The first of three talks programmed in partnership with the River Stour Festival. Writer and social historian Ken Worpole focuses on ‘back to the land’ and utopian experiments in North­East Essex, including The Adelphi Centre, Frating Hall Farm, the Othona Community and Ardleigh. Part of Radical ESSEX an anthology accompanying a project re­examining the county in relation to radicalism in thought, lifestyle, politics and architecture.

This event is part of Essex Book Festival’s PLACE weekend, taking place at Firstsite in Colchester on Saturday 23 & Sunday 24 March.

worpole.net

About the River Stour Festival
riverstourfestival.com

The River Stour Festival runs for its second year in 2019 and celebrates the river, its culture, surrounding landscape and people throughout the year. It aims to provide an impetus to arts, nature, health, environment and businesses in the Stour Valley and beyond, and hopes to connect both local people and visitors with the rich landscape on our doorstep. The programme includes walks in the landscape, talks, a wild river swim, boat trips, exhibitions, music, poetry, painting, photography and wild writing.

It is an unusual festival, as instead of running for a particular week it takes place throughout the year at various points along the river, from the source near Haverhill to the sea at Harwich, rather like a caravanserai, with something happening somewhere in the Stour Valley each month. The festival curates a selection of events as well as including events run by partner organisations. Ruth Philo, Festival Director

About Radical ESSEX’s anthology

An often maligned county, Essex’s recent history has been the subject of stereotypes. Radical ESSEX seeks to tell another story, exploring the less­known innovations and creativity of the county. It examines living practices from Christian communities, retreats for Tolstoyan princes, anarchist revolutionaries and the first practices of naturism in England, to radical University development, and model industrial communities in East Tilbury and Silver End. It includes long essays by Tim Burrows, Gillian Darley, Charles Holland, Rachel Lichtenstein, Jules Lubbock, Jess Twyman and Ken Worpole.

Radical ESSEX accompanies an ongoing project that re­examines the county in relation to radicalism in thought, lifestyle, politics and architecture. It sheds light on the vibrant, pioneering thinking of the late 19th and 20th centuries, celebrating the crucial role Essex has played in the history of British Modernism and its utopian ideologies.

radicalessex.uk           @RadicalEssex