Press
Winchester Today, 24 MArch 2024
Listen to Susmita Bhattacharya on Connor Gormley's ArtsPlus
Jane Robinson. Photo by Bruce James.
IN COMMON, 1 April 2024
Acclaimed social historian comes to Winchester to discuss proto-feminist Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon
Acclaimed author and public speaker, Jane Robinson, is coming to The ARC, Winchester on Thursday 23rd May to discuss Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon – the fascinating subject of her latest book ‘Trailblazer: The First Feminist To Change Our World,’ for the latest Wire Wool event.
Jane Robinson has a proven talent for finding unsung heroines behind the scenes of history. This time she has discovered a hidden gem. Victorian Barbara Leigh Smith Bodichon opened many of the doors we step through as modern women, unaware of her part in changing our world. Artist, campaigner, and connoisseur of human happiness, she was a true pioneer, kick-starting the fight for the vote, founding the first university college for women and campaigning for equal opportunities at work and at home.
Jane Robinson is an energetic speaker who specialises in sharing social history through women’s eyes. In this talk in Winchester she will be sharing the hidden history of a remarkable Victorian woman who changed our world.
Susmita Bhattacharya
IN COMMON, 21 March 2024
Placeholder Poetry Southampton returns after a sold out debut event
After a sold out debut event in January, Wire Wool Events and Placeholder Poetry return for the second in their series of innovative poetry performances.
Three brand new poets bring their distinct voices to The Bookshop Alehouse, Southampton on Thursday 28th March for a night to challenge and delight.
Placeholder is home for poetry readings of the avant-garde, queer and radical. Following their success in Brighton, Wire Wool Events and Placeholder are collaborating to bring this unique experience to Southampton.
Reading their work at this second event are Cat Chong, Susmita Bhattacharya and J Pyrite.
AJ Hardingson
IN COMMON, 12 JANUARY 2024
Avant-garde poetry performances come to Southampton
A series of avant-garde poetry performances is being brought to Southampton by Wire Wool Events and Placeholder Poetry, beginning this month.
The first event takes place on Thursday 25th January and will see the basement room of The Bookshop Alehouse, Southampton transformed into a world of words. Three outstanding poets will be reading their own fierce work, to challenge and inspire all in attendance.
Placeholder is home for poetry readings of the avant-garde, queer and radical. Following their success in Brighton, Wire Wool Events and Placeholder are collaborating to bring this unique experience to Southampton.
Elinor Cleghorn
IN COMMON, 30 MARCH 2022
Preview: Unwell Women talk explores women’s historical and contemporary experiences of medicine
In Unwell Women, the latest talk brought to The Railway Inn, Winchester, by Wire Wool, Elinor Cleghorn, author of Unwell Women, reflects on the experiences of medical dismissal that inspired her to look to history for answers.
As she combed through textbooks, case studies and clinical writings across centuries of medicine’s history, Elinor discovered countless unwell women whose suffering had been belittled, overlooked, or misdiagnosed – women whose experiences felt hauntingly similar to her own.
Dr Elinor Cleghorn is a feminist cultural historian specialising in histories of women’s lives, bodies, and health. She has written for Vogue online, BBC Science Focus, the Wall Street Journal, the New Scientist, and BBC History magazine, and has discussed her work on BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, and numerous podcasts. Unwell Women is Elinor’s first book.
Mid Hampshire Observer, 20 October 2021
Talk at the Railway
Death is a universal truth that unites us all. Through confronting death we begin to understand how to make the most of our lives without fear. On 14th November a talk will take place at The Railway Inn, Winchester exploring the possibilities of funerals in the present day and beyond.
Tora Colwill established The Modern Funeral to provide flexible funeral services and support people to create highly personal, meaningful funerals. Lyn Baylis has been a LifeRites Minister for 20 years. For the past 30 years she has worked as a Prison Chaplain, Hospital & Hospice Chaplain and believes that funeral ceremonies should be more focused on the needs and requirements of the deceased and their family.
Thought provoking and gently confrontational, this talk will be providing context through human history and musing to the future. Tora and Lyn will look at where the practical and ceremonial aspects of funerals can merge to create meaning.
Rosie Wilby
In Common, 8 September 21
Wire Wool Events are back in Southampton with Rosie Wilby’s Breakup Monologues
After an extended break due to the covid 19 pandemic, Wire Wool Events returns, with an event in Southampton, bringing Rosie Wilby to the Bookshop Alehouse in Southampton.
