Town Hall Talks: Battersea's Literary Landscape

The fourth in our series of Town Hall Talks: Battersea's Literary Landscape.

This talk will look at how writers have been influenced by Battersea and been inspired by the area to create backdrop for their stories.

Author and playwright Nell Dunn will share thoughts about works including UP THE JUNCTION, a collection of short stories that depict life in the industrial slums of Battersea and Clapham Junction in the early 1960s. Born in London in 1936, Nell has had a notably successful career as a playwright, screenwriter and author. Her novels UP THE JUNCTION and POOR COW have both been adapted for screen, and her award winning play STEAMING has been presented around the world.

Town planning expert and literature enthusiast Janice Morphet will explore the relationships between authors and the places they know and write about, including authors who have lived or worked locally such as John Le Carre, Pamela Hansford Johnson, E. M. Forster and Barbra Comyns. Janice Morphet has lived in Wandsworth since 1974 and had a career in planning and local government. When she was nearing retirement she studied for an Open University Masters in English Literature to engage more with her reading. Alongside lecturing in at University College London, Janice writes for the Battersea Society's publication 'Battersea Matters'.