Monmouth Women's Festival 2008
Celebrating women’s creativity and achievements
Thursday 28 February – Sunday 9 March
Switch off that telly, put your glad-rags on and come out to the festival! Follow the links below to each day's events.
Thursday 28th February, 7.30pm
The Savoy Theatre, Church Street
His Girl Friday
Starring Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell
See how far we’ve come since 1940, while enjoying the sparkling wit and shining stars in one of the best-known ‘screwball comedies’. Howard Hawks directs, as Grant, playing a hard-boiled newspaper editor, attempts to manipulate his former star reporter (and ex-wife), played by Russell, out of re-marrying.
Don your finest ‘40s outfit if you like, join us for refreshments - and a refreshing reminder of a glamorous, black-and-white Hollywood world.
“Possibly the fastest comedy ever filmed, and one of the funniest”- Halliwell’s Film Guide
Tickets: £5
From Friday 29th February
The Nelson Museum, Priory Street
Exhibition: Celebrating Sisterhood:
Women's organisations in Monmouth Exploring the history of women's organisations, using photographs, newspaper reports, costumes, documents and reminiscences to illustrate the story - from women's friendly societies to Monew. The exhibition looks at the women and work of the Girl Guides, Mothers' Union, Women's Institute, WRVS, British Legion Women's Section, Townswomen's Guild, The National Women's Register and more. Join us at the Museum for coffee at the Exhibition Launch, on Friday 29 February at 11am.
Join us at the Museum for coffee at the Exhibition Launch, on Friday 29 February at 11am.
Monday 3rd March, 7.30pm
The Hall, Haberdashers Monmouth School for Girls, Hereford Road
Professor Mona Siddiqui: Muslim women: veils, values and voices
Mona Siddiqui is Professor of Islamic Studies and Public Understanding at the University of Glasgow, but you may well know her as a familiar voice on the Radio 4 Today Programme’s Thought for the Day.
Her talk looks at the women of Islam – how Western society perceives them, and what their true place is in Muslim culture. What influences them, and what influence can these women have on the troubled times in which we live?
Mona Siddiqui has published widely, and teaches on subjects including Arabic, Classical Islam, Islamic Law and the Qur’an. She has spoken at prestigious venues around the world, including the United Nations, and appeared on many radio and television programmes. We are privileged that she joins us in Monmouth, where she is also taking a schools sixth-form seminar for the Festival.
Tickets: £8
Tuesday 4th March, 7.30pm
The Hall, Monmouth Comprehensive School, Old Dixton Road
Sarah Dickins: Life in a Hard Hat: Women in television
Sarah Dickins is a familiar face on BBC Wales, regularly presenting Wales Today. She treats us tonight to an insider’s view of the TV industry. How have attitudes to women changed during the last twenty years – and what role will they take in the future of television? Sarah is an acclaimed speaker, and will doubtless pepper her talk with amusing anecdotes and an entertaining view from the other side of the camera.
Sarah, who lives between Monmouth and Abergavenny, has media experience ranging from correspondent to producer. She now runs Blue Egg Productions, whose radio and TV documentary programmes, including Wales' Last Brigader and Return Journey, have met with high critical acclaim.
Tickets: £5
Wednesday 5th March, 7.30pm
Monmouth Priory, Priory Street
Deirdre Beddoe: Women in Wales in the Second World War
Professor Beddoe gives us a fascinating look into our recent past, drawing on her extensive research to bring alive an era that transformed the lives and roles of women.
Deirdre Beddoe was the first professor of women’s history to be appointed in Britain, and is Emeritus Professor of Women's History at the University of Glamorgan. She has written extensively on women’s experiences, including publishing a guide to researching women’s lives, Discovering Women’s History, and editing two volumes of writing by Welsh women on their lives in wartime and in the 1950s and ‘60s. She has lectured around the world, is a regular broadcaster and was historical consultant to BBC Wales’ Land of Our Mothers. Professor Beddoe is also President of Archif Menywod Cymru – the Women's Archive of Wales, which will be visiting Monmouth on 6th March.
Tickets: £8
Thursday 6th March, 10am – 2pm
Monmouth Priory, Priory Street
History Roadshow: Women’s Archive of Wales / Archif Menywod Cymru
The History Roadshow comes to Monmouth! The Women's Archive of Wales is taking its Roadshow to selected areas in the country, offering the opportunity for you to bring along those old photographs, letters, diaries and other memorabilia which you have kept over the years.
