ARTS
WhitLit
ANNOUNCES FIRST LITERARY FESTIVAL PROGRAMME
‘Celebrating Independent Spirit’
THIS MAY WILL SEE WHITSTABLE CELEBRATING ITS LITERARY PAST AND PRESENT WITH A NEW
FESTIVAL THAT GOES BY THE NAME OF WHITLIT. FROM 8th-11th MAY, THE COASTAL TOWN WILL
PLAY HOST TO OVER 20 AUTHOR EVENTS, AS WELL AS WRITING WORKSHOPS AND ACTIVITIES
FOR BOTH CHILDREN AND FAMILIES.
Mr Maugham
at Home
Lynn Barber
Ben Moor
Selina Hastings
John Gordan Sinclair
Whitstable is a natural setting for a literary festival;
after all, it’s where W. Somerset Maugham – one
of the 20th-century’s most popular writers – grew
up and composed his famous novels, Cakes and
Ale and Of Human Bondage. The town is now
home to a thriving writing community, dozens of
book clubs and numerous creative writing groups.
WhitLit will take place in the Horsebridge
Arts Centre and Whitstable Library, with additional
events happening at the Umbrella Centre,
Whitstable Playhouse and All Saints Church Hall.
As well as showcasing Whitstable’s local
literary talent, WhitLit will celebrate the town’s
unique heritage and personality under the theme
of ‘independent spirit’, bringing together
inventive authors, innovative stories and original
voices. From thrillers and memoir, to historical
romance, gothic cinema and comedy, there will
be a broad range of events to suit all tastes. In
its first year, WhitLit will also focus on the
aforementioned W. Somerset Maugham, with
the aim of reigniting interest in the author’s work.
Highlights include:
• Fleet Street journalist Lynn Barber will discuss
her new memoir, A Curious Career. Barber’s
first publication, An Education, was transformed
into a film that was later nominated for three
Oscars.
• Psychologist and former 60's model and muse,
Jenny Boyd, will discuss her book, It’s Not Only
Rock 'N’ Roll – a publication that looks into the
music-making process and includes interviews
with over 75 musicians.
• Actor-turned-author John Gordon Sinclair talks
about his new crime thriller, Blood Whispers. His
Anthony Browne
acclaimed first book, Seventy Times Seven,
was published in 2012 and described as ‘a
remarkable first novel’ and ‘an impressive debut'
by The Times.
• A former Children’s Laureate, Canterbury-based
Anthony Browne will be entertaining parents
and children with his imaginative drawing game,
the Shape Game.
• Writer and performer Ben Moor, who grew up
in Whitstable, will return to his hometown for
the first time to perform his new Edinburgh
Fringe show, Each of Us.
• A one-off performance of the critically acclaimed
one-man play, Mr Maugham at Home, will
feature, starring Tony Smee.
Local authors appearing will include Margaret
Pemberton (Rebecca Dean), Andy Miller, Nick
Russell-Pavier, Mary Hamer, Linda M James,
Paul Collard, Danny Rhodes and children’s author
Emma Thomson.
Additional visiting authors include Selina
Hastings, Peter Clark, Andrew Lycett, TV’s Aggie
MacKenzie, DE Meredith, Essie Fox, Lloyd
Shepherd, Stephen Cooper, Christopher Fowler,
Barry Forshaw, Pen Farthing, Janetta Harvey,
Tom Hodgkinson (The Idler), Gavin Pretor-Pinney.
WhitLit is a non-profit Community Interest
Company, set up by festival director Victoria
Falconer. Marnie Summerfield Smith (who runs
course, Your Memoir) is the memoir director.
Victoria says: “We are very excited about
the first WhitLit and delighted to present so many
local writers. We wanted to make the programme
diverse and accessible, and hope that the local
community will get behind us and attend as many
21
events as possible. I would also like to thank all
of our appearing authors, as well as our
supporters: Canterbury City Council, KCC
Libraries, The Horsebridge Arts Centre, Whitstable
Improvement Trust, Whitstable Business Club,
Harbour Books, Canterbury Arts Council, Vintage
Random House and Whitstable Museum.”
Victoria continues: “Somerset Maugham
has become a rather unfashionable name in
recent years. Yet, through a series of Maugham
events, WhitLit aims to address the controversies
linked to the writer (not least the one that he
hated Whitstable!) and encourage as many people
as possible to pick up and read his books, which
are still as relevant and entertaining today, as
they were a century ago."
WhitLit, in partnership with Vintage Random
House, will be distributing 200 free copies of
Maugham’s short novel Cakes and Ale (set in
Whitstable) for individual readers and book groups
to read. Whitstable’s Val Hennessy, former chief
literary critic at the Daily Mail, will be chairing a
light-hearted debate on the book during the
festival.
Tickets are available from the Horsebridge
Arts Centre. Visit www.horsebridge-centre.org.uk,
www.wegottickets.com/horsebridgecentre or call
01227 281174 to book.
All WhitLit
programme details
can be found at
www.whitlit.co.uk