Cheltenham Festivals

During Cheltenham Science Festival at Home, we explored six of the 17 sustainable development goals set by the United Nations with the support of UK Research and Innovation.  In this episode, we take a look at SDG 13: Climate Action with host Greg Foot, young activist Daze Aghaji and UKRI GCRF Researcher Mark Stutton.

During Cheltenham Science Festival at Home, we explored six of the 17 sustainable development goals set by the United Nations with the support of UK Research and Innovation.  In this episode, we take a look at SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing with host Greg Foot, Giles Yeo and Helen Fletcher.

During Cheltenham Science Festival at Home, we explored six of the 17 sustainable development goals set by the United Nations with the support of UK Research and Innovation.  In this episode, we take a look at SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production with host Greg Foot, Rae Stanton-Smithson from LUSH and UKRI GCRF Challenge Leader Jaideep Gupte.  

During Cheltenham Science Festival at Home, we explored six of the 17 sustainable development goals set by the United Nations with the support of UK Research and Innovation.  In this episode, we take a look at SDG 15: Life On Land with host Greg Foot, conservationist and influencer Bella Lack and UKRI GCRF Researcher Federica Di Palma.

During Cheltenham Science Festival at Home, we explored six of the 17 sustainable development goals set by the United Nations with the support of UK Research and Innovation.  In this episode, we take a look at SDG 14: Life Below Water with host, Greg Foot, Helen Czerski and UKRI GCRF Researcher Elisa Morgera.

During Cheltenham Science Festival at Home, we explored six of the 17 sustainable development goals set by the United Nations with the support of UK Research and Innovation.  In this first episode, we take a look at SDG 2: Zero Hunger with host, Greg Foot, UKRI CRF Researcher Claire Heffernan and Clinical Psychologist Lorraine Sherr.

Through Slay In Your Lane, Yomi Adegoke and Elizabeth Uviebinené not only created an inspirational guide to life but also started a national conversation.  How does it feel to be a black woman in a predominantly white space? How can we improve access and inclusivity? In 2019 they joined us as Guest Curators of the Literature Festival, and alongside them, we created a series of three events that celebrate powerful role models and capture their belief that, with the right tools, we can find success in every sphere of our lives. Today we look back at one event from that series where Yomi and Elizabeth were joined by Heather Melville, Director at PwC, and Head of Editorial at gal-dem, Charlie Brinkhurst-Cuff. They celebrate the powerful women reshaping their industries and discuss the challenges black women face throughout their life.

In this episode, Camilla King is joined by Lucy Schaufer and Zoe Martlew to discuss creativity in lockdown, what comes next, and Zoe’s song cycle ‘Musae’, premiered at the 2019 Music Festival.

The second episode from our Composium day features a moving short talk from James Murphy, Chief Executive of the Royal Philharmonic Society, and our second panel session with speakers Hannah Kendall composer, Huw Watkins pianist and composer, Emma-Ruth Richards composer and Harriet Wybor, composer and Classical Relationship Manager from PRS for Music. Composium kindly supported by Penny McCracken & John Mumford, The John S Cohen Foundation and The Michael Tippett Musical Foundation. In partnership with PRS for Music and Wild Plum Arts.

This podcast shares highlights from our inaugural 2019 Composium. Listen to Thea Musgrave‘s inspiring keynote speech, and our first panel discussion hosted by broadcaster Katy Hamilton, with speakers Lucy Schaufer mezzo-soprano, Zoe Martlew, cellist and composer, James Murphy, Chief Executive of the Royal Philharmonic Society and Vanessa Reed, Chief Executive of the PRS Foundation. Composium was kindly supported by Penny McCracken & John Mumford, The John S Cohen Foundation and The Michael Tippett Musical Foundation. In partnership with PRS for Music and Wild Plum Arts.

From 2014, a special remembrance programme for John Tavener, performed in Gloucester Cathedral. ‘Scatter roses over my tears’ was given its premiere performance by the Cavaleri Quartet, and ‘Towards Silence’ was performed by the Cavaleri Quartet, joined by the Celan Quartet, the Gildas Quartet and Quatuor Hermes, with support from Arts Council England.

This episode features an interview with composer Judith Weir, and the 2019 world premiere performance of ‘The Prelude’, which was premiered by the Nash Ensemble at the Pittville Pump Room. This work was commissioned by the Nash Ensemble with funds provided by a friend of the Nash, Dr Shirley Ellis, and with support from Cheltenham Music Festival Society in memory of Graham Lockwood.

Three world premieres: Daniel Kidane ‘Jungle’ performed by Piano 4 Hands in 2017, ‘Gursky Landscapes’ by Gavin Higgins performed by David Cohen and the Carducci Quartet in 2018, and ‘Catching Fire’ by Jonathan Dove performed by Melvyn Tan in 2016. These works were made possible thanks to the Steel Charitable Trust, the Garrick Charitable Trust, the Britten-Pears Foundation and Cheltenham Music Festival Society.

