19 03, 2024

Chris Patten – last night’s moving farewell Chancellor’s event and why I appreciate his generosity of spirit .

By |March 19th, 2024|Categories: Ai Weiwei, China, Art & History, Events, Oxford, Oxford Castaways|0 Comments

In February, Chris Patten announced that he will retire as Chancellor of Oxford University. https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2024-02-05-lord-patten-barnes-announces-his-retirement-chancellor-university-oxford So the Chancellor’s event last night was an interview with him. https://oxfordliteraryfestival.org/literature-events/2024/march-18/chancellors-lecture-from-china-to-the-middle-east-and-ukraine-a-world-in-turmoil I was moved for many reasons by last night's interview. He was

27 10, 2023

The Fourth Oxford Indie Book Fair: Exciting event in a great venue – November 26

By |October 27th, 2023|Categories: Art, Biography, Events, History, Kennington, Novels and short stories, Oxford, Oxford Castaways, The Oxford Times|0 Comments

Andy Severn of Oxford eBooks organised a book fair in the village where I live. I encouraged author, architect and founder of the Isle of Wight festival, Ray Foulk and publisher James Harrison to have stands. We felt the idea