Gail-Nina Anderson

Lit & Phil 200

Standing out even among the catalogue of great and good, worthy and famous speakers who have graced the Lit & Phil is the name of Oscar Wilde, who lectured there on "The House Beautiful" in 1883.

This illustrated talk will contextualise Wilde as public speaker within the larger pattern of his career as poet, novelist, arbiter of taste, playwright, aesthete and promoter of his own image. In his Victorian environment Wilde's conduct as a gay man saw him flirting with danger to the point of destroying his own career, but with the posthumous result of being hailed as an iconic figure and martyr to the cause. His paradoxical relationship with celebrity and visibility remains as fascinating as the style and wit of his writings and opinions and his shifting place in both Victorian and modern literary history.

Details on the Talks and Lectures page.

Midsummer Phantoms

Gail writes: "Yes, it's that time of year again, when the Summer Solstice (or as near as dammit) casts its glamour over the landscape, its light throwing those ever-deeper shadows that remind us the louring dark still lies in wait...

But enough of all that! On Thursday June 19th Sean and I, plus guest reader Jacob Polley, will once again be reading new ghost stories written for the occasion. Booking is essential, via Eventbrite, and full details can be found via this link.

"As Prohibition is closing down, this will be our last gig there, and the future of this twice-yearly, long-running event is now uncertain. We need your support now more than ever."