hauntings L187 8.45-10pm Lottie and Deborah Moggach L188 8.45-10pm Richard and Judy L189 8.45-10pm The Times Eyewitness: Bosnia 1992 L190 8.45-10pm Thursday 10 OCTOBER World War One: On the Brink L191 10-11am Growing Old Outrageously L192 10-11pm Ruth Goodman L193 10-11am Hanns and Rudolf L194 10-11am The Proust Experiment L195 11.15-11.45am Patricia Hodge and John Julius Norwich L196 12-1pm Sex and the Sixties L197 12-1pm Strategy: A History L198 12-1pm Van Gogh’s Sunflowers L199 12-1pm Pocket Proust: The Proustian Moment L200 12-1pm Ginger Pig Farmhouse Cookbook LT12 12.15-1.45pm The Proust Experiment L201 12.30-1pm Wilbur Smith L202 2-3pm The Great Explorers L203 2-3pm Tom Morris L320 2-3pm Edward Stourton L205 2-3pm The Proust Phenomenon L206 2-3pm Your Life Your Story L207 2-3pm The Belle Epoque Salon: Tea and Madeleines LT13 3.15-4.15pm Kate Mosse L208 4-5pm The New Boys L209 4-5pm
Poetry Please John F Kennedy Celebrating Proust Life Stories The Ramayana Peter Snow Cath Kidston The Undercover Economist Strikes Back Nicholas Hytner Noreena Hertz Ma Jian Adam Chase, Russell James and Caro Peacock David Crystal and Ben Crystal Count Arthur Strong Julian Clary Kate Tempest and Luke Wright Ronnie O’Sullivan and Steve Peters ‘Le Tour’ and more
L210 4-5pm L211 4-5pm L212 4.30-5.30pm L213 4.30-5.30pm L214 5.15-6.15pm L215 6.30-7.30pm L216 6.30-7.30pm L217 6.30-7.30pm L288 6.30-7.30pm L219 6.30-7.30pm L220 7-8pm L221 7-8pm L224 8.30-9.30pm L222 8.30-9.30pm L223 8.45-10pm L225 8.45-10pm L226 8.45-10pm L227 8.45-10pm
Friday 11 OCTOBER Max Hastings L080 10-11am Reynolds Stone L228 10-11am Before The Fire Burns Out L229 10-11am Life and Death in Pompeii and Herculaneum L230 10.15-11.15am Kate Mosse and Alastair Sawday L231 11.45am-12.45pm David and Hilary Crystal L232 12-1pm Martin Luther King and American Civil Rights L233 12-1pm The Classics Debate: Mythical Heroes and Villains L234 12-1pm Jesse Norman L235 12-1pm Lunch with Caroline Charles LT14 12.30-2pm William Morris: A Tour of the Cotswolds L236 1.30-6pm A Dance to the Music of Time L237 2-3pm Graveyards L238 2-3pm Roddy Doyle and Kevin Maher L239 2-3pm Philippa Gregory L240 2-3pm The Romans in Britain L241 2-3pm Boutique Beer Tour L322 2.30-6.30pm Time Team DIY L242 4-5pm Sixties Style L243 4-5pm Alone Of All Her Sex L244 4-5pm Alan Johnson L245 4-5pm Stand-Up Classics L246 4-5pm Owen Sheers and the Michael Murphy Memorial Prizewinner L247 5.15-6.15pm Alastair Campbell and Anne Robinson L248 6.30-7.30pm Nicola Horlick and Luke Johnson L249 6.30-7.30pm Pocket Proust: The Belle Epoque L251 6.30-7.30pm Cheltenham Decides: It is Time for Britain to Leave the EU L250 6.45-7.45pm The National Poetry Competition Winners L252 7-8pm Piaf: The Songs LT15 7-10pm Danny Wallace and Mark Watson L253 8.45-10pm Linwood Barclay and Ian Rankin L254 8.45-10pm Morgana Le Fey L255 8.45-10pm Cornelia Parker L256 8.45-10pm Writing Political Drama L257 8.45-10pm Roddy Doyle L258 8.45-10pm Saturday 12 OCTOBER The Sunday Times Literary Breakfast Capturing the Light: The History of Photography Wilkie Collins Douglas Hurd and Ed Young Pocket Proust: An Extravagant Life Joanna Trollope Robert Harris David Davis, Alan Johnson, Andrew Neil and Polly Toynbee The Railway Man Lunch with Rachel Khoo Gus O’Donnell, Alan Johnson, Sue MacGregor and Francis Maude The 2013 Man Booker Prize Shortlist John Browne Jack Whitehall and Michael Whitehall Do We Still Believe Books Matter to Our Children? Melvyn Bragg Monty Don