Science Festival Chair Vivienne Parry is joined by four UCL professors to explore how we can tackle and track the virus. Professor of Biochemical Engineering Suzanne Farid,  Richard Angell, Principal Research Associate, Francois Balloux, Chair in Computational Biology Systems and Judith Breuer, Professor of Virology.

What can be learned from past pandemics to help us prepare for the future? Science Festival Chair Vivienne Parry is joined by John Sabapathy, Senior Lecturer in Medieval History, Nicola Miller, Professor of Latin-American History, Graham Hart, Professor of Sexual Health and HIV Research and Professor of Infectious Disease, Anne Johnson.

A UCL team made up of Professor of Climatology Mark Maslin, Associate Professor of Science & Technology Studies Jack Stilgoe and Professor of Virology, Deenan Pillay talk to Science Festival Chair, Vivienne Parry about our future post-coronavirus.

How can we stay sane on a planet shrouded in chaos? How do we stay human in a technological world? How do we feel happy when we are encouraged to be anxious? Matt Haig has been a pivotal figure in the conversation about mental health since Reasons To Stay Alive, a book which tells the story of how he overcame the illness that almost destroyed him. The follow-up, Notes On A Nervous Planet has been described as, ‘an honest and human guide to coping with the modern world’ and has become an essential for people all over the world. Drawing on his own experiences, he links what he felt with the world around him and shares his reflections on how we can feel happy and human in the twenty-first century. He talks to broadcaster Claudia Hammond. 

Back in the day when the country was locked in frenzied discussions over backstops, borders and all things Brexit We asked Sebastian Faulks - novelists Philip Hensher and Sarah Moss, and Sunday Times dating columnist Dolly Alderton to go head-to-head in a literary tussle over the real nature of two of the canon’s most notable romantic heroes.  

On the outskirts of war-torn Damascus, a man pushes his piano into the street and begins to play; an act of defiance that will become a beacon of hope and resistance for the people of Syria. Accompanied by a spellbinding live performance, Aeham Ahmad shares his extraordinary story of the healing power of music in the face of despair which serves as a timely reminder of the importance of not turning your back on creativity and culture in times of crisis. He talks – and sings – to international correspondent Lyse Doucet. 

We are all still getting used to the surreal way of life that comes with a lockdown. But what about people who already choose to live entirely off-grid? No running water, no phone, no electricity or any of the things it powers – just a wooden cabin on a smallholding by the edge of the forest. In today’s podcast, intrepid traveller Mark Boyle and adventurer Ben Fogle explore the hard-won joys of life without modern technology and ask what it means to be human at a time when the boundaries between man and machine are blurred. 

They are an almost-impossible test of the human body and spirit, yet ultramarathons are more popular than ever. BBC Radio 2 sports presenter Vassos Alexander, who wrote Running Up That Hill and completed the legendary Dragon’s Back mountain race. Ben Smith, who ran 401 marathons in 401 days and wrote a book... named 401 and BBC News presenter Sophie Raworth, who completed the Marathon des Sables, all attest to the transformative power of endurance running.   We’re living in a transformative time of isolation and social distancing, but one where we’re reminded of the importance of staying fit and healthy every day. We’ve all seen the home workout routine’s on social media, some of us will have joined the likes of Joe Wicks in their morning exercises. But what is it that drives us to exercise when the chips are down?

This week, hundreds of thousands of neatly dressed, optimistic racegoers will descend on Cheltenham for the highlight of the National Hunt Calendar. For a few minutes on Friday, as Jockey and Horse tackle the 22 fences of The Gold Cup, all eyes will be on the course. But what happens in the months and even years in the lead up? The prospect of saddling a winner fuels the fire of every National Hunt trainer. Five-time champion trainer Nicky Henderson and author of The Jumping Game Henrietta Knight, trainer of Best Mate - who won three consecutive Gold Cups – reveal to Alice Plunkett what it takes to train a jumps winner.  

BBC Radio 4’s Today programme has been broadcasting world-changing stories for sixty years. From war, rebellion and political transformation, to significant changes in culture, society and the scientific world, it is the sound of history being made, live on air. In conversation with Hannah MacInnes, the current and former Today presenters Nick Robinson and Ed Stourton chart the extraordinary history of the programme and how it tries to make sense of the world. They also discuss how all too often, not least today with controversies over equal pay and political boycotts, they don’t just report the story, they become the story.

