GALLE LITERARY FESTIVAL 2012

The Galle Literary Festival, reputed as one of the most anticipated literary events in the international literary circuit, will take place in the historic city of Galle, January 18-22, 2012.

The annual Galle Literary Festival is an intimate, relaxed affair set in the atmospheric surroundings of the UNESCO World Heritage-listed Galle Fort.

The festival features novelists, historians, poets, playwrights, philosophers and biographers from around the globe, including acclaimed writers such as Joanna Trollope, Richard Dawkins and Hari Kunzru, who will rub shoulders with emerging talent.

The writers participate in solo and panel discussions, readings and workshops, and the programme also includes concerts, picnics, gourmet lunches and dinners, tours of the Fort and surrounds, cultural activities and late-night revues.

Programme

1. WEDNESDAY JANUARY 18^th 6:30-8:00. FESTIVAL WELCOME PARTY AND BOOK LAUNCH (Governor‘s Residence).
2. THURSDAY JANUARY 19^th 9:00-10:30. GALLE LITERARY FESTIVAL PANEL
3. • Forgiveness, Reconciliation and Responsibility in Literature.Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, Dr. Stewart Motha, Dr. Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu and Ingo Schulze. (Hall de Galle) FREE.
   • 10:00-12:00. WORKSHOP: Katherine Frank on Life Writing. (Amangalla)
   • 11:00-12:00. IN CONVERSATION: Simon Sebag Montefiore on Jerusalem: The Biography (Hall de Galle).
   • 11:00-12:00. IN CONVERSATION: Romesh Gunesekera on The Prisoner of Paradise (Maritime Museum).
   • 11:00-2:00. COOKERY DEMONSTRATION, FOLLOWED BY LUNCH: The Fort Ladies on Galle Cuisine (85 Leyn Baan Street).
   • 12:30-2:00. LITERARY LUNCH: Literature in the Paddy fields John Boyne on The Absolutist (Paddy Fields. Meet at Jetwing Lighthouse at 12:15).
   • 12:30-2:00. PRIVATE AFFAIR! Joanna Trollope or Simon Sebag Montefiore.
   • 12:30-2:00. LUNCHTIME ILLUMINATIONS: Screening of Tropical Amsterdam (Hall de Galle). FREE.
   • 2:30-3:30. IN CONVERSATION: Tom Stoppard on his life and art (Hall de Galle).
   • 2:30-3:30 GRANTA MAGAZINE LAUNCH: Ellah Allfrey and Susan Minot (Maritime Museum).
   • 2:30-4:30. WORKSHOP: Roshi Fernando on The Architectural Plan for your work (Amangalla).
   • 3:45-5:00. TEA AND POETRY: Ruth Padel and Rishma Dunlop (Dutch House).
   • 4:00-5:00 IN CONVERSATION: Nayantara Sahgal on Prison and Chocolate Cake and Jawaharlal Nehru: Civilizing A Savage World. (Hall de Galle).
   • 4:00-5:00: DUET Meira Chand and Juliet Nicolson on The Aftermath of War (Maritime Museum).
   • 5:30- 7:00. SUNSET SERIES: Anura Ratnavibhushana on My Approach to Sri Lankan Tropical Architecture, Design and Landscaping (The Sun House).
