Ilminster literary Festival a triumph

Well, what a week it has been! A week and a half actually. The first ever Ilminster Literary Festival kicked off at the beginning of the month, and just ran …. and ran.

In all I managed to attend 18 out of the 26 events; no mean feat when trying to fit in the day job, I can tell you.

The culmination of 12 months hard work, sweat and tears on the part of my fellow Rotarian, Brenda Lake, along with the support of her committed, yet diverse, team of volunteers. What a resounding success it has been.

My part was to ensure that word got out, compile the quiz and liaise with The Shrubbery over the launch dinner. I am a stickler for detail and was keen that the menu reflected the literary tone of the festival, so selected dishes accordingly. Whilst I felt that Henry and his team in the kitchen had done us proud, there were of course the usual grumbles along the lines of ‘Where’s the gravy and roast potatoes to go with the roast chicken?’, proving that you cannot please all of the people all of the time.  

In my capacity as Ilminster Rotary President, I had the pleasure of being seated next to our guest speaker, local author and cricket commentator Anthony Gibson, who showed great depth of knowledge when telling us of the wealth of literary inspiration provided by our wonderful West Country landscape, complete with extracts from his book ‘With Magic in My Eyes’. Not known for my love of physical exercise, I now feel sufficiently inspired to take him up on his suggested walks. 

What followed in the coming days was an exhausting marathon of events, with both first time authors and old hands all coming together to enlighten, enthral, entertain and amuse us all; held at a range of wide range of venues across the town, including Nyanza Lodge, enabling some of us to take a peek inside for the first time. It was here that to a packed house, with standing room only, that David Gordon took us on a poignant trip back to the First World War through the eyes of his father; history in the making, heightened by the personal letters to his mother, recounting conditions at Ypres and other famous battle sites. Spellbound, silence prevailed as he brought it alive.

What struck me most about the festival was the diversity of what was on offer. By the end of the week my head was spinning.

I loved the twist in the tales of Tim Bates’ ‘Animals with Attitude’, and went on an emotional journey with Carina Lagnado as she gave the background to the birth of her very personal book ‘Lola Pug’, and got to meet Lola, the pug.

The audience of adults and children alike was spellbound by Petr Horacek and the amazing talent he demonstrated in illustrating his children’s books. With no children myself, but spurred on by the very generous offer of a personal illustration inside each book purchased, I succumbed, and at the age of 61 am now the proud owner of ‘Blue Penguin’.

Sally Nex, a popular local speaker and renowned gardening expert, gave a fascinating insight into the trials and tribulations experienced by those who exhibit at Chelsea, along with the impact of ‘The Chelsea Effect’, when a plant or design idea gains instant fame.  Next year we must definitely allow her more time.

Editor Sue Laybourn provided me with a fair idea of how to go about writing a romantic novel, and the necessity of including an element of conflict to make it a good read.

I enjoyed listening to all of the contributors to ‘A Way With Words’, mainly members of the public, some of whom were very talented. Perhaps most poignant, and memorable, was the brave young lady who stood up, amongst a crowd of oldies, to recite for the first time a written account of her own sad personal experiences. Several days later I joined a merry throng on Sunday afternoon to hear from members of the West of England Authors Group, clearly indicating the high level of talent that there is just on our doorstep. I now know how to manipulate my fan to good effect to attract the attention of a gentleman, and that arsenic is perhaps not the best thing to use in place of Viagra.

As one might expect the appearance of the formidable Ann Widdecombe caused much excitement, and in her usual, very individual style, she kept the packed house at the Warehouse riveted during her interview with Malcolm Young.

The quiz was a huge success, borne out by the high scoring winners, and also helped to boost the coffers for next year.

With one of the key aims to encourage youngsters, the final event of the festival, the poetry reading held at Greenfylde School, really put the icing on the cake. for a truly triumphal event.

It certainly has been something for everyone this week. As the festival gathered pace we could all begin to breathe a sigh of relief; not least on my part because it signalled the end of committee meetings, at least for a week or two until we start planning next year’s event.