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Vintage podcast with Sally Heathcote Suffragette
There was so much going on back in May, when Sally Heathcote Suffragette came out, that I’ve overlooked an interview we did in the Random House building. It was the week we were in London for a spot on BBC’s Woman’s Hour, then a Shoulder to Shoulder conference and related exhibition of Sally art at Birkbeck College. We were also occupied with a busy signing at Gosh! and an event at the Cartoon Museum. This was my write-up of the week’s events: On the road with Sally Heathcote.Fortunately, the interview is still online as a Vintage podcast. In the podcast we follow Vagenda authors, Holly Baxter and Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett.
I’ve also just found this nice little review in a blog called Tiny Library. 5 out of 5 for Sally! Thanks, Tiny Library, whoever you are!
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Sally in Scotland, Talbots in Lakeland
Here’s the video of the Sally Heathcote Suffragette event at the Edinburgh Book Festival last month. Thanks to Jane Barry for her expert filming and editing.
On returning from a week’s holiday, for me the Edinburgh film was an opportunity to revisit a very pleasant occasion. Bryan and I have been enjoying a battery-recharging week in and around Keswick, the first proper holiday we’ve had for a couple of years.We didn’t see any badgers, though. Shame.
Castlerigg Stone Circle Looking down on Keswick from Latrigg Another hazy day Another bad hair day! Grandy Nook. A grand place to stay -
Edinburgh Book Festival
Just back from a busy trip to Edinburgh, at the final weekend of the Edinburgh Fringe and International Book Festival. Straight off the train on Friday, Bryan and I joined Kate Charlesworth at Word Power, a radical bookshop in Nicolson Street, for an hour or so talking about the making of Sally Heathcote, Suffragette. That evening we were all entertained by Freight Books at a launch party for IDP: 2043, a graphic novel produced in collaboration with the Festival. You can listen to two of the contributors, Denise Mina and Adam Murphy, talking about the book in a radio interview on The Culture Studio.
Saturday 12.30 was our main event about Sally. We were in discussion with Teddy Jamieson in front of a full theatre audience. As the chair finished his preliminary panel introduction, a woman in the crowd called out “Votes for Women!” Then a few moments later, another stood up brandishing an umbrella and shouted again “Votes for Women!” This was the cue for a suffragette choir to march in, singing “The March of the Women” to a drum accompaniment. They were superb. The choir is Edinburgh’s own “Loud and Proud”, of which Kate herself is a member. (The event was filmed and I hope to be able to post a link to it soon.)
Then, after an hour’s lively discussion, we removed to the bookshop for a signing that lasted around an hour and a half. I have no idea how many copies that amounts to.Kate and I had another fixture later the same day. There were two panel discussions with contributors to IDP: 2043, both chaired by Denise Mina. We were in the second of them, along with Barroux and Irvine Welsh, followed again by a signing session (but not another singing session, more’s the pity…)
Left to right: Irvine Welsh, Barroux, Kate Charlesworth, Mary Talbot, Denise Mina Photographs by Dianne Barry and Vintage Books.
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Raising the flag to celebrate 42 years
It’s our 42nd wedding anniversary today and Bryan has surprised me with a present! I am now the proud wearer of an antique enamelled brooch in the shape of a flag that bears the slogan ‘Votes for Women’. It’s an authentic piece of merchandising originally sold by the Women’s Social and Political Union.He arranged to buy it, without my knowledge, when we were in London at the beginning of May. Suffrage historian and antiquarian Elizabeth Crawford supplied with it the following information:
Unusually, it’s possible to date this badge pretty accurately. It is marked on the back with the maker’s name ‘Toye’, which was in usage between 1898 and 1909 when the passing of a new Companies’ Act meant that henceforward it was known as ‘Toye & Co’. Toye produced much of the WSPU merchandise, including the Hunger-Strike medals.
The 31 December 1908 issue of Votes for Women lists all merchandise that the WSPU was selling at that time – and this ‘flag design’ brooch is not included. However, as the WSPU was about to launch its big fund-raising event – the Exhibition at Prince’s Skating Rink – they had clearly added to their wares and the 14 May 1909 issue of Votes for Women included amongst the new items this Brooch – described as ‘Flag (words “Votes for Women”) 1/- each.’