She will be bringing humour and understanding to the table at the event on Wednesday, September 29, in her inclusive deep-dive into relationship woes. Whether you’re in a relationship, freshly single or a long-term lone wolf The Breakup Monologues is hilarious and relatable. Part stand-up comedy routine and part psychological investigation it will be sure to raise a smile!
The Charlotte Web, 8 October 19
What Is The Vagina?
Charlotte Fodor
"Did you know that the word ‘vagina’ refers to one specific part of a person’s genitalia? Can you guess which part? It may not be quite what you think.
According to Yougov, in 2019, half of Brits do not know the correct answer to the above question. Until recently, I would have included myself in that statistic.
This Sunday I attended ‘Vulvas In/Formation’ – a fascinating feminist discussion at the Railway in Winchester. Vulvas In/Formation consisted of a short film about the damaging effect of labiaplasties (a procedure involving slicing away parts of a woman’s labia for cosmetic reasons), AKA the most popular vaginal procedure around."
Emma Rees
In Common, 27 September 19
Preview: Vulvas In/Formation at The Railway
Sally Churchward
"Fanny, vulva, vagina, front bottom, frou-frou, chuff…the list goes on. There are a lot of words to describe women’s genitals but, says Emma Rees, one which actually describes the whole of the area is widely considered the most offensive word in the English language: c**t.
Emma will be taking part in a a panel of leading voices in gender politics as they explore the myths, misinformation, truths, taboos, personal, political, shame and secrecy surrounding women’s bodies, and why this is still important to discuss in 2019 in Vulvas In/formation: a discussion and film screening at The Railway, Winchester, on October 6. She is a professor of literature and gender studies and director of the Institute of Gender Studies at the University of Chester. She has written extensively about gender and representation, including in her book The Vagina: A Literary and Cultural History."
24 July 19
A Money Savvy Summer: how to live it large without making it rain
Emily Fry
Bear with me while I chuck a few words and phrases at you: feminism; gender; sexuality; women’s history; the Suffragettes. If I have piqued your interest, then Wire-Wool Events are definitely for you! They’re something that I myself have only just become acquainted with recently, and I wish I’d been made aware of far earlier.
Shola Mos-Shogbamimu
Daily Echo, 5 February 19
Diversity speaker to urge women to take action
Sally Churchward, Senior Feature Writer
It is widely recognised that diversity matters and should be a commercial imperative in every industry.
This month, Dr Shola Mos-Shogbamimu, an expert on the subject, will be giving a talk on how women can make a change in and out of the workplace.
""n the critical era of the advancement of women, it's time for women to take their rightful place and demand, not ask for the same opportunity, legitimacy, recognition and credit men get," she said.
"Women won't get this by waiting their turn or suffering in silence. "
"They must create opportunities where there are none and bring their folding chair to sit at the table where no extra chairs exist."
Amy of Wire Wool
Winchester Gazette, 5 October 2018
Wire Wool Events presents two amazing speakers this November
It has been 1 year since Wire Wool Events came into existence and what a year it has been!
15 incredible speakers have delivered talks over a wide range of topics, from FGM to photojournalism in Afghanistan, via polygamy, and feminism today. For full details of all of the past events please visit the website.
The response and support I’ve had from everyone has been astounding. Here’s to the 2019!
Stacey giving her talk
Daily Echo, 25 September 2018
Column: making connections through fashion and lecturing
Stacey Heale, Columnist
It’s taken me two years to understand that the talks I have been giving about living with cancer and those I gave about fashion are all just the same thing. They are a way of humans trying to unravel the stories of our lives and understand how we feel. We want to connect with others, whether that be through crisis and trauma or wearing trainers that make us feel part of a certain group.
I was so humbled to be asked to talk about my photography of Greg’s diagnosis and treatment for Wire Wool at the Extraordinary Women event last week. I felt a surge of energy, that I was using my story to hopefully connect and resonate with others. This time, the only person in the audience with a phone was my mum; I think she might have been taking photos but I can’t be 100% sure that she wasn’t on Facebook.
Dr Finn Mackay
Daily Echo, 25 September 2018
How powerful are women?
Sally Churchward, Senior Feature Writer
Women and gender differences have featured heavily in the media over recent months.
The #metoo movement shows no signs of slowing up, and continues to be the subject of discussion and sometimes criticism. This, alongside this year being the centenary of some women finally achieving the opportunity to vote in the UK raises a lot of questions.
How powerful are women? And how powerful can we be?
Dr Finn Mackay, who has a reputation for being a thought-provoking and dynamic speaker, will be talking about all of this and more at the Rehearsal Room at Nuffield City, Southampton on Saturday, September 29 in her talk, Powerful Women.
