On April 20th, Laurie Maguire, Professor of English Literature at Magdalen College, Oxford, took us on an epic voyage into the literary representations of a woman who has exerted an enormous influence on Western cultural awareness for more than 3,000 years.

Laurie's talk followed the most beautiful woman in the world from the time of the Greek epic poet, Homer, to her depiction in Hollywood. She delved into the diverse variety of her image, spanning drama, novels, poems, film, comedy, and opera - including works by Euripides, Chaucer, Shakespeare and Christopher Marlowe. Since historians can find no trace of the real Helen of Troy on an ancient stone, coin or in a factual document, the quest for her is often directed towards dreams and fantasies. Laurie has found signs of Helen everywhere - beyond the poems and plays in which she is a character, and she emerges as the embodiment of absolute beauty. In her fascinating examination, Laurie considered what was meant by Helen’s beauty, what her history showed - and what implications her story has had for women at different times.

Her talk ranged from Homer's Iliad to Derek Walcott’s epic poem Omeros, in which Helen is a servant in the house of Major and Mrs Plunkett, colonials in the Caribbean. This version of Helen wears a yellow dress which she has either been given by her mistress or stolen from her - a dress whose colour recalls the golden robes worn by the divine Helen of Troy, woven for her by her mother, Leda. Laurie described various manifestations of Helen on stage and film, including the first naked performance by Maggie Wright in an RSC production of Marlowe’s Dr Faustus (seen chastely from the back), in which he speaks the much-quoted lines: "Is this the face that launched a thousand ships?". Ever since Mephistopheles deluded Faust into believing that Helen of Troy stood before him - and would make him immortal with a kiss - there has been something elusive about her.

Laurie suggested that It has often been women - and not men - who have most carefully examined the features of such beautiful women (for example, Elizabeth Taylor’s Cleopatra, or Hollywood’s choices for the part of Helen). Rossana Podestà, who appeared in the 1956 Cinemascope spectacular, had platinum curls, and played Helen as an undemonstrative ice-maiden and the film is packed with carnage. The words that appeared before the titles proclaimed that "her name was burned into the pages of history" and Helen’s name is flashed up and literally bursts into flames, continuing to burn as the ships, towers and walls of Troy came into view behind her, emphasising her iconic place in history.

It was a rarefied evening in Wootton and over 100 people listened intently to Laurie's talk, which included a wide range of illustrations, including the intriguing blank page from Laurence Sterne's Tristram Shandy. Helen of Troy enters Sterne's work by association - Widow Wadman is a sexually predatory female, who is associated with Helen from early in the novel. When he comes to describe the widow's elusive beauty, Sterne leaves a blank page and asks the reader to "paint her in your own hand". References to Helen of Troy in Shakespeare's Troilus and Cressida were also highlighted. To mention The Bard was particularly appropriate because Laurie's talk coincided with the publication of an article in the latest edition of the Times Literary Supplement, in which she and a colleague suggested a collaboration between Shakespare and Thomas Middleton in writing All's Well That Ends Well - which had led to the world's press bombarding her with calls.

"Laurie Maguire's examination of the many aspects of Helen of Troy was a sheer joy. There are many complex strands to her story but she told it in clear and precise terms, taking care not to go over the heads of the non-specialists present. It was one of those evenings where you came away far more informed than before - and yet it never felt like doing homework, as such lectures often can be. You haven't repeated a theme to a talk in nearly four years - and this was one of the most fascinating" - Kevin Richards, Witney.

ESTHER RANTZEN
May 18th 2012
Esther is well-known for presenting the BBC television series, That’s Life, for over 20 years – one of the most popular shows in the history of British television. She is also celebrated for setting up the child protection charity, ChildLine, and she is also a keen advocate of the Burma Campaign UK.

Esther is very familiar with Oxfordshire, having read English at Somerville College, Oxford, where she performed with the Oxford University Dramatic Society. She joined the BBC as a trainee studio manager and worked on a number of current affairs programmes, before moving to the ground-breaking Man Alive in the mid-1960s.