LT16 9.30-11am L259 10-11am L020 10-11am L260 10-11am L261 10-11am L262 12-1pm L263 12-1pm L264 12-1pm L265 12-1pm LT17 12.30-2pm L266 2-3pm L267 2-3pm L268 2-3pm L269 2-3pm L270 2-3pm L271 4-5pm L272 4-5pm
Nick Robinson L274 4-5pm The 1938 Cheltenham Booker Prize L273 4-5.30pm UK All Stars Poetry Slam! Qualifier L275 4-5.30pm The Penguin Proof Party LT18 4-5.30pm You’re the Editors L276 6-6.45pm Cheltenham Decides: Prohibition is the Right Policy on Drugs L277 6.30-7.30pm Matthew Rice L278 6.30-7.30pm Michael Dobbs L280 6.30-7.30pm John Bishop L279 6.30-7.45pm Damian Barr, Rachel Cusk and Sathnam Sanghera L281 7.15-8.15pm Read any Good Films Recently? L282 7.30-8.15pm Helen Fielding L308 7.45-8.45pm Dinner with A P McCoy LT19 8-10pm UK All Stars Poetry Slam! Final L283 8.15-10.30pm An English Affair: Sex, Class and Power in the Age of Profumo L284 8.30-9.30pm Jesse Armstrong & Sam Bain L285 8.45-10pm The Beatles L286 8.45-10pm Jonathan Coe and Dominic Sandbrook L287 8.45-10pm My Favourite Bookshop L328 8.45-10pm
Book It! Breakfast With Petr Horacek LB23 9.30-11am Dinosaur Cove LB24 9.45-10.30am Horrible Science LB25 10-10.45am My Friend Nigel LB27 10-10.45am Angelina Ballerina LB28 11.15am-12pm Florentine & Pig & The Lost Pirate Treasure LB30 11.30am-12.15pm The American Dream LB29 11.30am-12.30pm Emma Thompson on Beatrix Potter LB96 12-1pm Secrets of Illustration With Chris Riddell LB32 1-1.45pm Happily Never After LB33 1.15-2pm Monster Craft With Rachel Bright LB36 2.30-3.15pm Wicked Young Writers With Dean Atta LB35 2.30-3.15pm Tony Ross LB37 2.45-3.30pm Snowflakes LB38 4-4.45pm Fantasy Worlds LB40 4.15-5.15pm The Ghastly McNasties LB39 4-4.45pm Our Wild World LB43 6-6.45pm
Sunday 13 OCTOBER
Nurse Clementine
JMW Turner L290 10-11am Robert Winston L291 10-11am Margaret Thatcher: Her Legacy L293 10-11am Remembering Marie Colvin L294 10-11am Marcus Brigstocke’s Big Sunday Brunch LT20 10am-12pm Cheltenham’s Arts and Crafts Treasures L292 10am-12.30pm Hermione Lee L295 12-1pm Europe: The Lost Continent? L296 12-1pm Jon Canter and John Lloyd L297 12-1pm Mary Berry: Recipe For Life L298 12-1pm Translating China L299 12-1pm I’ve Never Read L300 2-3pm Mary Beard L301 2-3pm Carlos Acosta L302 2-3pm Cheltenham Decides: Immigration is Good for Britain L303 2-3pm Arab Women: Past and Present L304 2-3pm Time for Tease LT21 2.30-4pm Eric Schlosser L305 4-5pm A Room of One’s Own L307 4-5pm A Village at War L309 4-5pm Sebastian Faulks’ Birdsong L310 4-5pm A Village at War–Discussion L306 5.30-6.30pm Time for Tease LT22 5.30-7pm Cover Stories L315 6-6.45pm Ian Botham L311 6-7pm Paula Byrne L312 6-7pm How to Read a Latin Love Poem L313 6-7pm Jennifer Saunders L314 6-7.15pm Is The End Of Radio Nigh? L317 7.30-8.15pm Tracey Thorn L319 8-9pm Peter Stothard L316 8-9pm A History of the World in Twelve Maps L324 8-9pm Lost, Stolen or Shredded L204 8-9pm
TUESDAY 8 OCTOBER
BOOK IT!
