Alan Bennett visits Ely.
Writer writing
Originally uploaded by mrsdanvers. "I took a sandwich lunch for the train, and, taking Mam's advice, a pullover and muffler against the cold of the Fenland cathedral."
My local independent bookshop "Topping's" does rather well when it comes to getting writers to speak to small groups. In the summer I saw two locally -based authors, Jill Dawson ( Watch me Disappear) and Ali Smith ( Hotel World and The Accidental), but tonight was quite a coup: Alan Bennett drew an audience of over 1000 to listen to him read from "Untold Stories", his latest diaries, in the Cathedral. He's one of those writers who add enormously to their work when reading it aloud, so it was a great pleasure to listen to him for over an hour.
The ticket price included a copy of the paperback and at the end of the reading and Q&A session the poor chap was faced with a queue snaking up the cathedral aisle, all eager to get a personal dedication and signature on their copy.
More pics here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/15043708@N00/