5 Speakers, 15 Minutes Each - May 2024
Lauren Child is an English children’s author and illustrator best known for her book series the Charlie and Lola picture books, which were adapted into a BAFTA-winning children’s television show, and the Clarice Bean series, which has sold over 7 million copies and won legions of fans over the world who have grown up with Clarice. Child won the annual Kate Greenaway Medal from the Library Association for the first Charlie and Lola book; for the 50th anniversary of the Medal, a panel named it one of the top ten winning works, which comprised the shortlist for a public vote for the nation’s favourite. Child was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2010 New Year Honours and Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2021 Birthday Honours for services to children’s literature. She was the 10th Children’s Laureate from 2017-2019, and is a former trustee of the Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration and a UNESCO Artist for Peace. Her latest book in the Clarice Bean series is Smile, which is published by HarperCollins in March 2024.
Johann Hari is the author of three previous internationally bestselling books, translated into 40 languages. His TED talks have been viewed over 80 million times, and his work has been praised by a broad range of people, from Oprah to Noam Chomsky to Joe Rogan, Elton John, Hillary Clinton and Steven Bartlett. He was also the executive producer of an Oscar-nominated film, and an eight-part TV series with Samuel L. Jackson. His new book, Magic Pill, is a revelatory look at the new drugs transforming weight loss as we know it.
Dorian Lynskey writes about music, film, books and politics for publications including The Guardian, The Observer, the New Statesman, GQ, Billboard, Empire, and Mojo. His first book was 33 Revolutions Per Minute: A History of Protest Songs. A study of thirty-three pivotal songs with a political message, it was NME's Book of the Year and a 'Music Book of the Year' in The Daily Telegraph. His second book, The Ministry of Truth: A Biography of George Orwell's 1984, was longlisted for both the Baillie Gifford Prize and the Orwell Prize. He hosts the podcasts 'Origin Story' and 'Oh God, What Now?'. His latest book, Everything Must Go: The Stories We Tell About The End of the World , is an original and revealing exploration of one of the central concerns of our times: fantasies and nightmares of the end of the world.
Clover Stroud is a writer and journalist, writing regularly for The Sunday Times, The Guardian and The Saturday and Sunday Telegraph, among others. She also hosts a popular podcast called Tiny Acts of Bravery. Her first book, The Wild Other, was shortlisted for the Wainwright Prize. Her critically acclaimed second book, My Wild and Sleepless Nights: A Mother's Story, and third book, The Red of My Blood: A Death and Life Story, were instant Sunday Times bestsellers and rated 'best books of the year'. She is currently living in Washington DC with her husband and the youngest three of her five children. Her latest book, The Giant on the Skyline, is an inspiring memoir about home, family and belonging.
Orlando Whitfield graduated from Goldsmiths University in 2009. He started dealing art while still a student, and worked in and around the art market for fifteen years. His writing has appeared in the Sunday Times, the Paris Review and The White Review. His first book, All That Glitters, is a sharp memoir of greed, ambition and madness in the art world. It tells the story of what happens when art and money collide, and when friendship gets entangled in a ruthless, high-stakes world.