Russell Tovey and Sarah Solemani – on-screen lovers in BBC Three sitcom Him And Her - will be appearing to read extracts from Ovid’s hilarious poetic elegy The Art of Love.

They’ll be joining Niamh Cusack and War Horse’s Tom Hiddleston, who will be reading The Courtship of Mr Lyon by Angela Carter and Tennessee Williams’s The Kingdom of Heaven respectively. 

With a star-studded and jam packed guest list and some wonderful and definitely unconventional Valentine’s day fare being read aloud,  it promises to be another absolutely brilliant event.

Get your tickets now – they’re available from the Criterion Box Office, online or by calling 0844 8471778. Tickets cost £12.50/£10 for GIR members/concessions.

Across their 300 care homes in the UK, Bupa will this week get residents as well as members of the local community sharing stories and bringing the act of storytelling to life. Alongside a number of special storytelling events, Bupa residents will also get the chance to take part in a special poetry and short story competition, sharing their own stories.

From our time spent partnering Bupa, and as the range of our work with older people tells us, we know that sharing stories with care home residents has a great effect in a number of ways – boosting wellbeing, increasing relaxation and good mood, stimulating memory and encouraging connections not just with themselves but with relatives, care home workers and one another.

The strongest testament to the power of shared reading  has amongst Bupa care home residents comes from family members of residents who have witnessed firsthand the positive effects of storytelling on their loved ones, and how it leads to the telling of personal stories:

Since attending the group my Dad has rediscovered his love of literature. He does not have the concentration to read for himself so being able to read out in a group and have poetry read to him and discuss the piece together has been great for him. He has also met other people from the other house where the group is held with whom he has interacted.

At one session recently Dad started chatting to another member of the group and it turned out that the three other gentlemen had attended the same school as my dad. My dad is in his 80’s and it was lovely for us as a family to see him becoming animated about stories he had shared with the 3 guys. He talks very fondly of the atmosphere in the group, it sounds very welcoming and creates an environment where people can chat freely about the piece they are reading.

My Dad also told me that one of the people in the group used to have difficulty speaking and since going to the sessions has now started talking to the other members – this is a massive credit to the group and the way it is presented…it has given my dad so much joy.

The Reader Organisation fully supports the ongoing storytelling sessions at Bupa care homes nationwise, knowing that the act of storytelling holds great therapeutic benefits for older people, and we hope that as many people as possible – old and young alike – will get involved in the activities to experience for themselves the wonder of reading and storytelling.

If you would like to find out more information on how to attend or take part in a Bupa storytelling event, call 0845 600 4622 or e-mail storytellingweek@bupa.com .

A staggering 92% of audience members who responded to our feedback forms said that they enjoyed the event ‘very much’ (with nobody ticking the ‘not very much’ or ‘not at all boxes’) – and given the array of talented readers and incredibly entertaining performers, it’s not hard to see why we got such an enthusiastic response.

Indeed, there was a lot on offer to enjoy and we’re thrilled to say that every aspect went down a storm – it’s especially heartening to find that 93% of audience respondents said they enjoyed the readings most; given that reading aloud is at the very heart of the Dickensian tradition the Penny Readings adheres to, it’s brilliant to know that it is as timeless as ever (we like to think that Dickens would be very proud indeed).

Plus we had lots of wonderful comments too:

So worth the trip, you were all brilliant. What a buzz and what connections!

A great afternoon’s real entertainment.

Interesting to see the other people who came and the enthusiasm.

A really enjoyable afternoon.

Absolutely fantastic. Here’s hoping there will be many more Penny Readings in the future…

(Also, you can read a first-hand audience perspective of the event on this lovely blog: Mrs Miniver’s Daughter)

We celebrated both Dickens’ bicentenary, and the expansion of our Get Into Reading groups across the capital, with a truly magical line-up of readers, comedy, and music which had the audiences in stitches one minute, and tearful the next. The British Library provided a suitably literary venue and Vintage gave everyone a free Dickens novel to take home with them. No wonder the public tickets sold out in a day!

Charles Dickens casts a critical eye over proceedings

Whilst a portrait of the great man himself looked down on us, his actual DNA appeared on stage in the form of Lucinda Dickens Hawksley, his great-great-great granddaughter, who apologised for reading A Tale of Two Cities from a well-loved paperback rather than a precious family heirloom. This made no difference to the quality of her performance, however; all of our readers left the audience in spellbound silence. 

