Join us for a fabulous Zao Fan: Breakfast of China cookery demo with tastings in the bookshop. Breakfast in China is an important affair. At dawn, the streets come alive with vendors setting up for the morning breakfast rush. Each will have their specialty that they make day in, day out, honing their recipe over years, and […]
If your knowledge of the defeat of British forces by the Zulu nation comes from watching films, this talk at BRLSI will enlighten you.
Explore the extraordinary gifts of Bernie Scott, one of the UK's well known Mediums.
Most Bathonians recognise St John’s as one of the city’s most well-established charities. Did you know that 2024 marks its 850th birthday?
Join BRLSI to watch the film Phosphates: Too Much of a Good Thing? (31m) made by local filmmakers John Potter and Phil Shepherd.
What is a Jantar Mantar? The extraordinary series of Stone Observatories, Jantar Mantars were created and built by Sawa Jai Singh II
A celebration of the printed book, told through the lives of 18 people who took it in radical new directions. This is an extraordinary story of skill, craft, mess, cunning, triumph, improvisation, and error. Of printers and binders, publishers and artists, paper-makers and library founders. Some we know. We meet jobbing printer (and United States […]
This talk, which is a critique not of science but of scientism, will look critically at the belief that measurement will lead to a Theory of Everything and that the truest portrait of the world is mathematical.
This lecture will explore the nature of these struggles and the resources that Christian spirituality offers to help us.
From data analytics improving Team GB’s Olympic athletes to Boxing match holograms and detecting glucose levels through the skin, our tech is driving the world of sport and life sciences forward.
A brilliant insider’s portrait of Charles III by the bestselling biographer and royal commentator Robert Hardman. Join Toppings for an evening with renowned historian Richard Hardman who is best known for his biographical work of King Charles and the late Queen Elizabeth. This will undoubtedly be a fabulous evening of knowledge and thought, discussing his newest book, Charles III. Faced with […]
NASA's knack for turning space-age tech into everyday wonders is something you've got to see to believe! Take memory foam, for example. Originally designed to keep pilots comfy and safe, it's now the reason we all enjoy those super-snug mattresses and cushy shoes.
Nick Howes' Talk “Oh My God We’re All Gonna Die” takes us through the perceived threats in space, both real and surreal, and hones in on the ones that could truly change the face of our planet forever.
Join The University of Bath at this free event to hear the latest research from Professor Lane Kenworthy, who has examined the experience of the rich democratic nations in the era of high and rising income inequality, from 1979 to 2019.
Journalist, author and political commentator Daniel Finkelstein joins bestselling author and broadcaster Simon Mayo to discuss his moving account of his parent's remarkable experiences during the Second World War.
When Cariad was 15, her dad died. She became the person-who-dad-had-died, a mess of emotions and questions; a grief mess. Years later, she began trying to unravel this tightly wound grief. Through her award-winning podcast Griefcast, comedian Cariad Lloyd has helped countless listeners find their way through their own grief. In conversation with author Kit de Waal, Cariad will […]
Internationally bestselling author, Kathy Lette joins broadcaster Penny Smith to unleash her new novel The Revenge Club – a subversive, irreverent and wickedly witty revenge romp about four women who are all at the top of their game – so imagine their surprise when they start to be personally overlooked and professionally pushed aside by less-qualified men. Only they’re […]
Former journalist turned author, Matt Cain, joins bestselling novelist Freya North, for a chat about love in literature, and a love of literature. Matt’s third novel One Love is a joyous story about 20 years of love, shared adventures and lost dreams, while Freya North’s novel, The Unfinished Business of Eadie Brown is a beautifully written tale about growing up, letting go […]
For more than quarter of a century, solicitor, founder and director of the Centre for Women’s Justice, Harriet Wistrich has fought the corner of people from all walks of life let down by our justice system. She will be sharing stories from a remarkable legal career at the forefront of some historic and ground-breaking legal victories. Frequently […]
Fashion director of The Times, Anna Murphy shares her knowledge from years of writing about fashion and beauty in a practical and inspiring conversation with Somerset-based stylist Natasha Musson (The Secret Stylist). From tricks for putting together a wardrobe that will transform not just the way you look but the way you feel, to tips about forging relationships that work […]
How do we write about our own lives, and the people and places that shape us? Freedom to Write is a creative writing venture run by Yvonne Jewkes and Andy West. They host an annual residential writing retreat in Ross-on-Wye and creative writing workshops in London. This two-hour taster workshop is an opportunity to try your hand at […]
Millions of us suffer from imposter syndrome, letting our insecurities and doubts hold us back from enjoying our successes. Clinical psychologist Dr Jessamy Hibberd explains how to stop feeling like a fraud, banish self-doubt and be our best selves in this practical and reassuring talk. Dr Jessamy Hibberd is a respected chartered clinical psychologist, author and commentator. She […]
Zoologist Jules Howard takes us on a mind-bending journey into the revolutionary story of eggs, evolution and life on earth, inviting us to take a fresh look at the fascinating evolution of the animal egg. A simple shape which has played a dramatic role in how life on earth has come to be. Every egg there has […]
Join author, journalist, critic and BBC Radio 3 broadcaster Kate Molleson for a celebration of her radical book, Sound Within Sound, which tells the impassioned and exhilarating story of the composers who dared to challenge the conventional world of classical music in the 20th century. She talks to music writer, Hugh Morris. Traversing the globe from Ethiopia and the […]
Bestselling psychological thriller writers Claire Douglas and Tim Weaver know a thing or two about building tension and creating unexpected twists and turns – they join Gill McLay to chat about their latest suspenseful books, The Wrong Sister and The Last Goodbye. Claire Douglas worked as a journalist for fifteen years, but dreamed of being a novelist since the age of seven. She finally got […]
Comedian, broadcaster and writer Viv Groskop makes a welcome return to the festival to launch her memoir One Ukrainian Summer, a poignant and often comical account of coming-of-age story of first love in the time after the Cold War and before Putin. A love letter to a unique moment in history. She talks to Joanna Nadin. Autumn 1993. The […]
How do we write about nature now, as we face the climate crisis? Poet and lecturer Dr Carrie Etter addresses how we combine our love of nature with our concerns about the climate crisis in our own poetry. You’ll come away with a new familiarity with the field of ecopoetry as well as the draft of a […]
In Cloistered, Catherine Coldstream tells of the 12 years she spent as a contemplative nun in a strictly enclosed community in the 1990s. Her memoir paints a picture of life in a traditional Carmelite monastery in the Northumberland countryside, with all the beauty and mystery of a world devoted to prayer and work. But all is not […]
Art historian, curator and novelist Dr Alicia Foster, author of Gwen John: Art and Life in London and Paris and curator of the recent successful exhibition of the same name at the Holburne Museum, Bath, offers a lively, meticulously researched portrait of Gwen John as a vital and utterly compelling figure in 20th-century art. It demolishes the myth of Gwen John as […]
Join Cesar Hernandez for a one-hour experience in our sumptuous Withdrawing Room, including an overview of the harpsichord.
In this talk Dr Alex Davis introduces the quantum theory of light and summarises the century of scientific progress underlying modern research.
The Women’s Prize for Fiction is the UK’s most prestigious annual book award celebrating and honouring fiction written by women. Every year, a panel of five women – all passionate readers and at the top of their respective professions – choose the winner of the Women’s Prize for Fiction. One of this year’s judges, author Ayọ̀bámi […]
In the 1930s Japan developed a death cult, whose origins lay in a government-directed propaganda campaign after the overthrow of the Shogunate in 1868