That’s Life was first broadcast in 1972, with Esther as the main presenter. The show ran until 1994, often reaching audiences of more than 18 million. During that time, it expanded the traditional role of the consumer programme - from simply exposing faulty washing machines - to investigating life and death issues, such as a campaign for more organ donors.

Alongside the serious reports, though, the show kept its more lighthearted features such as Prince, the talking dog, which said "sausages", a table-tennis playing cat and a counting horse. Among the talented viewers discovered was a man who tap-danced on his false teeth.

The programme launched ChildLine in 1986, with the aim of finding better ways to detect children at risk of abuse. A helpline was swamped with calls and this gave Esther the idea of a specific helpline for children in distress – the first line of its kind in the world.

On its first night in October 1986, over 50,000 attempted calls were made. ChildLine now has fourteen bases around the UK, including two in Northern Ireland, three in Scotland, and two in Wales. In 2006, ChildLine merged with the NSPCC, which has enabled it to expand to try to meet demand and the helpline has now been copied in 150 countries around the world.

If you are interested in attending this talk or would like to reserve a ticket please Contact us

CRAIG OGDEN
June 8th 2012
Craig Ogden is one of the world's leading classical guitarists and has performed on both radio and television throughout the UK, Europe, the USA, South East Asia, South Africa and Australia.

His recordings have received wide acclaim and BBC Music Magazine described Craig as "a worthy successor to Julian Bream", with his CD of 20th Century Classics by British composers nominated for a Grammy Award. We are thrilled that he has found time to appear in Wootton.







Craig made his Royal Albert Hall debut with the Philharmonia Orchestra performing Rodrigo’s Concierto de Aranjuez. He has performed concertos with many major orchestras, including the London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony, Royal Philharmonic, London Philharmonic, Philharmonia (with Vladimir Ashkenazy) and the Halle.

Craig's recording of all three solo Rodrigo guitar concertos with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra was greeted with wide acclaim. Rodrigo’s daughter wrote: “This recording has confirmed your position among the greatest guitarists

His release, ‘A Quiet Thing’, with counter-tenor, David Daniels, also received universal acclaim, as did their US recital tour of the Tanglewood, Ravinia and Mostly Mozart Festivals.

Craig’s CD, Music from the Novels of Louis de Bernières reached Number 10 in the classical charts and the Daily Telegraph made it CD of the week and their reviewer wrote: “This disc is pure joy”. Selling over 10,000 discs in three months, it is fastest-ever CD from Chandos Records.

Born in Australia, Craig started playing the guitar from the age of seven and has studied at the University of Western Australia and then at the Royal Northern College of Music, in Manchester, where he is now principal lecturer in guitar.

Craig has performed at most of the main UK festivals and is the most sought-after guitarist for chamber music in the country. He is married to the opera singer, Clare Bradshaw, with whom he regularly appears in concert around the world.

They live in Chadlington, near Chipping Norton, with their two children and Craig is a director of the highly popular Dean & Chadlington Summer Music Festival. Chadlington Festival - which will be held between 20-24 June.

If you are interested in attending this talk or would like to reserve a ticket please Contact us

SARAH SIMBLET
July 6th 2012
Sarah lives in Wootton and has an international reputation as an artist who writes and draws. She is also a broadcaster and an anatomist, with broad research interests in the relationship between science and art.

Sarah has published three well-known books with the publisher, Dorling Kindersley; Anatomy for the Artist, The Drawing Book and Botany for the Artist and is currently working on her fourth title with co-author Dr Gabriel Hemery. It is called The New Sylva, a Discourse of Forest and Orchard Trees for the 21st Century, and will be published by Bloomsbury in 2014 and can be seen in progress at www.NewSylva.com

Sarah exhibits her drawings through her books. She also contributes to contemporary art shows and live events by making framed works, discreetly drawn installations, and documentary films. She has drawings in national and private collections such as the Royal Academy of Art in London, and the Ashmolean Museum, in Oxford.

