Well, don’t ask me. I’ve only lived here 22 years, which isn’t nearly long enough to figure out how the university entrance system works.
The Oxford Literary festival, however, merely requires that you buy a ticket. If you’re willing to spend £6,000 on tickets, you probably could learn just about everything about everything in a week, and save the cost of any more higher education.
Just a thought.
Some of the highlights of this year’s programme include Michael Rosen, PD James, Louise Rennison, Anthony Browne, Philip Pullman, Eoin Colfer, Edmund de Waal, Maggi Hambling, Hanif Kureishi….but the full list can be found here.
I’m on a panel with Sally Gardner and a new author called Phil Earle, and promise to say many controversial and hilarious things in the hour allotted, just to keep everyone awake. Tickets here.
(I’m writing this at 1am and the robins are singing their tiny hearts out outside my window. It must be spring.)
I would trade SO MANY tiny robin-hearts to be there.
Sounds like you are going to have a good time.
On the subject of University entrance – it’s different for Oxbridge!
My neice has just completed a degree at Cambridge and is now going to do a Phd at Oxford. However her younger sister with 13 A* GCSEs could not get into Cambridge! The interview, it seems, is based on personality plus results, whereas the other Unis are more or less results only.
Christ. 13 A* and didn’t get in? How idiotic. Just goes to show how random the whole thing is!
For us it’s M3 and A34.
Mentally hovering over the buy tickets button. Your session combined with Dr Who, Blue Peter Book Award and Michelle Magorian are all very tempting. So its time to hoik up google maps and see if we can get from one to other in time – might need a matter transporter.
(I won a blue Peter Badge when I was nine, still desperate to use it.)
Booked! Thank you for the info.
Sounds much better than the Edinburgh International Book Festival.
Sounds like a good festival – and much better to be writing to the sound of robins singing, I currently have VERY noisy squirrels nesting in my attic…
Wait. Wait. So where are you living now? Which country?
London. England. 22 years. But I come back to the US a fair amount. Where are you?
Ack. We were in England from 1979-98 and again 2007-08. Now back in U.S. sliding between Chautauqua, NY (way west) and Southport, NC.
oh YES! thank you for reminding me about the Oxford literary festival. I love it. Now that I live in London, not Oxford, it will be less easy to attend, but still so worth it! mmm, let the ticket browsing commence… (some of them sell out darn fast I have to say! Often the ones involving Mr Pullman)