Alain de Botton What does work mean to us? Why do we do it? What makes it pleasurable? Alain de Botton's gift for looking deeply behind the ordinary, taken-for-granted things in our lives has won him huge popularity. In this event he brings us The Pleasure and Sorrows of… Robert Macfarlane (2012 event) In The Old Ways, shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson prize, the celebrated author Robert Macfarlane sets off from his Cambridge home… Jason Donald reading Puerta Galera Listen to acclaimed author of Choke Chain read his story Puerta Galera, part of a series of podcasts… Edna O'Brien (2016 Event) Philip Roth called it Edna O’Brien’s masterpiece; for John Banville it’s savage, tender and true; Claire Messud described it as arduous and beautiful. The Little Red Chairs is the work of a truly great Irish writer at the height of her powers. A dec… Maggie O'Farrell (2014 event) Acclaimed Edinburgh-based Maggie O’Farrell talks about how she constructed her sixth novel, Instructions for a Heatwave… Harriet Harman (2017 Event) When Harriet Harman was elected in 1982, she notes in her memoir A Woman’s Work, the House of Commons was 97% male. Since then, she has led the way on all-women shortlists, introduced laws on equality and domestic violence and has twice become Labou… Michel Faber: The ‘Evil Is In The ‘Etail (2020 Event) Reminiscent of Charles Dickens and of Lewis Carroll, Michel Faber’s fable D is a delightful sideways look at the evils of our times. He joins us to discuss Dhikilo’s wild odyssey with literary critic Stuart Kelly in this event recorded for the 2020 Bo… Caroline Lucas (2015 Event) In Honourable Friends? the first UK Green MP, Caroline Lucas reveals the secret workings of parliamentary life and suggests that we could be governed so much better. As a lone voice at her workplace, Lucas is the perfect outsider – ideally positione… Louise Doughty & Stuart Turton at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Meet two British writers of cleverly conceived and suspenseful stories, Louise Doughty and Stuart Turton, who come together to talk about their new novels at the Edinburgh International Book Festival 2019. The Seven Deaths Of Evelyn Hardcastle, Turton’s… Rupert Everett (2013 event) It’s taken the entertainment world six years to recover from Rupert Everett’s first memoir Red Carpets and Other Banana Skins and now he’s back on raucously top form with Vanished Years…