In broadcasting, Sarah has contributed to programmes such as Leonardo’s Dream Machines for Channel 4, Matters of the Heart on Radio 4, and the 40th edition celebrations of Gray's Anatomy on Radio 3. In 2005 she presented Life Class, a one hour documentary that followed her as she taught six members of the public how to draw in only six days, and proved her passionate belief that everyone can learn how to draw if they want to - and it is never too late to start. In the same year, Sarah originated The Secret of Drawing, a four part landmark series for BBC TWO, which was based on her publication, The Drawing Book. This series celebrated the importance and vitality of drawing as a universal language with which - she says - we can all see, think, communicate and express ourselves.

This year she has worked on Fingerprints of Da’Vinci for Documentary Japan and Mystery of a Masterpiece, a National Geographic Special for PBS and ARTE Europe. In both of these programmes she investigates 15th century drawing materials, reconstructs the newly attributed Leonardo drawing La Principessa and reveals how the original drawing was made. Sarah has co-selected and contributed to national exhibitions about the anatomised body including The Quick and The Dead, Future Face’ and Gunther von Hagen’s Body Worlds She is Tutor in Anatomy at the Ruskin School of Drawing and Fine Art at Oxford University, and is based there and in her studio in Wootton.

If you are interested in attending this talk or would like to reserve a ticket please Contact us

ROBIN LAURANCE
Friday 7th September 2012


Robin is an internationally acclaimed photojournalist and has worked for most major newspapers, including The Sunday Times, The Times, The Guardian, The Washington Post and The New York Times.

Robin joined The Guardian newspaper in London in 1969 as the youngest staff photographer in Fleet Street, later leaving to pursue a freelance career in both writing and photography.

Since then he has travelled widely and, as well as working for newspapers, he has also worked for prestigious magazines such as Business Week and Forbes magazine. His corporate clients have included Glaxo, BP, the Ministry of Defence, ICI, the Metropolitan Police and IBM.

The National Portrait Gallery has a number of his photographic portraits in its collection and his website www.robinlaurance.co.uk, offers an idea of his exceptional talents.

Robin has published three books - The Millennium Generation, which examines the world’s young people to mark the beginning of the 21st century, and Portrait of Islam, which features a journey through the Muslim world.

Just What I Always Wanted looks at the history of present-giving and highlights the 365 most unusual birthday presents to have changed hands in the past 300 years. The Times Educational Supplement has said of Robin: “He is that rare breed - a genuine photojournalist with a talent for telling stories in photographs and words.”

Two exhibitions of Robin’s photographs have been held at the National Theatre in London and one at the Arts Centre in Birmingham. His work has also been included in exhibitions at the Photographers’ Gallery and he has lectured on photojournalism at the London College of Communication and the London School of Photojournalism.

Robin is currently working on a book about Cuba and Castro’s legacy, and is also researching the relationship between photography, politics and power. He lives with his wife Aileen in Oxford.

If you are interested in attending this talk or would like to reserve a ticket please Contact us

DAVID NOBBS
Oct 5th 2012
David is one of the country's most celebrated comedy writers, having created the iconic BBC television sitcom, The Fall and Rise of Reggie Perrin, starring Leonard Rossiter. It was adapted from his own novels featuring the same character and the series went on to become one of the most popular television programmes of all time.

The story concerns a middle-aged, middle-manager, Reggie Perrin, who is driven to bizarre behaviour by the seemingly pointlessness of his job at Sunshine Desserts. The first novel in the series, The Death of Reginald Perrin, was published in 1975, with later editions retitled to match the title of the television series.

Subsequent novels reversed the process, being adapted from the television series, and published as The Return of Reginald Perrin and The Better World of Reginald Perrin. The original three television series were broadcast between 1976 and 1979; whilst a fourth, The Legacy of Reginald Perrin, also written by David but after Rossiter's death, followed in 1996.

After studying at Cambridge, David wrote for many of Britain's leading comedy performers, including Kenneth Williams, Frankie Howerd, Les Dawson and The Two Ronnies. He has also written extensively for both television and radio, including the 1989 comedy-drama series, A Bit of Do.

