Held in the oak lined 420 seat auditorium at Kings Place "Words on Monday" will be devoted to the spoken word, with talks and discussions organised in conjunction with amongst others, The Guardian, Nature, Picador, Faber & Faber and Poet in the City.
The programme starts at 7.00 pm so there is always plenty of time afterwards to retire to the bar on the water front to continue what we hope has been a stimulating evening of thought provoking ideas.
Download the Spring 2010 Words on Monday Flyer
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To coincide, appropriately, with Burns Night (25th January), London Arts venue Kings Place can announce the winning design for the first-ever tartan for London, going to student James Heafield. The final design was chosen by Lanarkshire-born Robbie Coltrane, currently starring as Rubeus Hagrid in the internationally popular Harry Potter film series; along with fellow judge, Scottish poet Jackie Kay MBE. The Scottish Tartans Authority (the promotional, educational and advisory body for the weaving and Highland dress industry), will officially register James's design with the Tartan Register in Edinburgh - thus cementing its authenticity as the first tartan for London.
Back in November 2009, to mark St Andrew's Day (Monday 30th November), and its evening of Burns poetry and song , Kings Place teamed up with The Scottish Tartans Authority to launch the unique initiative of offering the chance for the general public to design - for the very first time - a tartan for London. Out of all the submissions, Robbie Coltrane described James's tartan as "my favourite, because it looks like a real tartan, in that all the contrasts and different widths and textures are there, but there is a sense of harmony overall. Really handsome, and warm. The others have their charms and rationales, but I think this is by far the most "convincing". Well done."
Jackie Kay MBE concurred, describing the design as "classic as well as classy, a cool tartan for a cool city. If I had to make a kilt out of any of these, this is the one I would pick. I like the warmth of the red, and the subtlety of the thin blue lines."
Of the 90 designs entered into the competition, all were required to submit a brief description outlining the reason(s) behind their design, as winner James Heafield explains: "I started with a prominent red background as I feel it is one of the most closely associated colours with the city of London, not least because of the traditional red London buses but as because it adds a regal nature to the tartan symbolising the capitals noble past as the centre of British life. The red also makes reference to the royal family who reside at Buckingham Palace as well as more general British institutions such as red phone boxes and red post boxes. I then added a black line to symbolise the famous London black cabs and added a white line to subtly suggest road markings as a representation of the many London streets that make up the capital. Next I inserted a green line hidden between the red, black and white to represent the great London parks (such as Hyde Park, Regent Park and Greenwich Park) that are hidden between the London streets. Lastly I added thin blue lines that run across the tartan like the River Thames runs across the city. The pattern of the tartan and particularly the thin brightly coloured blue and green lines are to suggest a link to the London underground map as well as generally resembling the gate on the back on a 1p coin."
Central Saint Martin's Presents: The Painting of Modern Life
Ralph Rugoff, Director of the Hayward Gallery explores last twentieth century art
Choose where you would like to sit. Use our seating plan to choose your price and seat.
Time: 19:00 (Monday 15 February)
Venue: Hall One
Seamus Heaney
Poet Seamus Heaney in conversation at Kings Place
Time: 19:00 (Monday 22 February)
Venue: Hall One
Seamus Heaney Event Relay
Another chance to experience this special event...
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Time: 19:00 (Monday 22 February)
Venue: Hall Two
This Country Can No Longer Afford To Subsidise The Arts
Joan Bakewell leads a topical debate during Words on Monday
The Guardian Events Series - Is Britain Broken?
And if so, can we fix it?
Carol Ann Duffy and Friends
Poet in the City brings Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy to Kings Place
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Time: 19:00 (Monday 22 March)
Venue: Hall One
Famous for a Reason?
English PEN discusses the cult of celebrity during Words on Monday
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Time: 19:00 (Monday 29 March)
Venue: Hall One
