The joy of the Oxford Indie Book Fair: inclusion, creativity, connection, fun & thought. The Lord High Sheriff gets it and describes it as ‘uplifting.’ https://highsheriffofoxfordshire.co.uk/a-morning-among-oxfords-storytellers Oxib is run by a volunteer committee, and you can see from the faces
...and my life in one picture thanks to the artist Diana Bell. Last week I was interviewed for Oxford Lives by Jeremy Allen and Graeme Fry produced this podcast from the interview. https://oxfordlives.libsyn.com/oxford-lives-episode-69-with-sylvia-vetta For ten years, I wrote the life
ONLY CONNECT There is a glimmer of hope with the ceasefire in Gaza although given, Netanyahu unilaterally ending the last one, the world can’t trust him. Trust is so important and it comes through connecting with mutual respect and showing,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6NvrzUnGE50 I had sad news today. An old colleague at the Oxford Tines, Helen Peacock, has died. Helen was the food writer for the paper for 25 years. I had to cast her away! She was born in Eynsham and
Today, March 19.2025, the composer of the day on BBC Radio 3 was the first celebrated female American composer, Ruth Crawford Seeger, the mother of Mike and Peggy and stepmother of Pete, who sang at Obama's inauguration. I had the
Laurie Lee grew up not far from Carterton where I’ll talk memoir on March 4. The audience will know the PLACE but not the TIME. Following my interviews of Ray Foulk and Roger Bannister for the Oxford Castaway series, both
The Fifties: Don't romanticise them not even on Valentine’s Day! Yesterday, I watched two one act plays by Terrence Rattigan at the Oxford Playhouse. They took me back to the fifties like a time machine! When I interviewed Sir Roger
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0028401 How do ideas spread, consciously and unconsciously? Has Stephen Mangan seen a copy of Oxford Castaways? His new comedy show THE ISLAND envisages Desert Island Disc castaways on the same island having to rub along together. That is
The Water of Life: Bill Nighy, Victor Glynn and I Do you find that life is like water –rivers flowing alongside crossing, meeting and blending? Thursday was like that for me. The film producer Victor Glynn suggested I be
I love the Today programme during the Christmas period, when it has guest editors. Their choice of in depth subject matter is inspirational. First off was author and screenwriter, Frank Cottrell Boyce, on a subject dear to my heart -