A BBC radio adaptation of the novel, What a Carve Up, was broadcast in 2005, as well as The Maltby Collection, a comedy set in a museum and featuring his long-time collaborateur, Geoffrey Palmer

In all, David has written eighteen novels, including the highly-acclaimed Henry Pratt series, the fourth of which, Pratt a Manger, came out in 2006. Last year, he published the novel, It Had to be You, and his latest book will hit the shops in the autumn - about the same time David is due to speak in Wootton.

He has called his talk, A Lifetime in Comedy and David adds: "I didn’t get where I am today without telling people how I got where I am today".

If you are interested in attending this talk or would like to reserve a ticket please Contact us

DOMINIC SANDBROOK
Friday 2nd November 2012


Dominic is the best-selling author of books on modern history and, this spring, presented the highly popular BBC Two series on the 1970s, which attracted large audiences. All his books have had reviewers reaching for superlatives, such as "sensational". "marvellous" and "magisterial".

So far, Dominic has written four volumes in his history of modern Britain. The first, called Never Had It So Good, was published in 2005 and was followed the following year by White Heat. On the back of this, the book chain, Waterstones, picked Dominic as one of their 25 Authors of the Future. Since then, he has written a third volume on Britain in the early 1970s, entitled State of Emergency, as well as a book on the United States during the Nixon, Ford and Carter years, called Mad as Hell. The fourth volume of his British series, Seasons in the Sun, was published in May to universal acclaim and five-star reviews.

Dominic's broadcasting work has included appearances in documentaries on BBC Four and Channel Four, as well as a panellist on Newsnight Review, Radio 3?s Night Waves and Radio 4’s Saturday Review. He was the historical consultant to the Radio 4 series, 1968: Day by Day and BBC Two's The British Family and The British At Work. On Radio 4, he has also presented an edition of the Archive Hour about our obsession with anniversaries; a series called Slapdash Britain on British governance since 1945; and an edition of Archive on 4 about the history of Prime Minister’s Questions. He has also written and recorded a major 15-part series on the history of the Post Ofice.

This year, he was consultant to the six-part BBC Two drama series, White Heat, whilst the acclaimed four-part televison history of the 1970s this spring was adapted from his books State of Emergency and Seasons in the Sun. Dominic read history at Balliol College, Oxford, before researching his doctorate at Jesus College, Cambridge. The subject of his thesis was the political career of Senator Eugene McCarthy, the Democratic politician who challenged President Johnson in 1968 over the issue of the Vietnam War. This evolved into his first book, which was published in 2004. Reviews of Seasons in the Sun

“Brilliant … Each preposterous industrial strike, each episode of Dr Who, Weekend World and News at Ten is replayed. Jim Callaghan, Norman Scott and Rinka, Laura Ashley and Tony Benn, Malcolm Bradbury, Keith Joseph, and Sid Vicious, Marcia Falkender and Vivienne Westwood weave old England’s winding sheet before our horrified eyes. Mary Whitehouse and Margaret Thatcher let out howls, deploring the unravelling — Thatcher bemoaning the ‘swamping’ of English towns by immigrants, Whitehouse pursuing the gay blasphemers. We see them for what they were — like the Norns in Wagner, themselves part of the destructive tale.” A N Wilson, Spectator

“Masterful … He has a remarkable ability to turn a sow’s ear into a silk purse. His subject is depressing, but the book itself is a joy … [it] benefits from an exceptional cast of characters … As a storyteller, Sandbrook is, without doubt, superb … [he] is an engaging historian capable of impressive insight … Seasons in the Sun is a familiar story, yet seldom has it been told with such verve.” Gerard DeGroot, Sunday Telegraph

“Charming, insightful and thoroughly compelling … For those of us who grew up in the Seventies, it’s like sitting down with a friend to talk about old times … What makes this book such a pleasure is the sheer, unashamed nostalgia it evokes. While Sandbrook punctures some of our favourite myths about the Seventies, he also strokes us with constant references to all the things we think back to most fondly – the music, the gossip, the long hot summer of 1976, the Morecambe and Wise Christmas specials.” Keith Lowe, Daily Telegraph

If you are interested in attending this talk or would like to reserve a ticket please Contact us