Just some of the Family Events at the Festival SATURDAY 5 OCTOBER Bodyguard vs Samurai LB03 10-11am Julia Donaldson & Friends LB01 10-10.45am Penny Dreadful’s Pyjama Party LB02 10-10.45am Ruby’s Baby Brother LB05 10-11am Atticus Claw LB07 11.30am-12.15pm Petticoat Pirates LB06 11.30am-12.15pm Maisy’s Band LB08 11.45am-12.30pm The Wimpy Kid Show LB09 12-1pm Rainbow Beauty LB11 1-1.45pm Rastamouse LB10 1-1.45pm Comedy Capers With Jeremy Strong LB12 1.30-2.15pm Cerys Matthews LB13 2-3pm Patrick Ness & Meg Rosoff LB15 2.30-3.30pm Winnie The Pooh LB16 2.30-3.15pm Ruby Redfort with Lauren Child LB17 3-3.45pm Draw With Lydia Monks LB19 4.15-5pm Zom-B With Darren Shan LB20 4.30-5.15pm Fangs With Tommy Donbavand LB21 5.30-6.15pm Louise Rennison LB22 5.45-6.30pm
SUNDAY 6 OCTOBER
MONDAY 7 OCTOBER
Ding Dong Gorilla
LB44 4-4.30pm
LB45 4-4.30pm
WEDNESDAY 9 OCTOBER Emily Gravett
LB46 4-4.30pm
THURSDAY 10 OCTOBER Whizz Bang Pop
LB47 4-4.30pm
FRIDAY 11 OCTOBER Baby Bookworms LB48 1-1.20pm The Tale of the Gingerbread Man LB51 4-4.30pm WW1 Stories With Michael Morpurgo LB95 6.30-7.30pm SATURDAY 12 OCTOBER Just Imagine with Nick Sharratt LB53 9.45-10.30am Where’s Spot? LB52 9.45-10.30am Horrid Henry’s Nightmare LB54 10-11am Oliver & The Seawigs LB57 11.15am-12pm Itch Rocks With Simon Mayo LB58 11.15am-12.15pm Amazing Shadows LB59 11.30am-12.15pm Telling Tales With Michael Morpurgo & Emma Chichester Clark LB60 12-1pm Tom Gates With Liz Pichon LB61 12.45-1.30pm Monster Odyssey LB63 1-1.45pm Peppa Pig LB62 1-1.45pm Frank Cottrell Boyce LB65 2.15-3pm French Translation Slam LB67 2.45-3.30pm Peter Rabbit LB66 2.45-3.30pm Virginia McKenna & Lauren St John LB68 3.45-4.45pm Frogspell to Swordspell LB70 4.15-5pm Truth Lies and Death! LB71 6.30-6.30pm Neil Gaiman LB73 6-7pm Greek Myths With Hugh Lupton LB72 6-6.45pm SUNDAY 13 OCTOBER Hugless Douglas Needs a Hug LB77 10-10.45am Jump Up & Join In With David & Carrie Grant LB74 10-10.45am Song of the Golden Hare with Jackie Morris LB75 10-10.45am Horrible Histories LB76 10-10.45am Beast Quest & Sea Quest LB80 11.30am-12.15pm Bugs & Spiders With Sue Hendra LB81 11.30am-12.15pm Don’t You Dare With Sharky & George LB79 11.30am-12.15pm Heroes of the Wild With Nicola Davies LB82 1-1.45pm Sir Charlie Stinky Socks & The Tale of the Wizard’s Whisper LB83 1-1.45pm Storytelling With Emma Dodd LB84 1-1.45pm Anholt’s Artists LB88 2.30-3.15pm Shirley Hughes & Clara Vulliamy LB87 2.30-3.15pm Weirdos Geeks and Pants LB86 2.30-3.30pm Belle & Boo LB90 4-4.45pm Dick & Dom LB89 4-5pm The Big Rainbow Magic Party LB92 4.15-5pm Stitch Head LB93 5.30-6.15pm Marcus & Julian Sedgwick LB94 6-6.45pm
For the full family line-up visit cheltenhamfestivals.com
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Festival Guide – Getting around the Festival Imperial Gardens IMPERIAL SQUARE
Montpellier Gardens
TTown own Hall Hall Main Hall
The Times Cafe
The Pillar Room Restaurant
