Robert Colls – George Orwell  

George Orwell has never been more quoted and misquoted. Can he be rescued from the soundbites? 

Born in 1903, Orwell’s life played out against a background of two world wars, two great revolutions, one long global depression, the rise and rise of Communism, and the war-time pre-eminence of the United States until his death in 1950. Yet no matter how alert he was to all these great struggles, and no matter how guarded he was in his personal life, Orwell never turned away from the question of who he was, and the contradictions that entailed. 

Chaired by Caroline Beck

“Do we need another book on Orwell? If it’s written by Colls, the answer is emphatically yes.” – Jason Cowley, The Sunday Times

“Short, erudite and provocative … doubleplusgood reading” – Andrew Lynch, Irish Independent

Booking Information

• Priority Booking for Festival Friends opens at 08.00 on Friday 27th of February. Tickets go on general sale from Monday 2nd March.
• Our concession tickets are available to Friends of the Festival, those on benefits and students.
• Hearing loops are available for Theatre and Library events. Carers qualify for free ‘essential companion’ tickets. Wheelchair spaces are limited. In all cases, please call the Box Office on 01434 652477 to book or email: boxoffice@queenshall.co.uk.
• Tickets cannot be refunded but can be exchanged for other Book Festival events.
• All bookings are subject to a booking fee of £1.50 per transaction.

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