Henry Porter and talks

Last night the village hall in Wootton-by-Woodstock was packed to hear Henry Porter give a talk about thrillers. This was the fourth talk organised by Wootton Village Hall talks (see their website http://www.woottontalks.co.uk/ for full details and pictures) and the first I have managed to attend. There was a mock-up of the Berlin Wall at the back of the hall, decorated with copies of original graffiti from the wall by a small team of Wootton residents one of whom has worked as a set designer on the Bond films at Pinewood. The atmosphere in the hall was great - very friendly, and there was food and drink which was most welcome as I had gone there straight from the shop. I had a stall and sold all Henry's books. He has written four thrillers - the last one, Brandenberg, has been a huge success here where it won the Ian Fleming award 2005 for the best thriller. In France it was voted the best thriller published last year. If you haven't read it, give it a go: it's unputdownable. He has also written a good children's book. He offered to give a talk here when his next book appears in the summer, so if that comes to anything I'll let you know.

Talks are very popular in and around Woodstock. I went to the inaugural talk of the Woodstock & Area Literature Society last week - Dr David Grylls on 'Sex in Victorian Fiction', which was every bit as fascinating as it sounds. And I thought what a great way to spend an evening - sitting with other people, all listening together to someone who speaks with great enthusiasm and energy. It feels very retro and I suspect it's the way forward.