   • 5:30-7:00. SUNSET SERIES: Achinthya Bandara, Sandagomi Coperahewa and Malinda Seneviratne on Martin Wickramasinghe, His Life and Legacy (Maritime Museum). FREE
   • 5:30-7:00. SUNSET SERIES Juliet Coombe on Paradise Exorcised (The Heritage Villa). FREE.
   • 7:00-8:00. CONCERT: Eshantha Peiris (Dutch Reformed Church).
   • 8:00-10:00. LITERARY DINNER: A Stoppardian Revel.Tom Stoppard (The Edens).
   • 8:00-10:00. WRITERS‘ DINNER (Mama‘s Rooftop Café)
   • 9:30 onwards. MAYHEM PAST MIDNIGHT:Participants to be confirmed (The Sun House).
4. FRIDAY JANUARY 20th
   • 9:00-10:30. BOOKS AND BREAKFAST: John Boyne on Mutiny on the Bounty (Mama‘s Rooftop Cafe).
   • 9:30-10:30. GALLE LITERARY FESTIVAL PANEL: Writing Political Realities into Fiction and Journalism. Romesh Gunesekera, Irfan Husain and Susan Minot (Hall de Galle).
   • 10:00- 12:00: WORKSHOP:Ruth Padel on Writing about Nature (Fort Printers).
   • 10:00-12:15 COOKERY CLASS, FOLLOWED BY LUNCH: Thai Street Food with David Thompson (Heritage Villa).
   • 11:00-12:00. IN CONVERSATION: Katherine Frank on Crusoe: Daniel Defoe, Robert Knox and the Creation of a Myth (Hall de Galle).
   • 11:00-12:00. IN CONVERSATION:Shashi Tharoor on The Elephant, the Tiger and the Cellphone: Reflections on India in the 21st Century(Maritime Museum).
   • 12:30-2:00. LITERARY LUNCH: Joanna Trollope,(Amangalla)
   • 12:30-2:00. PRIVATE AFFAIR! DBC Pierre.
   • 12:30-2:00. LUNCHTIME ILLUMINATIONS: Jaffna Shorts (Hall de Galle) FREE.
   • 2:30-3:30. IN CONVERSATION: Richard Dawkins on his life and work.(Hall de Galle).
   • 2:30-3:30. DUET: Githa Hariharan and Irfan Husain on Fundamentalism in Fact and Fiction (Maritime Museum).
   • 2:30-4:30. WORKSHOP: Rishma Dunlop on City of Madness and Love: Writing the City, Poetry and Prose ( Fort Printers).
   • 3:45-5:00. TEA AND POETRY: Ranjit Hoskote and Priscila Uppal (Amangalla).
   • 4:00-5:00. DICKENS BICENTINARY LECTURE: D.J. Taylor on Re-inventing The Victorians and Derby Day (Hall de Galle).
   • 4:00-5:00: IN CONVERSATION: Ingo Schulze on Simple Stories and New Lives (Maritime Museum).
   • 5:30- 7:00. SUNSET SERIES: Juliet Nicolson on Vita Sackville West and Sissinghurst Castle (Amangalla).
   • 5:30-7:00. SUNSET SERIES: Sunetra Rajakarunanayake andBuddhadasa Galappatty on Sinhala Visions, Sinhala Realities ( Maritime Museum) FREE.
   • 7:00-8:30. PERFORMANCE:BEYOND BORDERS performing Censored (Hall de Galle) FREE.
   • 7:15-8:00. BOOK LAUNCH:Ashok Ferrey on Love in the Tsunami (Closenberg Hotel) FREE.
   • 8:00-10:00. LITERARY DINNER: A Taste of India Shashi Tharoor (Aditya)
   • 8:00-10:00. LITERARY DINNER: An Atheist’s Feast. Richard Dawkins and Lalla Ward (Why House).
   • 8:00-10:00. WRITERS‘ DINNER (Mama‘s Rooftop Café)
   • 9:30 onwards. MAYHEM PAST MIDNIGHT: Jason Kouchak (The Sun House).
5. SATURDAY JANUARY 21^st
   
