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Welcome to The Sunday Times Oxford Literary Festival - Saturday 2nd to Sunday 10th April 2011

The 2011 Festival presented the most impressive and prestigious programme yet staged at Oxford - more than 550 speakers over 9 days at Christ Church, Corpus Christi and Merton Colleges.

This year THE SHELDONIAN THEATRE was the the venue for 8 major events:-

HM KING ABDULLAH II OF JORDAN will deliver The Chancellor's Lecture on OUR LAST BEST CHANCE - The Pursuit of Peace in a Time of Peril'

His Majesty's visit has been postponed until a later date. Details will be posted on the Festival web site in due course.

HRH THE PRINCESS ROYAL launched the Festival's new programme to celebrate and honour the diverse cultures and traditions of Africa, as President of Save the Children

KAZUO ISHIGURO - Booker Prize Winner ('Remains of the Day') was interviewed by Peter Kemp about his book 'Never Let me Go' and will receive the 2011 Honorary Fellowship of the Festival.

A C GRAYLING - Launched his new work 'THE GOOD BOOK A Secular Bible' - collecting, editing re-arranging and organising the collective secular wisdom of the world in one volume.

THE CHILDREN'S LAUREATES - Four Children's Laureates - ANTHONY BROWNE, ANNE FINE, MICHAEL ROSEN and JACQUELINE WILSON launched the Festival's Children's Programme.

TIM SMIT - Chief Executive and co-Founder of the acclaimed EDEN PROJECT and co-restorer of The Lost Gardens of Heligan talked about the first 10 years of Eden which has inspired environmentalists around the world.

MICHAEL FRAYN - Award winning author and playwright talked about his life and career with Peter Kemp and receives The Sunday Times Award for Literary Excellence.

KAREN ARMSTRONG - Internationally celebrated author and religious thinker talked about her new book 'GOD AS IMPERATIVE' and about her ecumenical CHARTER FOR COMPASSION

DR DAVID STARKEY CROWN AND COUNTRY; OUR HISTORY THROUGH THE MONARCHY - The nation's most provocative historian and broadcaster charted the sweep of the nation's history from the Romans to the Windsors - and offered a tantalising glimpse of his second volume on King Henry VIII.

Among this year's other exceptional range of speakers were:-

Novelists

• Philip Pullman
• A S Byatt
• Ben Okri
• Joanne Harris
• David Lodge
• Edna O'Brien
• Hisham Matar
• Hanif Kureshi
• David Nicholls
• Elif Shafak
• Adam Mars-Jones
• Brian Aldiss
• Nicholas Evans
• Elif Batuman
• Penelope Lively
• Fay Weldon

Historians

• Niall Ferguson
• Simon Sebag-Montefiore
• Orlando Figes
• Peter Hennessy
• Vernon Bogdanor
• John Julius Norwich
• D.R. Thorpe
• Michael Wood
• Tristram Hunt
• Philip Ziegler
• Kenneth O Morgan

Biographers and Writers

• Michael Holroyd
• Alexandra Harris
• D J Taylor
• Daisy Hay
• Simon Winchester
• Adam Sisman
• Henry Hitchings
• Ion Trewin
• John Cornwell
• Adam Nicolson

Crime Writers

• P D James
• Colin Dexter
• Ann Cleeves
• Jill Paton-Walsh

Scientists

• Sir Paul Nurse
• Marcus de Sautoy
• Peter Atkins
• Jill Tarter
• Frank Close
• David Eagleman
• Lewis Wolpert

Economists

• Nigel Lawson
• Ian Goldin
• Will Hutton
• David Smith
• Matt Ridley

Cookery Writers

• Madhur Jaffrey
• Prue Leith
• Sarah Raven
• Ken Hom
• Josceline Dimbleby

Commentators

• Matthew Parris
• Peter Sissons
• David Aaronovitch
• David Loyn
• Antony Jay
• Jonathan Powell
• Nicholas Jones
• Yasmin Alibhai-Brown
• Adam Boulton

Artists, Art Writers, and Critics

• Maggi Hambling
• Michael Petry
• David Shepherd
• Mark Jones
• Will Gompertz
• Christopher Brown
• Manuel Fontan de Junco
• Christopher Lloyd
• Edmund de Waal
• Matthew Collings
• Alan Yentob

Travel Writers

• Colin Thubron
• Patrick French
• Hugh Thomson

The Festival Social Programme ranges from breakfast briefings and Literary Dinners - to special tastings of Port, Madeira, Gin, Whisky and Beer with the opportunity to walk them off with Literary and Art Tours of Oxford.

2012 FESTIVAL

The 2012 Festival dates are 24th March to 1st April 2012.