These items are now extremely rare and highly collectable. I’m perfectly certain that Bryan paid vastly more than one shilling for it! I’d admired the design (seen in photographs) and wrote it into a WSPU shop scene in Sally Heathcote, Suffragette. You can see Kate’s loving representation in the first panel on page 62. It’s also one of the items in the box at Sally’s bedside at the beginning and end of the book. I never expected to hold the genuine article in my hands. Wow.A totally unexpected anniversary gift, though actually he gave it to me around three weeks ago. When the brooch arrived, he was bursting to tell me about it and couldn’t wait! I shall wear it with pride.
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Some upcoming events in July
Another busy month ahead!
Bryan’s going to be at the London Film and Comic Con from the 11th to the 13th. I’ll be travelling down with him, then heading out west for the Telegraph’s literary festival in the picturesque location of Dartington Hall, near Totnes. Then on the 14th we meet up with Kate Charlesworth in Newcastle for a team event at the lovely Lit & Phil. With Bryan’s Brainstorm! exhibition opening at Astley Hall too, there’s plenty going on!
Saturday 5th July – Sunday 14th September
Brainstorm: The Art of Bryan Talbot
Art Gallery, Astley Hall, Chorley, Lancashire
Saturdays, Sundays and Bank Holidays 12 noon – 4:30pm during School Summer Holidays Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays 12 noon – 4:30 pm
Free admission.
Friday 11th – Sunday 13th July London Film and Comic Con
Tickets here
Saturday 12th July The Inside Story of the Fight for the Vote
Costa Award-winner Mary Talbot tells the story of maid-of-all-work and militant feminist, Sally Heathcote,and her involvement in the battle to secure the vote for women. She tells of Sally’s life and times and explores how her work shaped the lives of women today.
4.00pm £10 Tickets available here
Ways With Words: Festival of Words and Ideas
The Barn, Dartington Hall, Devon
Monday 14th July Shoulder to Shoulder with Sally Heathcote, Suffragette
Mary Talbot, Kate Charlesworth and Bryan Talbot in conversation about the making of the historical graphic novel. Sally Heathcote: Suffragette is a gripping inside story of the campaign for votes for women. A tale of loyalty, love and courage, set against a vividly realised backdrop of Edwardian Britain, it follows the fortunes of a maid-of-all-work swept up in the feminist militancy of the era. Sally Heathcote: Suffragette is another stunning collaboration from Costa Award winners, Mary and Bryan Talbot. Teamed up with acclaimed illustrator Kate Charlesworth, Sally Heathcote’s lavish pages bring history to life.
7.00pm FREE
The Lit & Phil,
23 Westgate Road,
Newcastle upon Tyne,
NE1 1SE
Telephone: 0191 232 0192
Email: library@litandphil.org.uk
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Panel Borders podcast of Graphic Lives talk at AusNZ festival
A couple of weeks ago I was in London for a new festival: the inaugural Australia & New Zealand Festival of Literature and the Arts taking place at King’s College. I’d been invited to join a panel on ‘Graphic Lives’ with two other creators, namely New Zealander Sarah Laing and Anglo-Australian Evie Wyld. Chairing the session was Alex Fitch from Panel Borders and he’s just released a podcast of the talk, edited and available here. For technical reasons, he was unable to include Evie’s contributions (too much feedback on her mic) so he’ll be interviewing her again at a later date.Photo tweeted from the audience by @LouiseArtist
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Back to the Edinburgh International Book Festival again!
Today the festival have released their programme for 2014. I’ll be there with Bryan again. This time we’ll be with Kate Charlesworth too, talking about Sally Heathcote, Suffragette on Saturday 23rd August. More details here.Kate and I are taking part in another event later in the day. It’s a launch for the graphic novel commissioned by the festival, IDP: 2043. We’ll be appearing with Denise Mina and Irvine Welsh. Details for it are here.
The box office hasn’t opened yet but tickets will be available from Tuesday 24th, later this month. There are lots of other Stripped 2014 events going on too, so we’re anticipating a long weekend that’s as good as last year’s. Hope to see some of you there! -
On the road with Sally Heathcote
A flurry of activity for the Sally Heathcote team last week!On Thursday Bryan and I were in London for a visit to Woman’s Hour in Broadcasting House. Our eight-minute slot with Jenni Murray went out live at about 10.30 am. It’s still available for listeners here. Later that day we joined conference goers at Birkbeck College, University of London. The symposium was in celebration of the 40th anniversary of the excellent but little-known BBC drama on the suffrage movement called Shoulder to Shoulder. Listening to the cast and crew reminisce was delightful and I was thrilled to learn who the producer was: the amazing Verity Lambert of Dr Who fame. I had no idea!
