The Conversation is a series of weekly conversations exploring the biggest topics of the day from global conflict to the climate crisis with Britain’s leading thinkers, scientists, philosophers, historians, war correspondents and writers.
Running from 14th January to 22nd April 2025, The Conversation features talks with bestselling writers including Hanif Kureishi, Ahdaf Soueif, Paul Lynch and Robert Macfarlane; acclaimed historians Tom Holland, Bettany Hughes, Marion Turner and Helen Castor; theatre director Nicholas Hytner, war correspondents Lindsey Hilsum, Fergal Keane and Åsne Seierstad; as well as scientists and philosophers David Spiegelhalter,Maggie Aderin-Pocock, Roman Krznaric, Gaia Vince and Monica Feria-Tinta.
The Conversation brings together an incredible lineup of thinkers to tackle some of the most pressing issues of our time. What inspired you to create this event, and how do you hope it will impact the conversations we’re having about these global challenges?
I’ve learned most about the world from stories – great fiction and non-fiction – and from storytellers. I’m interested in how we approach really urgent and familiar ideas like war and politics and climate catastrophe from the perspective of creative imagination. Great writers articulate difficult truths. The Conversation brings that angle to a venue that has been an extraordinary hub for social justice movements for decades. Amnesty, Shelter, Liberty and the Pride movement came from St Martin in the Fields. I love the potential for activism that combination nurtures, Let’s see what happens…
After directing the Hay Festival for over three decades, how does it feel to now curate a new series in London? What makes The Conversation different from other literary events you’ve been involved in?
I love the sheer energy and diversity of London audiences. Back in the 90s we ran a London Literature Festival called The Word, in all 32 Boroughs. It was logistically mad, but incredibly exciting. What I hope for is that spectrum but with a focus on a single venue – the most central venue in London, right on Trafalgar Square. And I love it that a weekly series allows time for reflection, and space for the ideas to ferment.
The format of The Conversation includes intimate discussions between speakers and the audience. What made you choose this unique approach, and how do you think it enhances the experience for both the guests and the attendees?
We want to sync a familiar interview format with the kind of intimate, over-the-table experience you get from a book club, or just hanging out and talking about the gig you’ve just been to. We ran a pilot series last summer with Stephen Fry and Jung Chang, Ben Okri, Helena Kennedy, Jeremy Bowen and Natalie Haynes – the interviews are up on the SMITF youtube channel now. People stayed on in the Crypt cafe after every session and talked with friends and with complete strangers. It was quietly thrilling to hear people tell their own stories and to listen to the amazing wealth of experience and curiosity that everyone brings to the table.
With such a diverse group of speakers, from writers to scientists to war correspondents, how do you ensure that each conversation flows seamlessly and remains accessible to all audiences, regardless of their background or expertise?
I think you have to cultivate a context where people feel at ease, and you have to be warmly clear that everyone is welcome. The great thing about this line-up of speakers is that they are all really inspiring. I think it’s the thing that you always long for in literary or talks events – the generosity of spirit that says: this is my truth, tell me yours.
Looking back on your 40 years in the literary world, what’s one moment or conversation that stands out to you as particularly transformative or memorable in shaping your approach to these events?
About 15 years ago I interviewed the American novelist Toni Morrison at Festivaletteratura Mantova in Italy. Huge crowd: maybe 2,000 people, outdoors in the courtyard of one of the Gonzaga Palaces. It was the last event of the festival and she talked brilliantly about her books Beloved and The Bluest Eye, about race and protest and Obama and jazz. We’d been going about 2 hours and no-one moved from their seat. I asked her about Nina Simone and as she opened her mouth to speak there was a thunderclap and an epic deluge just chucked down, like standing under a waterfall. She howled with laughter and said – “come on, let’s find a cafe – Nina’s the conversation we need to have” – and we did. Stories and singing and stories and more stories. We were there till the early hours with a bunch of writers and friends and publishers who had the time of their lives. Luckiest people in Italy that night. The formal interview was fascinating and inspiring. The after-party was magic and I remember thinking then – what can we do to share the spirit of this experience? And that’s where the idea for The Conversation came from, to keep the conversation going long after the formal interview, and I hope people who come to The Conversation at St Martin in the Fields experience the same joy and connection through storytelling.
The Conversation at St Martin-in-the-Fields runs from 14th January until 6th May – Tickets £15, or watch online for £10 www.stmartin-in-the-fields.org/the-conversation