the social satire of Brookmyre nicely offset by the Sweeney Todd-esque capers from Lindsay while Billingham recounts some really horrible violence. lan Thomson & Carole Angier on Primo Levi Studio Theatre, 3.30pm, £7 (£5). The legacy left behind by Primo Levr casts a vast shadow among the writing fraternity who take their literature seriously. A thoughtful debate should ensue from these biographers. Tim Pears & Tim Lott Field and Lawn Marquee, 4pm, {‘7 (£15). The two Tims give us their own particular take on the neuroses in contemporary and recent Britain.
Michel Faber, Sarah Waters & Matthew Sweet on the Victorians Consrgnia Theatre, 4.30pm, £7 ($35). A trio of writers fascrnated wrth the age which dominated the end of the last century. Was that 800er as dull as many make out or was it a vrbrant era and a match for the Swinging 60s?
Jenny Diski Studio Theatre. 5pm, [‘7 (F5). Entertaining clever clogs Diski has written about everyone from Jesus to Philip Larkin and her latest Strangers on a Train considers herself as she reflects; upon her dark past during a trip across America.
The Odyssey with Hugh Lupton 8: Daniel Morden Children's Theatre, 6pm, £7 (5.23). Yesterday. it was The Iliad. today Hugh and Dan read Homer's other classic.
Imprisoned Writers Field and Lawn Marquee, :’>'..’i()pni, free tickets. Dominic Holland tries to see the funny side of being stuck in prison.
Tim Severin Consignia Theatre. (5.30pm, 18 (£76). While a student at Oxford. Severin made his first official expedition along the route of Marco Polo. Since then, he's followed in the travelling steps of Sinbad, Jason (of Argonaut fame) and Robinson Crusoe. The Writing Business Field and Lawn Marquee. (5.45pm, 57:3 (£8). Torn Leonard, Tessa Ransford and James Robertson consider Pamphlet Power. Chris Woodhead & John Rae Studio Theatre. 7pm, £8 (53(5). The future of schooling is the topic for these prominent educationalists. Compensation Crazy: Do we Blame and Claim too Much? Spiege/tent, 7.30pm, {‘8 life). Probably. yes. Lawyers and analysts discuss the claims business.
Gerry Anderson Consignia Theatre, 8pm, £8 rife). See prevrew. page to. Linton Kwesi Johnson Studio Theatre, 8.30pm, £8 (£6). The ex-Black Panther has broken a few barriers in his time, being awarded a C Day LeWIs Fellowship in the 70s and now taking his place in the list of Penguin Modern Classics.
Dominic Holland Field and Lawn Marquee. 8.30pm, 5‘8 li‘b‘). Here's a funny thing: a stand-up who has written a novel. The amiable l'folland’s effort is about the Hollywood nightmare.
Spiegelbar Spiege/tent, 9pm, free. See Monday.
NEXT ISSUE OUT. THURS 15 AUGUST
SIMON ARMITAGE
Yorkshire writer on poetry's power
Simon Armitage is poet, dramatist and novelist extraordinaire. Collections including Zoom! and CloudCuckooLand have shown a technique and versatility that has pushed him to the top of the modern poetry tree. Two new collections, Travelling Songs and Universal Home Doctor merely
confirm his high status.
Not that he feels there is a pecking order or even a resurgence in
acceptance of poetry. ‘There has never been a golden age of poetry and it
is not a frontline art form,’ he says. ‘It’s more of a dissenting style, stubbornly refusing to be prose. People do feel a connection with poetry however, possibly because they were brought up with it at school or
because much of it comes out of crisis and it’s a good way of getting your
emotions sorted out.’
One particular event which did affect him was this festival’s grand theme, 11 September. ‘It was the most momentous news item in my lifetime,’ he says. Armitage then wrote ‘The Convergence of the Twain’, which was structured identically to the Hardy poem of the same name because he felt people were saying the first thing that came into their heads. ‘I wanted to give a more considered response and actually wrote
the poem four months after the event.’ With regards Edinburgh, Armitage is a huge fan. ‘I’ve been up every year
in the last six, not always performing but just taking in shows.’ In particular he loves the structure of the Book Festival. ‘Some festivals are just glorified social events but in Edinburgh the audience is incredibly knowledgeable and the festival has its own identity, which makes it
stronger.’
His last Charlotte Square Gardens experience, in 2000, left him with happy memories. ‘The discussion was on alcohol and my research lived up to expectations. Luckily when I open my mouth, the words tend to
come out in the right order.’ (Aly Burt)
I Studio Theatre, l J Aug. 8.30pm, E8 (E6).