University of Gloucestershire
The Inkpot
Box Office & Info point Garden Bar
IMPERIAL SQUARE
IMPERIAL SQUARE
Town Hall
Sky Arts Garden Theatre
Baillie Gifford
Membership Nelson Thornes Waterstones The Big Book
Children’s Hideaway
Main Venues Café
The Studio
Bar Information Toilets
Town Centre
A4015
PROMENADE
Ordnance Survey is Great Britain’s national mapping authority providing the most accurate and up-to-date information. They have provided mapping to support the The Times Cheltenham Literature Festival and can help you create your very own map too! To win one of five custom-made maps where you chose the centrepoint, title and cover image, simple answer the following question: Digital mapping supports which of these services? A. Satellite navigation B. Home shopping deliveries C. Emergency services ie. ambulance, fire brigade and police D. Bus routing E. Refuse collections F. All of the above Enter at cheltenhamfestivals.com/ordnancesurvey
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Montpellier Gardens
The Festival sites are located in the centre of Cheltenham, which is well served by public transport. For venue maps and information on train and bus services, as well as park and ride and car parking, visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/ visitorinformation
For Sat Navs Imperial Square – GL50 1QA Montpellier Gardens – GL50 1UW Queen’s Hotel – GL50 1NN Parabola Arts Centre – GL50 3AA St Andrew’s Church – GL50 1SP Greenway Hotel & Spa – GL51 4UG The Daffodil – GL50 2AE Cheltenham Art Gallery & Museum – GL50 3JT
Montpellier Gardens
Imperial Gardens
The The Salon Salon
Exhibitors
TThe he TTimes imes FForum orum Waterstones Book Tent
Toilets
MONTPELLIER TERRACE
MONTPELLIER
SPA ROAD
Montpellier Caf Bar Café Relish Festival Restaurant HSBC Hospitality Lounge
The Spiegeltent
Box office The Pavilion infoand point
Membership
Radio Times
Main Venues Café
The Times+ Members Area The Exchange
Bar Information
Press Room
Toilets Shopping
Imperial Gardens and Town Centre
A4015 LANSDOWN ROAD
to Birmingham ir inghh via A40199 & M M55 vii A40
CCheltenham Ch h Art A Gallery G y and Museum
r Parabola Arts Centre
S Andrew’s A d CChurch Ch chh St Queen’s Hotel
to Oxford rd via A4 vi A400
p ri Gardens d Imperial
Festival sites
Montpellier M tpp i r Gardens
Other venues Tourist information centre Car park Bus station
to Bristol via M5 The Daffodil dii
t The Greenway Hotel to & Spa (3 miles)
Contains ontains Ordnance Survey data © Crown Cro Copyright yright and database right 2013
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LIT FEST EXTRA 4—13 OCTOBER 2013
FREE EVENTS IN THE EXCHANGE (MONTPELLIER GARDENS) Brain Surgery: Don’t Lose Your Head! Saturday 5 Oct, 12pm, 2pm, 4pm Interactive workshops in a simulated operating theatre. Sky Arts Ignition Memory Palace Sunday 6 Oct, throughout the day A day of creative workshops based on the theme of memory.
