Walking in the Footsteps Of… : Stanfords Travel Writers Festival

How often have you read a travel book and thought about how you would love to recreate that journey? Well these three authors did just that and even turned those journeys into books of their own. Join us as Paul Blezard talks to Jacki Hill-Murphy who has followed the footsteps of a number of early female explorers and adventurers, Alastair Humphreys who busked his way around Spain with a violin he could barely play inspired by Laurie Lee’s As I Walked Out One Midsummer Morning and Ben Aitken who retraced Bill Bryson’s journey from Notes from a Small Island.

The authors also read extracts from their books.

The Extraordinary Tale of Kate Marsden and my Journey Across Siberia in her Footsteps by Jacki Hill-Murphy

The Extraordinary Tale of Kate Marsden and my Journey Across Siberia in her Footsteps

Adventuresses Rediscovering Daring Voyages into the Unknown by Jacki Hill-Murphy

Adventuresses, Rediscovering Daring Voyages into the Unknown

My Midsummer Morning by Alastair Humphreys

My Midsummer Morning

Dear Bill Bryson by Ben Aitken

Dear Bill Bryson: Footnotes from a Small Island

Ned Palmer: A Cheesemonger’s Tour of the British Isles: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Cheesemonger Ned Palmer takes us on a delicious journey across Britain and Ireland and through time to uncover the histories of beloved old favourites like Cheddar and Wensleydale and fresh innovations like the Irish Cashel Blue or the rambunctious Renegade Monk. Along the way we learn the craft and culture of cheesemaking and we get to know the major cheese styles – the blues, washed rinds, semi-softs and, unique to the British Isles, the territorials. Chaired by Julia Wheeler.

A Cheesemonger’s History of The British Isles by Ned Palmer is available now.

A Cheesemonger's History of The British Isles

Adrian Hayes: Trauma, Tragedy and Triumph on K2: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Adrian Hayes talks to Paul Blezard about his attempts to climb K2 – the notorious second highest mountain in the world – in 2013 and again in 2014. During these expeditions his thoughts often turned to his guilt and struggles as a father amid tumultuous personal circumstances; the profound events on K2 and the powerful lessons for our lives in the world below. His is a deeply moving story of the beauty and brutality of life, and death, on the world’s most unpredictable and perilous mountain.

One Man’s Climb: A Journey of Trauma, Tragedy and Triumph on K2 by Adrian Hayes.

William Atkins: Journeys in Desert Places: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Winner of the Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year at the 2019 Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards, William Atkins talks to Julia Wheeler about his experiences in eight deserts: the Empty Quarter of Oman, the Gobi Desert and Taklamakan deserts of northwest China, the Great Victoria Desert of Australia, the man-made desert of the Aral Sea in Kazakhstan, the Black Rock and Sonoran Deserts of the American Southwest, and Egypt’s Eastern Desert. Hear all about the timeless allure of these remote and forbidding places.

The Immeasurable World: Journeys in Desert Places by William Atkins.

Christopher Somerville: The Private Life of Britain’s Cathedrals: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Christopher Somerville talks to Paul Blezard, as he takes us behind the scenes of Britain’s Cathedrals, delving deep into the private life and the uncertain future of these ever-voyaging Ships of Heaven. Nowadays these great stone ships seem solid and unshakeable, but they are leaky old vessels in uncharted waters, tossed on waves of power and glory, scandal and mayhem for a thousand years. Theirs is a thrilling saga of crisis and boldness, of ruin and revival.

Ships Of Heaven: The Private Life of Britain’s Cathedrals by Christopher Somerville.

Ships Of Heaven: The Private Life of Britain's Cathedrals

Diana Darke: The Last Sanctuary in Aleppo: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Diana Darke talks to Julia Wheeler about her new book, The Last Sanctuary in Aleppo. It’s an incredible true story, seeing war-torn Aleppo from the view of an ambulance driver who cares for the people and animals caught in the crossfire and goes on, amidst the chaos and ruin, to create a cat sanctuary.

The Last Sanctuary in Aleppo by Diana Darke.

The Last Sanctuary in Aleppo: A Remarkable True Story of Courage, Hope and Survival

Stanfords Travel Podcast

Tony Juniper: Rainforest: Dispatches from Earth’s Most Vital Frontlines: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Rainforests are the lungs of our planet – regulators of the earth’s temperature and weather. We’ve all heard of their systematic destruction but do we know the implications arising from their continuous decline? Tony Juniper talks about his experience at the frontline of the fight to save the rainforests, explaining the science and history of the campaigns, and what it has felt like to be there, amid the conflicts and dilemmas.

Continue reading Tony Juniper: Rainforest: Dispatches from Earth’s Most Vital Frontlines: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Japan 2020: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Kicking off the 2020 Stanfords Travel Writers Festival at Destinations: The Holiday & Travel Show, we welcome our team of experts on Japan. Find out just why you should be visiting there in 2020.

From history, art and cultural quirks, to how to plan your trip, Robin Moul (Be More Japan), Matt Spiller and Kylie Clark tell all to Paul Blezard.

Continue reading Japan 2020: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2020

Levison Wood in Conversation with Phoebe Smith: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2019

Levison Wood talks to Phoebe Smith about his life as an adventurer and his latest book Arabia. Continue reading Levison Wood in Conversation with Phoebe Smith: Stanfords Travel Writers Festival 2019

Around the World in 80 Trains: Stanfords Travel Writing Festival 2019

When Monisha Rajesh announced plans to circumnavigate the globe in eighty train journeys, she was met with wide-eyed disbelief. But it wasn’t long before she was carefully plotting a route that would cover 45,000 miles, almost twice the circumference of the earth, coasting along the world’s most remarkable railways from the cloud-skimming heights of Tibet’s Qinghai railway to silk sheeted splendour on the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express. Continue reading Around the World in 80 Trains: Stanfords Travel Writing Festival 2019