Today, Talks & lectures

A series of discussions examining various aspects of cinema.

A celebration of everything birdy – optic sales, peregrine viewing, talks, workshops, kids activities, falconry, a dusk chorus and much more.

Graphic design as an extreme sport. Andie Airfix talks about the challenges working with music’s ‘megastars’ including Metallica, Thompson Twins, Stones, Doa, Leppard, Zeppelin and more. Talk dates: May 10/11; (Def Leppard). 17/18; (Metallica). 12/19/24; (Music design; Early Days). 8/15/22/25; (Music design; Latter Days).

Hands-on advice from the experts about using binoculars and telescopes to watch wildlife. Also a chance to buy some (binoculars and/or telescopes, that is, not wildlife). All proceeds go back into the RSPB to continue conservation efforts.

An opportunity to enjoy some fine cheese and wine in the company of artists from Dumfries & Galloway and discuss things such as the Scotland-England border sculpture.

Artist Ilana Halperin talks to Bryony Bond about her current exhibition, The Library, as the pair lead a tour of the works.

Award-winning traditional African acrobats from Ghana, West Africa. A breathtaking performance, not to be missed. A family friendly event (i.e. suitable for all ages).

‘Idlers of the Enlightenment’: A Symposium with Idler editor Tom Hodgkinson, QI’s Director of Information John Mitchinson, and writer Mark Vernon. Learn about the lesser-known works and hitherto concealed philosophy of ‘idlerism’ as espoused by philosophers and writers such as Rousseau and Dr Johnson – diminishing any…

At 87-years-old, James Salter has written what is likely to be his final novel, 'All That Is'. The book draws together the great themes of his lifetime's work - war, love, sex, marriage and what it means to write. It is a sweeping, seductive love story set in post-Second World War America. Spanning decades it tells of…

Rekindle your connection to nature in this workshop which uses teaching tools from shamans around the world use to connect with their spiritual guides.

A weekend course that teaches you how to use your blog as an outlet for your ideas, passions and creative pursuits by getting tips on what to put in and what to leave out, how to write online content and how to create a community around your blog. Led by Dawn Barclay.

Spot some moths and butterflies and find out how you can help in their conservation. Booking is essential.

Jack Halberstam mines mainstream culture for its queer potential in relation to female masculinity and drag kings, anarchy, failure and chaos, here finding an emergent cultural idiom of anarchistic revolt in Jay Z and Kanye West's No Church in the Wild.

Mark Boyle has lived completely without money in England for over two and a half years. This experience formed the basis for his first book, The Moneyless Man, and his follow-up, The Moneyless Manifesto. Richard Glover is a lecturer at the School of Economic Science in London. Together they ask how we might think…

Over half the planet now spends more of their waking hours 'plugged in' than not. In our progressively digital world, Tom Chatfield explores how we use the internet, mobile technology, emailing, texting, tweeting and blogging and the effect these have on our minds. He offers original suggestions to 'prosper in a…

Finding work that satisfies us is one of the major desires of our times. Roman Krznaric's How to Find Fulfilling Work draws on wisdom about work from philosophy, psychology, sociology and history. It is an investigation of how we can balance our need to make money and find status with doing something that gives our lives…

After last year's phenomenal Poetry Parnassus festival at Southbank Centre - the biggest ever gathering of world poets - what is left for verse to voice? Plenty say these poets, as they experiment with sound and form, as well as confronting some of the most vexing political questions of the age. Whether working with…

Rupert Everett, one of the leading actors of his generation, discusses his career and his best-selling memoirs. Everett talks about his recent role as Oscar Wilde in The Judas Kiss. He also reflects on the nature of reputation and his career so far, as outlined in his two best-selling Memoirs Vanished Years and Red…

What do you know about the City of London, the Corporation that runs it, and the economic crisis? Inspired by the Occupy movement, filmmakers Lee Salter and Michael Chanan contribute to the current debate about capitalism by seeking to bring the Corporation of London out of the shadows. Watch this revealing film then…

Vedic Maths is an elegant and esoteric system of knowledge developed one hundred years ago in India. Learn its secret sutras from a renowned expert in the field, and astound your friends with feats of numerical skill. Tickets include one delightful cocktail. Suitable for ages 18+.

Always thought you’d like to get into comedy but don’t know how? Funny Women presents a panel of female writers, producers and performers sharing their experiences of breaking into comedy. Hosted by writer and Funny Women Awards finalist Viv Groskop, featuring Amused Moose's founder Hils Jago and Huffington Post Comedy…

Terre Thaemlitz reads from Soulnessless – Introduction and discusses whether seeing transexuality as an unbecoming rather than a becoming would allow a kind of deprogramming in relation to ideas of the self, the soul or religion.