Humanities academics will star at Daphne du Maurier Festival and Tremough Campus Culture Festival in Cornwall

The Daphne du Maurier Festival, centred around the Cornish town of Fowey, was established in 1997 to celebrate not only the life and work of one of the UK’s most beloved storytellers, but also the intimate relationship the county of Cornwall has with the arts. This year the Festival runs from the 9th to the 20th of May and tickets are on sale now.

The Festival attracts authors, scholars, entertainers and personalities to the countryside that inspired and informed so much of du Maurier’s work, and engages them with the public in an eclectic array of readings, talks, performances, guided walks, river cruises and tours. A true community event, the Festival is organised by Restormel Borough Council and supported by the people of Fowey, St. Austell, Tywardreath, the Lanteglos Parish and many local schools.

Tremough Campus Culture Festival is a one-day event at the University’s Cornwall Campus at Tremough, near Penryn and Falmouth, which closes this year’s Daphne du Maurier Festival on Sunday 20 May, the day after the Olympic torch passes through Falmouth.

The University of Exeter has a close relationship with Daphne du Maurier’s work, and named the Cornwall Campus’ main building after her in 2007, the centenary of her birth. The Daphne du Maurier Festival is co-programmed by Professor Helen Taylor, the University’s Arts and Culture Fellow.

A huge array of University staff will be speaking across both festivals this year, with the College of Humanities represented by Professor Jonathan Barry (History), Dr Helen Doe (History), Professor Marion Gibson (English), Professor Chris Gill (Classics), Professor Nick Groom (English), Dr Johanna Harris (English), Dr Kate Hext (English), Sam North (English), Professor Philip Payton (History), Dr Catriona Pennell (History), Dr Corinna Wagner (English), and Dr Paul Young (English).

The Tremough Campus Culture Festival will also feature a talk from Dr Nicola Thomas from Life and Environmental Sciences and Professor Nicky Britten from the University of Exeter Medical School. Exeter Honorary Graduates including novelist Helen Dunmore, actor and historian Tony Robinson and painters Alan Cotton and Neil Canning are also appearing. Alumnus (Arabic & Islamic Studies, 1984) and Honorary Graduate Frank Gardner, OBE, the BBC’s award-winning Security Correspondent will also be speaking at the event.

Other notable speakers include Andrew Motion, Esther Rantzen, Stuart Maconie, biographer Jane Dunn, and Terry Wogan, as well as dozens of others.

You can find out more about the Daphne du Maurier Festival, as well as book tickets and download a programme, at the festival website, which has further information about the Tremough Campus Culture Festival. You can also follow the Festival on Twitter via @DdMFestival.

Programme

For more details download the Tremough Campus Culture Festival 2012 Programme