FOOD AND DRINK AT THE FESTIVAL Montpellier Gardens Henry Weston’s Magnificently Exceptional Literature Bar Serving beer, cider and wine throughout the Festival. Montpellier Café Bar Serving hot and cold food and drinks. Relish Festival Restaurant NEW FOR 2013 offering locally sourced menus for lunch, afternoon tea and dinner. The Pavilion Café Serving drinks and snacks.
Afternoon Tea with Oxford University Tuesday 8 Oct, afternoon Discuss sleep and genetics over afternoon tea with Prof. Russell Foster and Dr Jenny Taylor. Ticket required. Jennie Farley, Angela France and Chris Hemingway Wednesday 9 Oct, 4pm Join poets Angela France, Chris Hemingway and Jennie Farley for an afternoon of great poetry. Ticket required. The Proust Experiment Thursday 10 Oct, 11.15am & 12.30pm Take part in a unique sensory experiment with psychologist Jonathan Silas. Ticket required. British Council Day Friday 11 Oct, all day A series of drop-in talks, debates and role plays.
Imperial Square The Times Café Serving drinks, sandwiches, salads and snacks. Town Hall Pillar Room Restaurant Offering hot meals, a children’s menu plus snacks and drinks in the Town Hall.
How Your Baby Inherits Your Experiences Saturday 12 Oct, 10am Explore how our lives and environment play a part in a baby’s development. Ticket required.
The Garden Bar Outdoor bar serving drinks and snacks.
Ordnance Survey Workshop Saturday 12 Oct, 2pm Find out about map and compass reading.
FREE ACTIVITIES FOR FAMILIES (IMPERIAL SQUARE)
You’re the Editors: Plan a Fantasy Edition of the Radio Times Saturday 12 Oct, 6pm Join the Radio Times editorial team to help put together part of a dream issue of the magazine. Ticket required.
Family Fun Time Sun 6 & 13 Oct, 11am – 2pm Craft, games and storytelling. Meet the Stars Look out for some of your favourite characters at the Festival! Imagine the BIG BOOK Get involved in writing in one of the largest books in the world. Let the Battle Commence! Get interactive with the new Horrible Histories interactive board game. Waterstones Children’s Hideaway Enjoy free events and activities every day throughout the Festival. The Discovery Trail Follow the Discovery Trail and take part in a fiction quiz!
Read any Good Films Lately? Saturday 12 Oct, 7.30pm Join the Radio Times film editor Andrew Collins as he celebrates movies with subtitles. Ticket required. Ordnance Survey Workshop Sunday 13 Oct, 12pm Find out about map and compass reading. Cover Stories Sunday 13 Oct, 6pm Radio Times art director Shem Law takes you through 90 years of Radio Times covers. Ticket required. Is the End of Radio Nigh? Sunday 13 Oct, 7.30pm Radio Times radio editor Jane Anderson hosts a debate on the future of radio. Ticket required.
MORE TO LOOK OUT FOR… Montpellier Gardens The Pavilion is the perfect place to indulge in a bit of retail therapy, meet with friends and get all the latest Festival information and tickets. Also, don’t forget to visit the Radio Times tent for more free activities.
Imperial Square Waterstones are bringing The Book That Made Me booth to the Festival, so make sure you visit and tell us the story behind the books that are important to you. Plus The University of Gloucestershire will be on-site with free workshops and activities.
For details visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature/festival-guide
Thank you We would like to thank everyone who supports Cheltenham Festivals
Supporters of Cheltenham Literature Festival The Times, Waterstones, Arts Council England, Arts and Humanities Research Council, Baillie Gifford, Coexist and the University of Cambridge, HSBC, Sky Arts, Cheltenham Ladies’ College, Dean Close School, The Friends of Cheltenham Festival of Literature, Nelson Thornes, Radio Times, Steppes Travel, The Summerfield Charitable Trust, University of Gloucestershire, Henry Westons and many more…
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