In this episode of FestCast, we speak to the Cheltenham Jazz Festival team David Gaydon (Head of Programming), Tony Dudley-Evans (Programme Advisor) and Becky Woodcock (Producer of ...around town and Jerwood Jazz Encounters) to talk: - 2020 line-up - Henry Westons Big Top headliners - The Parabola Arts Centre programme - ...around town - Jerwood Jazz Encounters and more! Enjoy!  Tickets for the 2020 Cheltenham Jazz Festival go on sale to Members on Weds 26 Feb at 10am. General booking opens Weds 4 March. More info at cheltenhamfestivals.com/jazz2020  Produced by Barleyfield Records  Music by Nick Brown, follow Nick on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/njbrownmusic 

Are you good at reading maps… or reading emotions? Would you choose Barbie… or Action Man? On a daily basis we face deeply ingrained beliefs that your sex determines your skills and preferences. What does this constant gendering mean for our behaviour? And how does it impact our decision making? Neuroscientist Gina Rippon - who wrote The Gendered Brain - unpacks the stereotypes that we’re bombarded with from birth, shattering the myths and showing us a future beyond binary.  

When things go wrong, we don't often find it in us to laugh. Christina Patterson, author of The Art Of Not Falling Apart, joins Aaron Gillies (a.k.a Twitter's @technicallyron), comedian and author of How To Survive The End Of The World When It’s In Your Own Head talk about how to embrace life as an adventure, as well as giving some practical tips for surviving and thriving when life seems to be falling apart. To get the latest Cheltenham Festivals updates, subscribe to our emails: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l 

In 1998, J.K. Rowling appeared at Cheltenham with her book about a certain boy wizard in a modest 160 seat venue. 14 years later, and this time filling 2,300 seats, we welcomed her back to discuss her first novel for adults, The Casual Vacancy, moving on from Harry Potter, her favourite characters and much more. Please enjoy this podcast from the 2012 festival with kind permission from Mark Hutchinson Management. Tickets for the 2019 programme are on sale: cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature To get the latest #cheltlitfest updates, sign up to our eNews: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l 

The anti-Brexit campaigner Gina Miller (Rise) has endured racist and sexist abuse as well as physical threats. Yet she continues to live according to her conviction that we must stand tall and lead the way if we truly believe in something. Editor-in-chief at Elle UK Farrah Storr (The Discomfort Zone) has proved that nothing in life is an insurmountable challenge and offers clear and inspiring advice about overcoming fear and realising our potential. A special thanks to Little, Brown and Canongate for this podcast. Tickets for the 2019 programme are on sale: cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature To get the latest #cheltlitfest updates, sign up to our eNews: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l 

Arundhati Roy shot to fame when her stunning debut novel The God of Small Things won the Man Booker Prize in 1997, and she has become equally famous for her campaigns in India on behalf of the underprivileged and dispossessed. In this 2002 appearance at the Festival, Arundhati Roy discussed her book The Algebra of Infinite Justice and her life and writing. Tickets for the 2019 programme are on sale: cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature To get the latest #cheltlitfest updates, sign up to our eNews: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l 

Irish poet and Nobel laureate Seamus Heaney is widely recognised as one of the major poets of the 20th-century and was described by Richard Lowell as 'the most important Irish poet since Yeats'. In this special recording at the 1988 Cheltenham Literature Festival, Seamus Heaney discussed the influence T.S. Eliot had on his writing in his Cheltenham Lecture 'Learning From Eliot'. Chaired by Alan Hancox. A special thanks to Faber & Faber for this podcast, the great publishing house is celebrating their 90th anniversary this year, visit faber.co.uk for more information. Tickets for the 2019 programme are on sale: cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature To get the latest #cheltlitfest updates, sign up to our eNews: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l 

To celebrate 70 years of bringing the world's greatest writers and brightest minds to Cheltenham, we've scoured our incredible archive in search of some seminal moments. We're bringing audio from past events to life to showcase the heritage and history of the Literature Festival. Funny, fearless and fiercely intelligent, Iris Murdoch was one of the greatest writers of the 20th-century with an incredible body of work including Under The Net, The Bell and the Booker Prize-winning novel The Sea, the Sea. In this very special recording at the 1994 Cheltenham Literature Festival, Iris appeared in conversation with John Bayley and Peter Conradi for an event examining 40 years of her life as a novelist.  Tickets for the 2019 programme are now available to Members and are released on general sale on 4 September: cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature To get the latest #cheltlitfest updates, sign up to our eNews: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l  Image credit - Peter Conradi's Family Business: A Memoir