The wonderful AS Byatt read the opening to Great Expectations, reminiscing about the effect it had on her as a child and delivering Magwitch’s threats with relish. It might be January, but our own Phil Davis’ portrayal of the loving Cratchitt family in A Christmas Carol  still kindled a warm and fuzzy feeling, whilst  Angela Macmillan movingly recreated Peggotty’s loyalty and devotion to the young David Copperfield, leaving one audience member ‘weeping like a burst water pipe’.

Ida Barr does her thing

TRO's Director Jane Davis and Tweedy the Clown

 Judging by the enthusiastic response from the audience and the reaction on Twitter, the event was an enormous success:

“I didn’t know I could be entertained like that”

“Clowns, cowbells, magicians and AS Byatt should be mixed more often!”

“Pure joy”

Dickens himself was a consummate entertainer and would surely have approved of the eclectic line-up, a perfect mix of comedy and pathos, just like the novels we were there to celebrate.

A big thank you to everyone who was involved and made it such a special event. If you came along, we’d love to hear your thoughts so please leave a comment below.

Don’t worry if you didn’t make it this time around – we will be back in Liverpool as usual in December and fingers crossed our London escapades will be the first of many!

From Pip to Potter: Celebrating the Place of Children in Care in Literature will take an insightful look at the representation of cared for children in a range of well-loved literature – some of the best loved literary characters are children who are living away from home (Peter Pan, Harry Potter, Lyra Belacqua in Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy) and an esteemed panel, including representatives from The Reader Organisation, will gather to discuss these cared-for heroes in the context of a system where children in care can experience stigma.

Poet Lemn Sissay, who has personal experience of the care system, will lead the discussion, and will be joined by Rose Griffiths, founder of The Letterbox Club and poet Caroline Bird who will be representing the work of First Story, which fosters creativity, literacy and talent in hard-to-reach young people.

The Reader Organisation can testify to the significance of reading with looked-after children, and this stimulating event promises to highlight the importance of literature in the lives of cared-for children.

From Pip To Potter: Celebrating the Place of Children in Care in Literature
Sunday 19th February, 5pm, Level 5 Function Room
Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX

The event is free but requires a ticket and a small booking charge will apply. You can reserve your ticket online on the Southbank Centre website (£1.75 transaction fee) or by phone on 0844 847 9910 (£2.75 transaction fee). You can also book your ticket without transaction fees by visiting one of the Southbank Centre’s ticketing offices in person.

On the evening of Friday 10th February, the Criterion Theatre in London will play host to an evening of Twisted Love – an anti-Valentine’s collection of unlikely love stories. Niamh Cusack will read Angela Carter’s The Courtship of Mr Lyon and Tom Hiddleston – star of Stephen Spielberg’s blockbusting take on War Horse – will be reading the erotic Tennessee Williams short story The Kingdom of Heaven.

The Reader Organisation is delighted to once more be partnering the event alongside the Criterion and Vintage Classics, bringing the brilliant tradition of bedtime stories to the heartland of London theatre and sharing with the audience the sensation of reading aloud. So it’s fair to say we’re very much looking forward to the evening’s distinctly different take on the Valentine’s theme – as is one of the evening’s star guests, Tom Hiddleston:

The prospect of standing on that beautiful stage and reading well-written stories aloud, in particular, is one that excites me. And given that everything that night will be geared at couples on dates, an evening of twisted love sounds like the right antidote.

Stories Before Bedtime TWO: Twisted Love
Friday 10th February, 10.30pm
Criterion Theatre, 218-223 Piccadilly, Piccadilly Circus, London, W1V 9LB

Tickets: £12.50 (£10 GIR member/concessions available in person the Criterion Box Office)

Book your tickets online or call 0844 8471778.

Forget flowers and chocolates – a night of reading is a considerably better and much longer lasting gift for your loved one to enjoy.

Alongside Dr. Josie Billington, Research Associate at the School of English, University of Liverpool and Deputy Director of our research partner Centre for Research Into Reading, Information and Linguistic Systems (CRILS), Jane will be leading an interactive workshop on Reading For Wellbeing at the event; one of several which will provide the opportunity for participants to learn about ongoing arts and wellbeing projects – such as Get Into Reading – from leading arts for health practitioners.