To mark 100 years since the first women gained the right to vote in the UK, Nuffield Southampton Theatres are hosting Bungalow Café Festival, a season of events celebrating and lifting the voices of women.
Credit: Image still from TedX Talk
Wessex Scene, 24 September 2018
Preview: Dr Finn Mackay on ‘Powerful Women’ at NST City Rehearsal Room, 29th September
Ivan Morris Poxton, Editor
Coming to Southampton’s NST (Nuffield Southampton Theatres) City Rehearsal Room on 29th September is long-time feminist activist Dr Finn Mackay.
The event, which begins at 17:30, is hosted by Wire Wool Events, a group who bring female-centred literary events to Southampton and Winchester with an emphasis on enabling female voices to be heard. The talk also forms part of the NST’s Bungalow Café Festival, a series of events focused on celebrating the voices of women, as 2018 marks the 100 year anniversary of the first time some women gained the right to vote in the UK.
Greg and Stacey
Daily Echo, 13 September 2018
Stacey Heale to talk as part of Heritage Open Days celebration of Extraordinary Women
Daily Echo columnist Stacey Heale is giving a talk as part of Winchester Heritage Open Days, a free festival, running from Thursday (September 13) until Sunday (September 16).
The festival is partnering with Wire Wool events, to bring a series of talks on this year's festival theme, 'extraordinary women'. Stacey is married to Delays frontman, artist and poet Greg Gilbert, who was diagnosed with stage four bowel cancer in winter 2014.
Stacey, who at the time was on maternity leave from her job as a fashion lecturer at Solent University, launched a huge fundraising campaign to pay for lifesaving treatment for him, not available on the NHS, which passed its initial £100,000 target in 48 hours, and has since raised more than double that sum, propelling the family into the spotlight.
Her talk, which takes place at 10.30am on Saturday, at Hampshire Records Office, is entitled 'Right now, it's like this,' and explores using photography to document family legacy.
Daily Echo, 23 July 2018
The Bungalow Café Festival to celebrate the power of women 100 years on from getting the vote
Hilary Porter, Entertainments & Features
A new Southampton arts festival is set to celebrate the centenary of British Women winning the vote.
A host of female stars, including comedian Ruby Wax, are set to perform in The Bungalow Café Festival, running from September 6 to October 13 across Nuffield Southampton Theatres’ venues.
The Bungalow Café once stood on 157 Above Bar Street, Southampton, opposite the new NST City. It was the local home of women’s suffrage before it was destroyed in the Blitz.
Head of programming Katy Snelling said:“Just as the Bungalow Café was the meeting point for the NUWSS [National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies] we hope this festival and NST will be a meeting point for conversations about the power of women’s voices, 100 years after women first won the vote in Britain.”
Abigail Tarttelin
Daily Echo, 12 June 2018
Dead Girls author Abigail Tarttelin at Southampton's October Books
On Wednesday, June 20, critically acclaimed author Abigail Tarttelin will be visiting Southampton's only radical bookshop October Books, as part of Feminist Book Fortnight to discuss and sign her new feminist thriller 'Dead Girls'.
"This novel is dedicated to the dead and missing girls," says the author.
"According to UNICEF, every ten minutes an adolescent girl dies a violent death.”
Tense, visceral and thought-provoking, Dead Girls is the new novel from Abigail Tarttellin, the critically acclaimed author of Golden Boy (ALEX award winner 2014, finalist for best debut LGBT fiction LAMBDA award 2014).
Abigail will be at October Books in Portswood discussing violence against girls and women, female heroes in fiction, art vs work and signing copies of Dead Girls. which was published in May.
Dave Pickering
Daily Echo, 31 May 2018
Dave Pickering is at The Railway Inn in Winchester
Dave Pickering, a professional story teller, will be leading an event at Railway in Winchester this Sunday talking the male perspective of the patriarchy, toxic masculinity and what men really think about it.
Dave will take you through a personal journey on gender as he tries to explain masculinity to both you and himself.
A regular podcaster, Dave’s Getting Better Acquainted won a British podcast award in 2017 and featured on BBC Radio 4’s Pod We Trust and BBC Radio 5 Lives Required Listening.
In this talk, after drawing on an anonymous survey of 1000 men, feminist theory, internet memes and his life experience, Dave will explain the conclusions he has come to after 36 years of trying to make peace with being a man.
Clayton Burke
Daily Echo, 28 May 2018
Speaker says men in trouble ahead of talk on 'crisis of masculinity'
Sally Churchward, Senior Feature Writer
Men are in trouble. So says Clayton Burke, who will be giving a talk on the crisis of masculinity next month.
