#20 EDITION
SUNDAY - NOVEMBER 27, 2022
See initial line-up below, with more speakers and acts to be announced very soon.
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WORLD NEWS
Shappi Khorsandi and Ramita Navai on IRAN
British-Iranian comedian and author, Shappi Khorsandi interviews Emmy-award winning British-Iranian journalist Ramita Navai to discuss the recent political turmoil in Iran, drawing on her extensive research and first-hand experience.
Navai spent years living and working in Tehran, both as The Times' correspondent and school teacher gaining access to its underworld and close-knit communities. Her critically-acclaimed book, City of Lies: Love, Sex, Death and the Search for Truth in Tehran, chronicles life in Modern Iran through the eyes of eight protagonists.
And the book's prophetic opening line? "Let's get one thing straight. In order to live in Tehran you have to lie".
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SCIENCE
David Robson on the EXPECTATION EFFECT
Mathematician and science writer David Robson takes us through the ground-breaking research behind his latest book The Expectation Effect: How Your Mindset Can Change the World - revealing the power of expectation to shape our experiences.
We are hurtling towards the year's end, when attention turns to self-improvement, reflection and taking stock. Robson's easy-to-use exercises will help anyone hoping to live better in 2023.
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GARDENING
Michael Perry on STRANGE PLANTS
Michael Perry (a.k.a Mr Plant Geek) is a horticulturist with an extensive background as a plant product developer of sorts, bringing unusual and strange seedlings to the UK market - like the space-saving 'Egg and Chips' plant that can grow both aubergines and potatoes, as well as the Hanging Basket Blackberries and Ground Cover Lilies.
Perry has since turned his attention to writing and his latest book Horticurious invites us to celebrate some of mother nature's strangest creations. From the dastardly plants that gorge on insects to his so-called superhero plants that can move, change colour and even disguise themselves. You'll never look at a garden in the same way again ...
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LIFESTYLE
Claudia Hammond on KINDNESS
Claudia Hammond is a science writer, University Lecturer and 'voice of psychology' for BBC Radio 4. She has authored five books, including 2019's best-selling The Art of Rest.
Her latest book, the Keys to Kindness, is the result of the largest public science project on the subject of kindness, conducted in collaboration with the University of Sussex and the BBC. It's an eye-opening exploration of kindness and how adopting more of it can improve mental health and well-being.
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TRAVEL
Melanie White on LUXURY YACHTING
Aged just twenty-two, White found herself plunged into the world of luxury yachting, having only been onboard a boat a handful of times in her life. She had accepted a job as Chef, responsible for devising, developing and delivering fine dining menus for some of the wealthiest people on the planet.
But as she soon realised, the job also meant learning quickly how to run, sail and race a multi-million-pound yacht - while living in cramped living conditions, hundreds of miles away from dry land. Her debut memoir, Behind Ocean Lines, chronicles the five years she spent living and working aboard luxury yachts and the toil it took on her mental health.
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HEALTH
William Sieghart's POETRY PHARMACY
William Sieghart CBE is the man behind one of the bestselling (and most giftable) poetry anthologies of recent decades, once described by Stephen Fry as 'a matchless compound of hug, tonic and kiss'.
Now, after huge demand from readers and 'patients' alike, he is back. His latest book The Poetry Pharmacy Returns draws on insights from his real-life pharmacy alongside readers favourite poems - all accompanied by his trademark meditations on the spiritual ailments he seeks to cure.
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THE WALK
AUTUMNAL NATURE WALK TO PRIMROSE HILL
Getting outside for a walk or a jog is a keystone ingredient to the perfect Sunday - and is the least likely to happen - but without it the couch isn’t quite as comfy.
The days are short, the sun is low in the sky. Golden leaves fall, leaving the bones of live exposed. This time of year brings distinctive revelations and being outside opens up to such vitalities, which is partly why walks are good for us at any time of year. Join Mark Vernon, psychotherapist and philosopher, to experience the benefits of November's light and shade, as we consider the inward turning of the year and the wonder of the wilderness seasons.
