Kathleen Hardie - congratulations!

Congratulations are due to our member Kathleen Hardie on the publication of her novella Ranna and the Crescendo Kilt which is now available on Kindle. Kathleen is also to be congratulated on her quaich from the Sir Walter Scott Club in recognition of many years of service. Thank you Kathleen for sharing that you enjoyed the joint lecture with the Club from Gerry Carruthers - we have enjoyed all the positive feedback.

Dame Maggie Smith 1934-2024

The Muriel Spark Society, including our Patron Penelope Jardine, are saddened to hear of the passing of Dame Maggie Smith. Dame Maggie won the Best Actress Oscar in 1969 for her unforgettable portrayal of Miss Jean Brodie. She was also a very impressive Mrs Pettigrew in the BBC adaptation of Memento Mori. It was a long career of great distinction and she certainly brought all her acting genius and humour to her Sparkian roles.

Electric Spark: the enigma of Muriel Spark

Frances Wilson, who enjoyed a recent critical success with her book on D H Lawrence, will publish a biographical volume on Dame Muriel on 5 June 2025. Entitled Electric Spark: the enigma of Muriel Spark, which is intriguing. As the first volume of Spark letters will appear next year too, it will be a big year for Sparkian scholarship. Frances Wilson's book will be published by Bloomsbury at £25, £17.50 for the ebook.

Edinburgh: the autobiography ...

Alan Taylor, our former Chairman and friend of Muriel Spark, will launch his biography of Edinburgh at Topping Books on 7 October - details below. I wonder if a certain Dame will feature ... Venue: Pilrig St Paul's Church, Pilrig Street, Edinburgh - please note change of venue.

Muriel Spark receives an honorary degree from Edinburgh University in 1989

How to Win an Information War - with Muriel Spark

Author Peter Pomerantsev's new book, How to Win an Information War, investigates the life of Sefton Delmer, with whom Spark worked during the war as documented in Curriculum Vitae. Mr Pomerantsev will appear at the Edinburgh International Book Festival this year on Thursday 15 August at 17.45. His book is published by Faber at £20. More details below: From one of our leading experts on disinformation, the incredible true story of the complex and largely forgotten WWII propagandist Sefton Delmer - and what we can learn from him today. In the summer of 1941, Hitler ruled Europe from the Atlantic to the Black Sea. Britain was struggling to combat the powerful Nazi propaganda machine, which crowed victory and smeared its enemies. But inside Germany, there was one notable voice of dissent from the very heart of the military machine, Der Chef, a German whose radio broadcasts skilfully questioned Nazi doctrine. He had access to high-ranking German military secrets and spoke of internal rebellion. His listeners included German soldiers and citizens. American officials and even the President tried to to decipher what it meant for the future of the war. But what these audiences didn't know was that Der Chef was a fiction, a character created by the British propagandist Sefton Delmer, just one player in Delmer's vast counter-propaganda cabaret, a unique weapon in the war. As author Peter Pomerantsev uncovers Delmer's story, he is called into a wartime propaganda effort of his own: the global response to Putin's invasion of Ukraine. This book is the story of Delmer and his modern-day investigator, as they each embark on their own quest to seduce and inspire the passions of supporters and enemies, and to turn the tide of information wars.

Bookmark Festival 2024

Our distinguished former Chair, Gail Wylie, will launch the 2024 Bookmark Festival on 3 August with Olga Wojtas: Date: Saturday 3 August 2024 Time: 2:00 pm Location: St Catharine's Community Centre, PH10 6EY Price: £10 for non-members £9 for members Author: Olga Wojtas With: Ewan Morrison BOOKMARK 2024 Launch with the welcome return of one of our patrons, Olga Wojtas and the latest instalment of her heroine Shona McMonagle's adventures, in Miss Blaine's Prefect and the Gondola of Doom. Anyone who has been to one of Olga's previous events knows that an entertaining afternoon is guaranteed! After refreshments and raffle, Gail Wylie, BOOKMARK Chair, will reveal the BOOKMARK 2024 Programme and the 'Box Office' will be open for the sale of Festival tickets including our very popular 'Weekend and Daily Passes'. For tickets please contact: Rhona Christie at rhona.maclean@yahoo.co.uk or 01250 875613 Adventure into Books - 01250 872852

Olga Wojtas and Miss Blaine's Prefect

Our eminent Committee member Olga Wojtas will appear at the Edinburgh International Book Festival this year, details below: Olga Wojtas: Miss Blaine's Prefect is Back Wed 14 Aug 12:45 - 13:45 EFI Venue NW Attend in person EFI Venue NW £15.50 [concessions £13.50/£10.50] In-person tickets go on sale at 10:00 on Thursday 20 June. Olga Wojtas: Miss Blaine's Prefect is Back Olga Wojtas talks about how you should never underestimate a librarian. The author has delighted readers with her Miss Blaine’s Prefect series which see Shona, a 50-something librarian, embroiled in a series of adventures, each one more hilarious than the last. She’s conjured up another treat in Miss Blaine’s Prefect and the Gondola of Doom. Will time-travelling Shona unravel the Venetian mystery in time? Wojtas will be joined in conversation by Lee Randall.