On Friday afternoon I presented Sally Heathcote Suffragette. After my talk, which concluded the conference, Bryan and Kate joined me for a brisk signing session in Birkbeck’s Peltz Gallery. There’s been a lovely exhibition of Sally artwork there which sadly ends tomorrow (23rd May 2014).Two more events on Saturday. Signing for one and a half hours solid at Gosh!
Then on to an evening event at the Cartoon Museum, chaired by Hannah Berry.
With Director-Curator Anita O’Brien and naughty Hannah Photographs by Dianne Barry
With Dianne Barry. Thanks for the photos! The tour wasn’t over for Bryan and me. On Sunday we made our way to Norwich for an appearance at the Norfolk and Norwich Festival, in the lovely setting of Norwich cathedral hostry.
A green man 
The gates of hell 
4 demons sharing an Uncle Joe’s mint ball (I think) Before we went for our train home on Monday, Bryan risked permanent neck injury photographing all the ceiling bosses in the cathedral cloister. Here’s a few.
While there, I learned that Norfolk was the birthplace of the heroic Edith Cavell, World War One nurse and humanitarian. Cavell treated soldiers of all nationalities – friend or foe – and took part in an underground network that helped 200 Allied troups to escape from German-occupied Belgium. Shockingly, she was shot by German firing squad on 12th October 1915.
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To BUCKINGHAM PALACE! 100 years on
Today – 21st May 2014 – marks the centenary of the suffragettes’ attempted entry into Buckingham Palace. By 1914, demonstrations had turned nasty. Some of the demonstrators were armed with clubs and paint bombs, but there were 1,500 police and the crowd on the street was hostile.
Police were suppressing public gatherings by the WSPU, so the deputation to Buckingham Palace involved months of planning in secrecy. A very large empty house in Grosvenor Place, overlooking Buckingham Palace gardens, had been lent to them and 200 women gradually and surreptitiously gathered there (there are interesting first-hand accounts in Antonia Raeburn’s book, The Militant Suffragettes (Michael Joseph 1973)). Then, the day before, the WSPU distributed their customary handbill announcing their plans.
On the day of the demonstration The Times carried a small news item announcing it, then much more substantial coverage of the ‘Suffragist Riot’ the following day. For a horrified observer’s first-hand account, see Campaigning for the Vote: Kate Parry Fry’s Suffrage Diary, edited by Elizabeth Crawford (Francis Boutle 2013).
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Sally Heathcote sallies forth
It’s been a delightful, busy couple of days. Down to London last Thursday for the opening event of Comics Unmasked: Art and Anarchy in the UK, a major new exhibition at the British Library curated by Paul Gravett and John Harris Dunning. Before it began, Kate, Bryan and myself did an interview for Digital Spy, though it was tricky finding a reasonably quiet spot to record, away from the cavernous foyer. The place was filling up fast. I’ll have to go back for a proper look at the exhibition itself. There were so many people that it was hard to get close enough.
In the morning, we called in at Forbidden Planet. Three people signing copies can get a bit complicated, so we had a bit of a production line going on.Then on to Foyles for more of the same, with some Dotter copies for good measure.
Sally’s public appearance was the following evening. The first British Library event linked to the exhibition, marvellously, was the premiere of a biographical film on Bryan combined with the launch of Sally Heathcote, Suffragette. The Graphic Novel Man: the Comics of Bryan Talbot is a lovely tribute created by Digital Story Engine, available to preorder here. Its first screening, I’m pleased to say, had a rapt
audience. Afterwards I shared the stage with Bryan and Kate for an interview with Rachel Cooke. A lengthy book signing followed – and they sold all their copies of Sally! They had a range of Bryan’s books available and he started to get confused at one point. Someone went away with a James Joyce sketch in Sally and a Sally sketch in Dotter. I do hope he was pleased!Then on top of all that, I got to read a flotilla of glowing reviews on Sunday!
The Sunday Express
But Kate’s Ma is furious that her daughter’s only mentioned in its headline (and justifiably so!)![DSC04992]()
![Foyles signing]()
Photographs by Dianne Barry.
Saturday 12.30 was our main event about Sally. We were in discussion with Teddy Jamieson in front of a full theatre audience. As the chair finished his preliminary panel introduction, a woman in the crowd called out “Votes for Women!” Then a few moments later, another stood up brandishing an umbrella and shouted again “Votes for Women!” This was the cue for a suffragette choir to march in, singing “The March of the Women” to a drum accompaniment. They were superb. The choir is Edinburgh’s own “Loud and Proud”, of which Kate herself is a member. (The event was filmed and I hope to be able to post a link to it soon.)