   • 9:00-10:30. BOOKS AND BREAKFAST: D.J. Taylor on Kept: A Victorian Mystery (Mama‘s Rooftop Café). 9:00-12:00. EXCURSION: Influences on Coastal Architecture. with Channa Daswatte (Amangalla).
   • 9:00-10:30 am: GALLE LITERARY FESTIVAL PANEL: Trauma and Literature. Ellah Allfrey, Aminatta Forna, Neluka Silva and Rachel Tribe (Maritime Museum).
   • 9:30-10:30. IN CONVERSATION:John Boyne on The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas (Hall de Galle).
   • 10:00- 12:00. WORKSHOP:Priscila Uppal on The Art of Sports Writing in Fiction and Poetry (Heritage Villa).
   • 11:00-2:00 COOKERY DEMONSTRATION, FOLLOWED BY LUNCH: The Fort Ladies on Galle Cuisine (85 Leyn Baan Street).
   • 11:00-12:00. IN CONVERSATION: Izzeldin Abuelaish on I Shall Not Hate: A Gaza Doctor’s Journey (Hall de Galle).
   • 11:00-12:00. DUET: Randy Boyagoda and Roshi Fernando on New Sri Lankan Writing from the Diaspora (Maritime Museum).
   • 12:30-2:00. LITERARY LUNCH: A Culinary Voyage Josceline Dimbleby (The Edens).
   • 12:30-2:00. LITERARY LUNCH: The Mystery of Writing DBC Pierre (Dutch House).
   • 12:30-2:00. LUNCHTIME ILLUMINATIONS: Beat Presser on The Dhow (Hall de Galle) FREE.
   • 12:30-2:00. PRIVATE AFFAIR! Aminatta Forna or Nayantara Sahgal
   • 2:30-3:30. IN CONVERSATION: Joanna Trollope on The Other Family and Daughters-in-Law (Hall de Galle).
   • 2: 30-3:30IN CONVERSATION:Stephen Kelman on Pigeon English (Maritime Museum).
   • 2:30-4:30. WORKSHOP: Ellah Allfrey‘s Granta Master Class (Heritage Villa).
   • 2:30-4:30. WORKSHOP: Githa Hariharan on Writing Conflict (Orchard House).
   • 3:45-5:00. TEA AND POETRY Lemn Sissay, and Sakuntala Sachithanandan (Jetwing Lighthouse).
   • 4:00-5:00 IN CONVERSATION:  DBC Pierre on his End Times Trilogy (Hall de Galle)
   • 4:00-5:00: DUET:Manju Kapur and Priscila Uppal on Contemporary Indians in Transition (Maritime Museum).
   • 5:30- 7:00. SUNSET SERIES:Ranjit Hoskote on Modern Indian art (The Sun House)
   • 5:30- 7:00. SUNSET SERIES:David Robson on Architectural Pioneers Andrew Boyd and Minnette de Silva (Maritime Museum).
   • 5:30- 7:00. SUNSET SERIES:My Other History (Heritage Villa). FREE
   • 6:00-6:30. SUNSET SERIES: Cocktails with Ingo Schulze (Closenberg Hotel) FREE
   • 6:30-8:00. SUNSET SERIES: Stories at Sunset. Ingo Schulze and other writers (Closenberg Hotel). FREE.
   • 7:00-8:00. PERFORMANCE:Indian Cultural Troupe (Hall de Galle) FREE.
   • 8:00-10:00. LITERARY DINNER: From Mauritius to Marrakesh with Josceline Dimbleby and Romesh Gunesekera (Amangalla).
   • 8:00-10:00. LITERARY DINNER: An Evening with Joanna and Jason. Joanna Trollope and Jason Kouchak (Fort Printers).
   • 8:00-10:00. LITERARY DINNER: A Taste of Thailand David Thompson (Sun House).
   • 8:00-10:00. WRITERS‘ DINNER (Strip)
   • 10:00 onwards. MAYHEM PAST MIDNIGHT: Festival Party (Cantaloupe Aqua, Thalpe).
6. SUNDAY JANUARY 22nd
   
   • 9:00-10:30. BOOKS AND BREAKFAST: Rachel Hore on A Place of Secrets (Jetwing Lighthouse).
   • 9.00-11.00. EXCURSION: Memories of the Fort with Mrs Cader (Begins at Amangalla).
   • 9:15-10:15. DUET:Josceline Dimbleby and David Thompson on A Taste of Wonderlust (Jetwing Lighthouse).
   • 10:45-11:45. IN CONVERSATION: Aminatta Forna on The Memory of Love (Jetwing Lighthouse).
   • 12:00- 1:00. DUET:Nayantara Sahgal and Katherine Frank on Indira Gandhi (Jetwing Lighthouse).
   • 1:00-2:30. LITERARY LUNCH: Grand Finale (Jetwing Lighthouse).

PLEASE NOTE: THIS PROGRAMME IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE. THE FINALIZED PROGRAMME WILL BE ON OUR WEBSITE ON DECEMBER 28TH.

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