Thursday 15
Children’s programme Val/Otis venues from 10am. See Kids section for details.
Eoin McNamee, John Boyle 8: Carl MacDougall Spiege/tent. 10.30am, .l‘/' (53)). As the Scots and Irish plan to host l uro 2008, here is another Celtir connection. We particularly r'ecoiiimend John Boyle's Galloway Street. a tale of growrng up on the mean streets of Paisley.
Rhodri Jeffreys-Jones 8: Ziauddin Sardar / ie/d and l awn Marquee,
I larii, 57' (5‘5). The CIA and notions of freedorii are discussed by these two erudite critics of the USA.
Michael Holroyd Consignia Theatre, / 1.30am, {‘7 (1‘5). How can you attack and defend biography at the same time? The esteemed writer Michael Holroyd (aka Mr Margaret Drabble) tries it wrth Works on Paper.
John Burnside 8. Brian Clarke Studio Theatre, noon, ff 7 ($.15). Ecology is at the forefront of these two writers minds in a Green and Gold event. Barbara Trapido 8. Christopher Hope Consignia Theatre. 1.30pm, £7 (fo3}. The beauty and the beastliness of South Africa is a central concern of these authors.
Alexander McCall Smith Studio Theatre, 2pm, £7 (£75). Keep an eye on your TV sets for the forthcoming
nether dissenting, stubborn voice
adaptation of his Precious Ramotswe adventures. and before he gets ridiculously famous, catch the eloquent
AM Smith doing his reading thing.
Meaghan Delahunt & Klrsty Ounn Field and Lawn Marquee, 2.30pm, £7 (£5). Two authors who have made their home in Edinburgh. Australian Delahunt won praise for her debut in the Blue House while New Zealander Gunn's work includes this year's Featherstone. Kathleen Jamie Consignia Theatre, 3pm, £3 7 (£5). See Saturday.
Seamus Heaney: The Trance and the Translation Studio Theatre, 3.30pm, £7 (£5). The Nobel Prize winner is actually making his debut appearance at the Book Festival and for that we must give thanks. North, Field Work and Station /s/and are among his acclaimed collections.
Michel Faber I: Yann Martel Field and Lawn Marquee, 4pm, E 7 (£5). Martel wrote one of the oddest novels of the year with A Life of Pi, which was favourably compared to Moby-Dick and Gulliver's Travels by Margaret Atwood while Faber's debut novel from a couple of years back Under the Skin made readers simultaneously smile and vomit. Michael llolroyd, Victoria Glendlnning 8. Michael Crick Consignia Theatre, 4.30pm, £7 (£5). The biographical art is considered by a trio of the form's finest exponents. Paul Eddy I: John Creed Studio Theatre, 5pm, £7 (£5). There’s nothing like a good old taut thriller, is there? And investigative journo turned author Eddy is one of the Current crop of fine exponents. As is Eoin McNamee who chooses to write in this genre as Creed.
lan Beck on Edward Lear Children ’3 Theatre, 6pm, £3.50. Writer. artist and verse writer Lear was the king of nonsense in the Victorian era. Here, illustrator Beck explores this odd talent.
Mike Watson Consignia Theatre, 6.30pm, £8 (£6). The Minister for Tourism, Culture and Spon delivers the inaugural Donald Dewar Lecture. Michael Crick on Alex Ferguson Studio Theatre, 7pm, £8 (£6). Govan lad Sir Alex has made his indelible mark on British football, but what will he do when he retires in two years? His controversial biographer discusses the man and his ever-changing moods. Nature’s Revenge: Hurricanes, Floods and Climate Change
' Spiege/tent, 7.30pm, £8 (£6). It feels
like Scotland's had the lot over the last few weeks. but what's at stake in this debate is much bigger than a few unseasonal showers. Is the planet seriously under threat or have we all been over-reacting to global change? Philip Norman Children's Theatre, 7.30pm, £8 (£6). The Stones and the Beatles' biographer muses on the good old days.
Seamus Heaney Consignia Theatre. 8pm, £8 (£6). See 3.30pm, today. Peter Kerr 8. Christopher Hope Studio Theatre, 8.30pm, £8 (£6). More travel and exploration as these two writers chat about their experiences of Majorca (Kerr) and the South of France (Hope).
Splegelbar Spiege/tent, 9pm, free. See Monday.
8— l :3 Aug 2002 THE LIST FESTIVAL GUIDI 17