View tag: Oxford

Happy 90th birthday to the Queen

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Thursday 21st April 2016

How appropriate on the Queen’s 90th birthday to receive the brand-new paperback edition of one of my favourite children’s books – The Queen’s Handbag by Steve Antony. It’s even more appropriate considering that little Mia Tindall, Princess Anne’s granddaughter, stole the show in Annie Liebovitz’s stunning portrait of the Queen with seven of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. How? Because in an apparently unscripted moment, she picked up her great-granny’s £1,000 ...keep reading

Kazuo Ishiguro at the Oxford Literary Festival

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Monday 23rd March 2015

When I spotted that Kazuo Ishiguro was the star turn at the Oxford Literary Festival’s inaugural event this year I snapped up a couple of tickets in double quick time. Ishiguro doesn’t do many events so I knew I couldn’t hang about or every seat would be gone. Sure enough, when I arrived at the stunning upper chamber of Oxford Town Hall the place was packed – all of us ...keep reading

In tribute to Sue Townsend

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Friday 11th April 2014

Sue Townsend’s hilarious, insightful Adrian Mole stories are classics. Her razor-sharp wit and astute observations probably summed up the Eighties better than anyone else and there’s no doubt that her books will be read as avidly by future generations as they have been by ours. Like her legions of fans, I was saddened to hear the news of her death last night. I’m re-running this post from an interview she ...keep reading

Moving hell

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Thursday 26th September 2013

In the past I’ve been far too blasé about moving house. So it was about time I got my comeuppance. And I have – big time. We’ve just moved from Oxford to Dorset, and it’s been utter hell.  In our first week by the seaside we’ve had a gas leak, a power cut and no sign of broadband any time soon. We’ve got no curtains, no lampshades, no TV and, until ...keep reading

The house where we lived

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Saturday 11th May 2013

I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve moved house. My father was in the RAF when I was little and we moved all over the shop. Thetford, Ely, Halton, Epsom, I’ve forgotten the names of half the places where we lived and a few of the schools too. I didn’t plan it this way but the pattern has continued for my own children. Before we pitched up in ...keep reading

Pitch across the pond and beyond

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Wednesday 17th April 2013

One was a straight-talking US agent in turquoise trainers who’d flown into Heathrow at dawn. The other was a former philosophy teacher in a charcoal suit who founded the Bragelonne publishing house in Paris. At first sight Christine Witthohn and Stéphane Marsan made an unlikely speaking duo but with years of experience in publishing, a willingness to share their expertise and a dry sense of humour, they each gave a ...keep reading

Why don’t teenagers like wearing coats?

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Sunday 31st March 2013

Teenagers and coats are still a mystery to me. My daughter used to head to the bus stop on the coldest, wettest days without a coat, insisting she didn’t feel cold at all. My son soon followed suit, setting off for school in a shirt and jeans in the depths of winter. But now he’s older (18) and wiser I thought he’d been converted to the idea of coats. Except ...keep reading

Oxford Literary Festival – How to get published

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Monday 18th March 2013

The Oxford Literary Festival is a fabulous event. I still can’t get over the fact that I can shut my front door and be at Christ Church within twenty-five minutes (if I walk fast), listening to some of the best writers in the world discussing their work. I haven’t quite got over William Boyd’s talk last year, when he revealed that he spends two years researching and planning his novels ...keep reading

When to take the Christmas tree down

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Wednesday 2nd January 2013

It’s my first post of 2013 and time to look forward. Actually I threw caution to the wind this morning and was rash enough to tell my local radio station (live on air!) that my twin ambitions for the year are to complete my new novel and to learn to speak fluent French. But before I could get started on either, there was the thorny question of when to take ...keep reading

Bike fever at House With No Name

Published by Emma Lee-Potter in on Tuesday 24th July 2012

Bike fever has hit House With No Name with a vengeance. The bike rack on the car grows more sophisticated by the day, the house is full of giant tubs of carbohydrate protein and my son’s bought a bike computer that maps everything from time and speed to altitude and heart rate. But most surprising of all is that his obsession is catching. His dad took him to Oxford’s brilliant ...keep reading