Festivals of Britain
I’m back! Yes, I know it’s been almost three years since I last blogged, and many apologies for that. I’ve been aware for some time that this entire site needed updating but have somehow never found the time to do it until now. Do check out the other sections of the site – there’s some new content, some significant updates to a number of sections, and a fresh new look overall. Do let me know what you think of it!
One of the main reasons for the timing of this relaunch is that in the last few weeks I’ve attended a couple of terrific festivals which have really reignited my enthusiasm for research and writing. There’s more on my future plans (in terms of books) elsewhere on this site, but it would be remiss of me not to report on the festivals in question – so here goes!
Worcester Cathedral – an inevitable detour during the Stuart History Festival!
A couple of weeks ago I was in the wonderful city of Worcester for the inaugural Stuart History Festival. I always relish opportunities to revisit the ‘land of my grandmother’ (her branch of the family came from a little way upriver) and gave a talk on the Anglo-Dutch wars to a lively and interested audience. It was great to meet up with old friends, notably Andrea Zuvich – ‘the Seventeenth Century Lady‘ – and her husband Gavin, who recently produced the fantastic new audiobook of my Quinton novel, Death’s Bright Angel, and to meet the other co-organisers of the festival, Erica Canela and Mark Turnbull, along with several of the other speakers – notably Mark Shearwood, who shared the session with me and delivered some fascinating new perspectives on the Glorious Revolution. The Battle of Worcester Society hosted us with aplomb, even providing ‘guards’ in Civil War uniform during the event, and the Old Bishop’s Palace proved to be a first-rate and highly appropriate venue. The Festival garnered some great coverage in the local press, and I suspect I’m not the only one who hopes that it’ll become a regular fixture on the calendar in future!
Exeter’s historic quayside – once ‘Liverpool’ and countless other harbour locations in the famous TV series The Onedin Line
The other festival I took part in recently was the Bowlines maritime literary festival in Exeter. I’d been more closely involved in the organisation of this as the Society for Nautical Research, which I currently chair, was one of the co-sponsors of the event along with Exeter Canal and Quay Trust and Lloyds Register Foundation, who generously supported the Festival. Held in the historic surroundings of Exeter Custom House, Bowlines brought together historians and novelists to cover a wide range of themes from safety at sea to the writing of historical fiction. As in Worcester, audiences were enthusiastic and very positive about the experience. I’m not going to go into great detail about proceedings here because there’s going to be extensive coverage in the August issue of the SNR newsletter Topmasts (which is accessible to everyone, not just members of the society). It was a busy weekend for me because we appended the SNR AGM to the Bowlines programme, as well as our annual dinner and a talk from the great naval historian N A M Rodger, who spoke about aspects of The Price of Victory, the third and final volume of his magisterial history of the Royal Navy (a project which SNR supported from its inception).
The Stuart History Festival and Bowlines were very different events, but the enthusiasm emanating from both was infectious, even for a ‘grumpy old man’ like me, and that’s one of the reasons why this post is here and why this website has had a makeover! See you soon with more updates.
