Main information
- Date:
- Sunday 7 October 2018
- Time:
- 11:00 pm
- Location:
- Blairgowrie Community Campus
- Author:
- Alan Taylor
- Author:
- Rosemary Goring
- Author:
- Stewart Conn
- Author:
- Gerda Stevenson
- Author:
- Olga Wojtas
- With:
- Gail Wylie
BOOKMARK was delighted to offer special events to celebrate the centenary of Muriel Spark one of Scotland’s best-loved and most original writers. Famous for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, Spark wrote another 21 novels, collections of poetry, biographies and essays. A record number of devotees joined us for a day in the company of those who knew her best.
Alan Taylor, well-known journalist and critic, became her good friend. His memoir Appointment in Arezzo is an exceptional account of this friendship, full of wit, insights and charming story-telling. He is also a terrific raconteur and his tales of his travels with Muriel captivated us all.
He was joined in conversation with Olga Wojtas, Gail Wylie BOOKMARK Chair and Rosemary Goring BOOKMARK Patron and Literary Editor of The Herald, to discuss the joys – and difficulties – of abridging Spark’s work for radio.
After lunch, the poet Stewart Conn gave a talk on Spark’s poetry, with readings by Gerda Stevenson. Spark always described herself as a poet (the word Poet in Italian is inscribed on her tombstone in Tuscany) and this talk highlights the importance of poetry to her fiction. Those who heard Stewart and Gerda earlier this year at our BOOKMARK Poetry event, know that this will be both entertaining and illuminating.
BOOKMARK would like to thank the Muriel Spark Society for their sponsorship of this event.
