Some truly remarkable works of literature have been inspired by writers spending time travelling. From epic road trips and arduous treks into remote territories, to cultural tours and sojourns in the finest hotels, author Travis Elborough explores 35 influential journeys taken by literary greats and reveals the repercussions of those travels on the authors’ personal lives and the broader literary landscape. Travis talks to Ash Bhardwaj, exploring some of the great minds and great books that have been inspired by some of remarkable travels.
On Thursday we hosted the second of our Table Talks – which include wine, delicious nibbles and fabulous conversation around the table, talking about all things books, travel and life journeys.
We were thrilled to welcome authors Tiffany Murray and Travis Elborough talking about Tiffany’s new book My Family and Other Rock Stars sharing stories, recipes, songs and experiences, a fun evening not to be missed.
Last week we hosted the first of our Table Talks – which include wine, delicious nibbles and fabulous conversation around the table, talking about all things books, travel and life journeys.
We were thrilled to welcome authors Karen McLeod and Travis Elborough to discuss Karen’s new book Lifting off.
Karen McLeod’s account of flying as long-haul cabin crew offers a fascinating insight into the profound impact of airline life. Having come out as a lesbian shortly before getting the job, she is forced to go back in as colleagues advise her that it’s not OK to be gay, unlike male cabin crew. Lifting Off is a fly on the wall tale of flying long-haul, drinking miniatures, hotel bedroom parties with the rest of the crew, one-night stands in exotic locations and the loneliness of having to deny your true self. It is the story of how Karen McLeod saved herself and finally came into land.
Lifting Off came out of trying to write that difficult second novel. Karen realised she had to confront her past before she could write creatively again.
In the 1990s Karen had begun performing as a drag queen, impersonating men impersonating women. This was found to be too unorthodox even on the drag scene so Karen created Barbara who is the inverse of mainstream drag. She hides her hair, makes her legs unflattering in pop socks and wears a shapeless cagoule. The Sunday Times described Barbara as ‘Rik Mayall meets performance art’ and she is now a regular across the UK gay cabaret, literary and comedy community
‘An absorbing and often hilarious account of the author’s 12 years as closeted cabin crew for BA & the profound impact that had on her life as a gay woman’ The Bookseller, Editor’s Choice
‘Beautiful, wise and funny…I really did love it’ Evie Wyld
‘Witty, irreverent, deeply felt and exquisitely written…I can’t recommend this memoir enough. Stunning’ Joelle Taylor
About the speakers:
Karen McLeod is writer in residence at independent bookseller, The Bookseller Crow on the Hill and a visiting lecture in creative writing at UCAS. She performs comedy as Barbara Brownskirt and regularly works with Polari the LGBTQ+ Literary Salon.
Travis Elborough
Described by the Guardian as ‘one of the country’s finest pop culture historians’, Travis Elborough is the author of many books, including Wish You Were Here: England on Sea, The Long-Player Goodbye, Through the Looking Glasses: The Spectacular Life of Spectacles and Atlas of Vanishing Places, winner of Edward Stanford Travel Book Award in 2020.
Atlas of Vanishing Places won the 2020 Edward Stanford Travel Writing Award for Illustrated Travel Book of the Year. Now it is out in paperback so is lightweight and perfect to pack for holidays.
The Chan Chan ruins in Northern Peru
Have you ever wondered about cities that lie forgotten under the dust of newly settled land? Rivers and seas whose changing shape has shifted the landscape around them? Or, even, places that have seemingly vanished, without a trace?
To celebrate the paperback launch of the 2020 Edward Stanford Travel Writing Award winning Atlas of Vanishing Placesby Travis Elborough, here is an extract for you all to read:
Travis Elborough, winner of the 2020 Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards Illustrated Book of the Year, is back with another book in the Unexpected Atlas series.
Atlas of Forgotten Places takes us to the places that time forgot. Abandoned, mysterious, sleeping monuments around the world have been relegated to the margins of history, pushed off the map and out of sight.
From ancient ruins and crumbling castles to more recent relics – an art deco New York subway station, a Soviet ghost town in the Arctic Circle, a flooded Thai mall teeming with aquatic life.
Original maps and stunning colour photography accompany Travis Elborough’s moving historic and geographic accounts of each site. The featured locations are a stark reminder of what was, and the accounts in this investigative book help to bring their stories back to life, telling us what happened, when and why, and to whom.
Here Travis Elborough introduces Atlas of Forgotten Places:
Maps offer us a chance to see not just how our world looks today, but how it once looked. But what about the places that are no longer mapped?
Cities forgotten under the dust of newly settled land? Rivers and seas whose changing shape has shifted the landscape around them? Or, even, places that have seemingly vanished, without a trace?
Join acclaimed authors Travis Elborough (A Walk in the Park, Atlas of Improbable Places) and Malachy Tallack (60 Degrees North, The Un-Discovered Islands) as they discuss places of legend and wonder, the obscure, the beautiful and the downright odd.
