Simon Callow (2017 Event)

As an actor, he’s played Charles Dickens, Winston Churchill and Gareth in Four Weddings and a Funeral. As an author, he’s written compellingly about Oscar Wilde, Peggy Ramsay and about Being an Actor. But that’s not the half of what Simon Callow has achieved across a singular and simply stellar career. In this special event in memory of the much-missed Edinburgh impresario Frederick Hood, filmed live at the 2017 Edinburgh International Book Festival, Callow talks to Jenny Brown about his extraordinary life.

Book Festival News

Book Festival reveals first author events for 2024 Book Festival reveals first author events for 2024
Sunday 14 April

Enjoying this event? You can help us produce more like it.

Donate

Share

Watch more

Peter Hitchens speaks to Ruth Wishart at the Edinburgh International Book Festival Peter Hitchens speaks to Ruth Wishart at the Edinburgh International Book Festival A former member of the International Socialists, Peter Hitchens now leans firmly to the right. But his latest book, The Phoney Victory, may rankle with those on both sides of the political spectrum as he argues that Britain went into truncated decline aft… Future Library Announcement: Future Writer, Future Readers Future Library Announcement: Future Writer, Future Readers Since 2014, authors have contributed to Future Library, a collection of writing that will not be published for 100 years. The venerable group includes Margaret Atwood, David Mitchell, Han Kang, and Judith Schalansky. This project was conceived by artist K… UNBOUND: Literary Death Match UNBOUND: Literary Death Match Four writers used words as weapons in a fight to the literary death. Host Todd Zuniga returned to Edinburgh from New York for the 160th anniversary… Douglas Stuart with Damian Barr: The Making of Shuggie Bain Douglas Stuart with Damian Barr: The Making of Shuggie Bain In the words of the starred Kirkus review: ‘You will never forget Shuggie Bain. Scene by scene, this book is a masterpiece.’ This astonishing debut is a powerful and heartbreaking story about the love between a boy and his mother, about poverty a… Interview - Monica Cantieni (2015) Interview - Monica Cantieni (2015) Immigration and belonging are the chief subject of new novels by writers Monica Cantieni and Sunjeev Sahota. We spoke to Monica before their event to find out more, and we also heard from some audience members to see what they thought about the event. Mon… Masha Gessen with Philippe Sands: Facing Down President Putin Masha Gessen with Philippe Sands: Facing Down President Putin Promoting their new book Surviving Autocracy, Russian-American author and journalist, and peerless chronicler of totalitarianism and dissent, Masha Gessen made a surprising declaration: that by the middle of 2020 it seems clear that Trump might be worse t… Alan Lee (2018 Event) Alan Lee (2018 Event) In this global publishing event, return to Middle Earth in the company of Alan Lee. The illustrator of The Fall of Gondolin, the final book in the trilogy of Tolkien’s Middle Earth tales, Lee not only illustrates the beautiful editions of Tolkien's book… Representation Matters with Hannah Lee & Jessica Love Representation Matters with Hannah Lee & Jessica Love Join acclaimed authors Jessica Love and Hannah Lee for readings and live discussion on the importance of children seeing themselves represented in the picture books they read. Jessica Love is the 2019 Stonewall Book award-winning author and illustrat… John Burnside and Jon Kalman Stefansson (2015 Event) John Burnside and Jon Kalman Stefansson (2015 Event) Award-winning poet and novelist John Burnside and acclaimed Icelandic novelist Jón Kalman Stefánsson got together with interviewer Daniel Hahn to talk about their new books and explore why contemporary writers turn to the stuff of legend for… Lavinia Greenlaw: Honour the Small Words Lavinia Greenlaw: Honour the Small Words What is it that gives us the urge to say something, to write or to sing? At the beginning of the year, when we were congratulating her on her successful appearance on Celebrity University Challenge, Lavinia Greenlaw mentioned to us that she had a new book…