Oxford Literary Festival takes over the Oxford Martin School

31 March 2015

Lit Fest_Till_Massoudi
© OMS

Book lovers from Oxford and beyond have packed out the Oxford Martin School's lecture theatre over the past ten days, as the building played host to the annual Oxford Literary Festival. The festival took place from the 21st to the 29th of March, with events across a number of venues across Oxford, including the Sheldonian Theatre, Divinity School and the new Weston Library.

As the Festival Ideas Partner, the School also contributed a range of speakers to the festival. Hosting Roundtable events on Inequality - featuring John Kampfner, former editor of New Statesman, and Katrine Marçal, journalist and economics commentator - and The Future of Africa - with journalist, biographer and historian Martin Meredith, lecturer in African studies Jonny Steinberg and Tom Burgis, journalist for the Financial Times - both of which were chaired by Professor Ian Goldin, Director of the Oxford Martin School. The School also co-hosted an afternoon of panels on Nature and Language and a lecture on The Economics of Biodiversity.

As well as putting on Oxford Martin School events, the School held a full programme of book talks and panels over the duration of the festival. Speakers included Nobel Prize winning neuroscientist Professor Eric Kandel, the UK's first Green MP Caroline Lucas, author and broadcaster Lord Melvyn Bragg, and actor and comedian Bill Oddie.

2015 is the fifth year the Oxford Martin School has been involved in the Oxford Literary Festival.