The Roadshow will have experts on hand to evaluate what you have and give you advice on conservation and preservation. The Archive is hoping to record the history of women in Wales - and your photograph album or the old piece of china might be highly significant! So take advantage of this unique offer of a historical valuation, and make a contribution to the recording of the history of women in Wales.
For more information: Contact: Sue Hamill 01792 229221, or visit: www.womensarchivewales.org
Entry free
Friday 7th, Saturday 8th, Sunday 9th March, 10am - 4pm.
Monmouth Priory, Priory Street
MWF Art Exhibition
Showcasing some of the most talented women artists in the Monmouth area, this year’s exhibition includes the colourful figurative and abstract paintings of Nikki Emery, Ann Baxter-Wright and Jan Thompson and the exquisite calligraphy of Tess Cooling.
Join us for the Preview on Thursday 6th March at 5.30pm, or browse the exhibition during Friday, Saturday or Sunday.
Thursday 6 March, 7.30pm
The Blake Theatre, Almshouse Street
Ann Widdecombe MP: Life as a woman in politics
The Rt. Hon. Ann Widdecombe MP is one of Britain’s best-known woman politicians. Whatever your politics, you’ll be challenged, entertained and impressed by her outspoken views and outstanding political career. Tonight, she comes to Monmouth Women’s Festival to give us some of her experiences from the world of Westminster.
Miss Widdecombe retired from the Shadow Cabinet in 2001 so she could speak more freely on issues she cares about – and she’s done just that. What light can her unique perspective shed on the machinations of the male-dominated world of politics?
Ann Widdecombe was elected as MP for Maidstone in 1987, and her roles included Minister of State for the Home office from 1995 and Shadow Home Secretary from 1999. She’s also written four novels, been The Guardian’s agony aunt and made diverse television appearances including Anne Widdecombe to the Rescue and Grumpy Old Women.
http://www.political.co.uk/annwiddecombe
Tickets: £11
Friday 7th March, 7.30pm
The Blake Theatre, Almshouse Street
An Audience with Helen Lederer: From stand-up to grown-up
Comedian, writer and actor Helen Lederer is celebrated for her unique brand of wit and observational humour. From the early stand-up at London’s Comedy Store to her appearances as ditsy journalist Catriona in Absolutely Fabulous, Helen has been entertaining audiences from BBC Radio 4 (Woman’s Hour, The News Quiz, Just a Minute) to the London stage. She is a columnist, travel and wine writer (including Woman & Home, Good Housekeeping, The Independent), speaker, ambassador for the Prince’s Trust, and is writing her second novel.
On this special evening for MWF, Helen will deliver some of her observations on life before opening the floor for questions from the audience.
“The rewards of [Lederer’s] brazen honesty are divinely witty epigrams” - The Guardian
This event supported by:
....beautiful ladies clothes
23 Church Street, Monmouth.
Tel' 01600 719800
Ticket price: £11
Saturday 8th March, 11am – 4pm
Bridges Community Centre, Wonastow Road
Meet the Craftswomen
A chance to meet some of Monmouthshire’s most creative women – and see them at work during this special day. You can also try your own hand at some of the processes involved in creating these individual works of art. On show will be basket-weaving, felt tapestry-making, quilting, calligraphy, pottery, jewellery-making, knitting, textile art - and more!
Join us for a cup or coffee or tea and slice of cake, and perhaps pick up a gift for you or your friends while you’re here.
Entry free. Refreshments available.
Sunday 9th March, 3pm
Monmouth Priory, Priory Street
Angela Old: Relationships and Granny Lit
Monmouth’s very own Angela Old – who writes as AV Denham – tells us about life as a popular novelist. She asks: is romance dead? Not in her novels, which are just the thing to curl up with on a Sunday afternoon.
How did Angela come to be writing ‘granny lit’ – and what is it? She gives us a glimpse of her latest novel, Unintended Consequences, and she touches on aspects of the writer’s art, and how her own career – as Emergency Services Manager for South East Wales, and as wife of a local GP – has influenced her writing.
Tickets: £5, to include afternoon tea.
With thanks to adventa for their generous funding of Monmouth Women's Festival's 2008 programme brochure and promotional bookmarks.
Monmouth Women’s Festival also thanks the following for their support and funding:
Welsh Assembly Government, Welsh Academi, the Roman Catholic Church of Monmouth, Monmouth History Society, FMO Design.