The conference will give those involved in public health, the arts and community development the chance to reflect upon the achievements of arts and health collaborations to date, examine the growing evidence-base for the value of creative activity within the areas of health and wellbeing in the UK and internationally and look forward to future opportunities and challenges.

The event is sold out  but for more information about the Royal Society of Public Health and for other upcoming events, please visit the RSPH website.

Novelist and flash fiction writer David Gaffney, author of Sawn-Off Tales (2006) and Aromabingo (2007), will be appearing at Spellow Library on Monday 30th January, 6pm-7:30pm. David will be discussing his recent book, The Half Life of Songs.

Then, on Wednesday 1st February, 6pm-7:30pm, Childwall Library will play host to Gladys Mary Coles. Best known as a poet, with publications including The Song of the Butcher Bird (2006) and The Echoing Green (2002), Gladys will discuss her body of work and her debut novel, Clay.

Entrance for both events is free and seating is available on a first come, first served basis. Copies of the authors’ books will be on sale.

For more information about the David Gaffney event, please contact Spellow Library, County Road, L4 3QF; 0151 293 8365.

For more information about the Gladys Mary Coles event, please contact Childwall Library, Fiveways Centre, L15 6UT; 0151 233 2746.

For more information on Liverpool Libraries see www.liverpool.gov.uk.

For more information on regional events, reading groups and suggestions for further reading, see www.time-to-read.co.uk.

Editor: Please not that there was an error in the date of the Childwall event. This event will actually be taking place on Wednesday 1st February.

However if you missed out then there’s no need to fear because Part Two begins in the New Year, in the very same place. Brian will continue to illustrate Dorset’s various strong literary connections by reading a selection of works from authors who lived, loved (in the case of Sir Thomas Wyatt, Dorset was his final resting place, being buried there) and were inspired by the picturesque county.

Jane Austen frequently holidayed in Lyme Regis and the resort figures large in Persuasion, which would be her last completed novel, and which will be read during the course. Wordsworth wrote his earliest poems in Dorset and T.F Powys and John Fowles both lived there – to signal this, the course will also feature poems and short stories by these three writers.

This selection of literary works will be read over a ten week period, and promises to be relaxing, illuminating and immensely enjoyable. The course will start on Thursday 19th January at Birkenhead Central Library and all texts will be provided. Funds will go towards supporting The Reader Organisation. For more information on booking, call 0151 207 7207.

Also, you can get a taster of what to expect from the wonderful Mr Nellist here…

We’re having a shared reading Christmas party while listening so please get involved -  tweet your thoughts by using the #eveningreadin hashtag and join our Tweet Party (Party Hashtag: #eveningreadin; Party Host: @thereaderorg)

Also, if you’ve missed any of the previous parts you can get everything Evening Read-In related right here : what better way to spend some time over the festive period than listening to the most classic Christmas story of all being read aloud?

Click here to listen to A Christmas Carol – Part 5 audio

Read along with the story here

Part 5 Synopsis:

Scrooge is overjoyed to find that everything in his room is as it once was and is especially happy and grateful to Marley and the Three Spirits for everything they have shown him. He is very much an altered man and pledges to show his gratitude for the second chance he has been given by embracing the spirit of Christmas and life itself. He is quite giddy and unsure of how long he has been gone, he calls out to a boy and asks him what day it is. The boy replies that it is Christmas Day. He then instructs the boy to go and buy the biggest turkey in the butcher’s shop – saying he will pay him to do so – so it can be delivered to the Cratchits’ house.

Once he is ready, Scrooge goes out into the street and wishes everybody he sees a Merry Christmas. He comes across one of the gentleman who had called at his office the day before campaigning on behalf of the poor and needy. He apologises for his actions and promises to donate many large sums of money to the charity to make up for his past discrepancies. He passes through the streets, as joyful as it is possible for any person to be. He arrives at Fred’s house, where he is welcomed with open arms to dinner and the family’s Christmas party.

The next morning Scrooge arrives early at his office purposely to catch Bob Cratchit coming in late. Scrooge adopts his old demeanour as a disguise and chastises a flustered Bob for his lateness, before saying he will raise his salary – something that Bob initially does not believe. The two men drink to Christmas and from that day Scrooge becomes a close friend to the entire Cratchit family – especially to Tiny Tim, who prospers. Scrooge truly is a changed man and continues to keep Christmas as well as any man can.