Clayton cites male suicide rates – suicide is the biggest killer of men under the age of 45 in the UK – spiralling rates of male prisoners, depression, alcoholism, porn addiction, drug use and mental illness, alongside issues such as male rage, a general sense of entitlement, misogyny and homophobia as examples of the crisis for men and society at large, due to stereotyped gender roles.
“We seem to be building to a crescendo and it’s worrying,” says the 35-year-old father of two from Alresford.
“It keeps coming back to the gender roles that we play into which just don’t work.
“Many men, me included once, don’t understand the constraints of gender. It’s not working for women, transgender people, other minority groups or men in general.”
Clayton, who will be speaking about masculinity at a Wire Wool event at the Railway Inn in Winchester on June 3, has had, and continues to have, his own struggles due to trying to live up to stereotypes of masculinity and discomfort at the sense of falling short of them.
Deborah Coughlin
Daily Echo, 3 May 2018
Author Deborah Coughlin encourages different approach to body image
Sally Churchward, Senior Feature Writer
In a world preoccupied with appearance Deborah Coughlin will be discussing a radical new way of approaching body image.
She will be talking upstairs at The Railway, Winchester on Sunday, May 13, on the subject How To Stop Pretending You Love Your Body.
Do you love the way you look? Do you spend time trying to? Do you pretend that you do, or need convincing?
In this talk Deborah Coughlin will take her audience through the theories and facts behind why having a body can be so tricky. She will discuss the pitfalls of faking body positivity and the radical steps we can take to change our body vision.
Deborah Coughlin is an artistic director, producer, writer and presenter. She is the founder and director of feminist punk collective GAGGLE, writes for Stylist Magazine and is currently touring her theatrical production Yap Yap Yap.
Daily Echo, 10 April 2018
'It makes you feel good': Meet the woman who's putting on sold-out feminist talks
Sally Churchward, Senior Feature Writer
As a member of a band, Amy Brown is no stranger to packing out venues.
The bass/synthesiser player with Southampton band Scarlet Soho enjoyed European tours, album releases and sharing the bill with the likes of Razorlight.
But after almost ten years in the band, Amy is taking a break from music.
And now, rather than listening to electro-pop, her audiences come to hear about and discuss feminism, female genital mutilation, body image and more.
Last summer, Amy, from Southampton, set up Wire Wool Events, dedicated to bringing interesting speakers to the area, to fill what she saw as a gap in the market and to put on the kind of events that she enjoys going to.
Stacey (left) with Hibo Wardre (centre) and her friend Jasmin
Daily Echo, 13 March 2018
Stacey Heale column: Hibo Wardere's honest talk is inspiring
Stacey Heale, Daily Echo columnist
Over the past year, I have noticed that what you give out to the world, you receive back ten fold. An old chestnut indeed but in this extreme moment of my life, I see it in even starker relief.
When I began talking publicly about some of the more complex issues about Greg having cancer and my role as a carer, I put myself in a very vulnerable position. To explain some of the emotions we go through on a day-to-day basis is not palatable for some and that’s absolutely OK. I remember very clearly turning away from the TV when Cancer Research UK adverts would come on because I just couldn’t face how scary the prospect of cancer was.
Not so strangely, turning away from a difficult topic does not make it go away nor does it mean it can’t come for you or someone you know.
As I have been speaking honestly about our situation, I have been drawn to others who are doing the same with theirs. Last week, I had the unbelievable privilege of hearing a Wire Wool talk by Hibo Wardere on female genital mutilation (FGM).
Hibo Wardere
Daily Echo, 27 February 2018
Female genital mutilation survivor Hibo Wardere will give a talk in Winchester
Sally Churchward, Senior Feature Writer
It is estimated that there are 200 million women and girls alive today living with the consequences of female genital mutilation. It is estimated there are 170,000 women and girls in England and Wales who have been affected by it, and 63,000 who are at risk.
Hibo Wardere is an unstoppable force in the campaign against FGM and she will be telling her story upstairs at The Railway, Winchester on Sunday.
Emma Rees
Daily Echo, 27 February 2018
Feminism is up for discussion at the Railway Inn in Winchester
Sally Churchward, Senior Feature Writer
Feminism is up for discussion in a talk in The Attic at the Railway Inn in Winchester this Sunday.
In Who Broke Feminism? (The Obligation Of Privilege): a talk by Emma Rees, the academic and writer will ask some pressing questions about feminism.
She will be addressing such issues as Is feminism broken? And how might we mend it? The term itself has an image problem at a time when the idea is needed more than ever. Why do people denounce the word while swearing by the very same phrases that so often follow the claim: ‘I’m not a feminist, but...?’