To celebrate 70 years of bringing the world's greatest writers and brightest minds to Cheltenham, we've scoured our incredible archive in search of some seminal moments. We're bringing audio from past events to life to showcase the heritage and history of the Literature Festival. In this intensely personal and revealing interview, Hillary Rodham Clinton discusses her memoir, What Happened. She gives a no-holds barred account of the experience of becoming the first woman nominated for president by a major party in an election marked by rage, sexism, exhilarating highs and infuriating lows, stranger-than-fiction twists, Russian interference, and an opponent who broke all the rules. The election of 2016 was unprecedented and historic. This is a candid account of that campaign and its aftermath from the extraordinary woman in the eye of the storm. Tickets go on sale for the 2019 programme to Members on 28 August and are released on general sale on 4 September: cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature To get the latest #cheltlitfest updates, sign up to our eNews: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l   

To celebrate 70 years of bringing the world's greatest writers and brightest minds to Cheltenham, we've scoured our incredible archive in search of some seminal moments. We're bringing audio from past events to life to showcase the heritage and history of the Festival. We're thrilled to reveal a podcast from the 1993 archive featuring American poet, philosopher, writer and considered to be one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation, Allen Ginsberg. This podcast features two distinct halves: the first half, Allan speaks with John Calder about the Beat Generation and the second half concludes with Allan reading poetry with musical accompaniment. The work of Allen Ginsberg © Allen Ginsberg, LLC. All rights reserved. Allen Ginsberg’s Selected Poems is published by Penguin Modern Classics. Tickets go on sale to Members on 28 August and are released on general sale on 4 September: cheltenhamfestivals.com/literature   To get the latest #cheltlitfest updates, sign up to our eNews: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l  Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram

Cheltenham Music Festival Artistic Director Alison Balsom sat down with the brilliant Nicola Benedetti, Jess Gillam and Lucy Crowe to preview this year's festival.  Tickets are on sale for the 2019 Cheltenham Music Festival, browse this year's programme: http://bit.ly/2ZvKnng  Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram - - - Music by Nick Brown, follow Nick on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/njbrownmusic 

Every single one of us carries the history of our species in our genes – a tale of births and deaths, war and famine. Anatomist Alice Roberts and geneticist Adam Rutherford discuss how these hidden tales and the accompanying chapters in the genomes of the dogs, horses, crops and other species which have shaped us, are rewriting and uncovering our history.  Tickets are now on sale for the 2019 Cheltenham Science Festival in association with EDF Energy, get yours here: http://bit.ly/2Zh3fqP  Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram - - - Music by Nick Brown, follow Nick on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/njbrownmusic 

The UK has seen a sharp rise in both far-right and Islamist violence, from hate-crime to devastating attacks that have claimed innocent lives. How much do we know about the psychology of extremism, and what are the triggers that put people at risk? Barrister Hashi Mohamed joins far-right extremism specialist Vidhya Ramalingam and terrorism expert Andrew Silke, as they examine the common characteristics of extremist behaviour and consider how we might better respond to and prevent radicalisation.  Tickets are now on sale to Members for the 2019 Cheltenham Science Festival in association with EDF Energy, get yours here: http://bit.ly/2Zh3fqP  Tickets go on sale to the general public on 24 April.  Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram - - - Music by Nick Brown, follow Nick on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/njbrownmusic 

We sat down with Cheltenham Jazz Festival Head of Programming Emily Jones & Programme Adviser Tony Dudley-Evans to talk: Festival programming, the evolution of the Festival, Keychange 50/50 gender split, Jazz for Schools, dream bookings dead or alive and much more. Interviewed by Theo Wright and Holly Dunworth-Miller Tickets are now on sale for the 2019 Cheltenham Jazz Festival, get yours here: http://bit.ly/2THfKaY  Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram - - - Produced by Barleyfield Records Music by Nick Brown, follow Nick on Instagram:  https://www.instagram.com/njbrownmusic 

David Mitchell, the acclaimed author of The Bone Clocks, Cloud Atlas and Slade House accepts the prestigious prize and joins an elite list of winners that includes Ted Hughes, Muriel Spark, Kazuo Ishiguro, Seamus Heaney, Margaret Atwood and John Le Carré. He is interviewed by The Sunday Times Chief Fiction Reviewer Peter Kemp. To get the latest #cheltlitfest updates, sign up to our eNews: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l 

Double Oscar-winning actor Sally Field is renowned for her artistic range and rich characters in TV and films including Forrest Gump, Lincoln and Mrs Doubtfire. Now she turns her attention to her own remarkable story and discusses her memoir In Pieces. To get the latest #cheltlitfest updates, sign up to our eNews: http://bit.ly/2QZLp6l 

Award-winning author of Half of a Yellow Sun, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie‘s TED talk ‘We Should All Be Feminists’ started a worldwide conversation. On a rare UK visit to receive the PEN Pinter Prize, she speaks to Ellah Wakatama Allfrey at The Times and The Sunday Times Cheltenham Literature Festival about the remarkable impact of her work.