Showing posts with label Ian Rankin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ian Rankin. Show all posts

Thursday, March 07, 2013

A Desert Evening Filled with Poetry and camels...Emirates Airline Festival of Literature Day Two

Last night was simply amazing...listening to poetry from around the world under the stars in the desert....and a bit of camel riding before hand while we watched the sun set. We also hand a royal visitor too...
Sharing a camel with Philip Ardagh is something I'll never forget!

Luigi Bonomi and me

Mark Billingham, Philip Ardagh, John Connolly and Ian Rankin

Philip Ardagh with the welcome committee 

Giles Andreae, Anthony Horowitz, Philip Ardagh and mark Billingham

Wasn't sure with the height difference that Philip and I would appear in the photo!

Poets before they left for the desert- Richard Armitage, Jeet Thayil, me, Roger McGough and Sjon


leading camel has Clare and Mark Billingham, the next hold Kate Mosse, and final Anthony Beevor and Atemis Cooper

Gregg Mosse, Anthony Horowitz and Ian Rankin
There are more pictures up on my Facebook page here

Wednesday, March 06, 2013

Some Photos from Last Night at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature

Just before the opening ceremony of the festival we have the pleasure and privilege to watch these beautiful girl dance for us...my photos don't do them justice.








And now for something completely different...this morning I spoke at the Old Library. They were a wonderful group of women with brilliant questions....


Then I raced back to the Intercontinental Hotel for the author photos...
Rosie Goldsmith chatting with Ian Rankin

Tonight we are off to the desert to hear poetry under the stars...but before that I'll be spending the afternoon driving through the dunes and might meet a camel or two....

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

The Orion Author Party and Salmon Fishing in the Yemen

Wow. Sitting on the sofa this morning suffering only slightly from an over indulgence of champagne and star struckedness (not a word but describes my state last night).

Katherine Webb's and Julia Silk's fabulous shoes.
This is Nina Douglas' picture
First I only took one photo...I was too busy people watching. There were around a thousand people mixing around the dinosaur skeleton in the Natural History Museum. By luck I found my agent, Carole Blake, who knew everyone and was even mentioned in the speech by Ian Rankin. He was lovely when I met latter and chatted about how he never shows anyone his first drafts because they are terrible and filled with things...go and get some lunch...I can't remember this character's name. I was really good to know  that the gods write sh*tty first drafts too.

Julia Silk took this photo of Essie Fox and me
I spied Julian Fellows in the crowd. Spoke with Francesca Simon about her visit to the Emirates Airlines Festival of Literature last year and Anthony Horowitz joined in the conversation saying what a great festival it is. I caught up with friends...Essie Fox, Kate Harrison, Veronica Henry, Ruth Saberton, Jean Fullerton, Nina Douglas, Erica James, Shelley Harris, Kate Mosse, Liz Thompson and JW Ironmonger.

I met more agents last night than I knew existed...

It was an amazing evening...after an amazing afternoon which was a private screening of Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. Between the author party and the screening I wondered if I had dropped into someone else's life....

Veronica Henry, Anne Seba and Paul Torday
The private cinema was straight out of a film set with red leather seats and a screen bigger than the one in the Flroa Cinema in Helston....and it was all for me, well, me and about twenty other people. I hadn't read the book so didn't know what to expect (DH had read the book and he loved it). Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is now top on my TBR.

Erica James and Paul Torday
Without ruining the film...it was delightful and I loved it. I couldn't imagine how Ewan McGregor could play a geek but it does so beautifully and believably. Emily Blunt is perfect. I found myself laughing through most of the it. It's a film that lifted me like the The Kings Speech did...it just has that wonderful feel good factor. Joy is the word that comes to mind.

Paul Torday, Anne Sebba and moi (not sure who is the man in the background)
I was a bit better taking pictures of the screening...What was the last film that made you smile?