John Sergeant the former Chief Political Correspondent for the BBC and ITN Political Editor.

Many people will remember John as one of Britain's most popular and respected broadcasters and authors. His award-winning career as a political journalist has been as lengthy as it has been successful and seen him interview big political hitters like Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher, John Major and Tony Blair.

In recent years though John has returned to his first love of light entertainment and can be seen regularly on programmes like The One Show, Have I Got News For You, QI, Room 101 and the News Quiz, and of course there were those appearances on Strictly……Indeed Sergeant’s two left feet approach to the arts of the ballroom consistently found him at the  bottom of the judges score board but the public loved him an d he retrained week after week. He finally left the show in Week 10 saying: "The trouble is that there is now a real danger that I might win the competition. Even for me that would be a joke too far.”

More recently there have been well received documentaries as well including John Sergeant's Tourist Trail, Tracks of Empire - about the Indian Railways, and Britain's First Photo Album about the pioneering photography of Francis Frith.

Presented in association with Clive Conway Productions.

Sian Phillips will be discussing her life and astonishingly wide ranging career with her friend director Richard Digby-Day in a series of public conversations. These cover everything from a childhood in deepest Wales to a triumph on Broadway, from her marriage to Peter O’Toole, its ending and her subsequent career as a leading light of stage and television. This is an evening both moving and amusing, a frank looking back at an amazing life.

An evening of wartime letters between the actress Celia Johnson and her husband Peter Fleming read by their daughter, Lucy Fleming, and Simon Williams.

These touching and amusing letters from Celia to her husband tell of her experiences during the war – from coping with a large isolated house full of evacuated children, learning to drive a tractor, dealing with rationing, becoming an auxiliary police-woman and all the while accepting offers, when she could get away, to act. She went on to act for David Lean, Noel Coward, wartime propaganda films & broadcasts, and ultimately in 1945 starring in Brief Encounter for which she received an Oscar nomination.

Peter Fleming was away for most of the war - he writes about his adventures and trials working on deception in India and the Far East. Not only are the letters highly engaging but they also provide a fascinating historical insight into a time of true austerity and fearfulness.

One of the best-loved and most versatile opera stars of the last 40 years, Sir Willard White's illustrious career has taken him to the most prestigious opera houses and concert halls throughout the world.

Now audiences have the opportunity to share an evening with Sir Willard as he reminisces about his life on stage & screen and sings some of the songs that have been important to him from the Nat King Cole of his youth in Jamaica, through the first truly complete recording of Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess in 1976 to the songs that made the Bass-Baritone singer Paul Robeson famous in the 1920s and ‘30s.

Sir Willard will be accompanied by the Kymaera guitar duo comprising Shane Hill and Simon James who have been performing together for over twenty years. Highlights of the partnership which features guitarists Shane Hill and Simon James have included appearing with the classical vocal legend Maria Ewing as well as the late UK jazz vocal legend Frank Holder.

Legendary cricket broadcaster, Henry Blofeld, takes the audience on a charming journey through modern cricket, while looking back at the great games of yesteryear.

With his signature wit and insight, he compares the cricketing landscape of today with cherished memories.

Henry began writing about cricket, for The Times, in May 1962 and in 1972 he started his long career as a commentator with the BBC's Test Match Special.

Presented in association with Clive Conway Productions image credit: Rii Schroer

Henry will be selling books in the Theatre bar area.

Bob Flowerdew is one of Britain's leading organic gardeners, and a television and radio presenter. He is a regular panel member of BBC Radio 4's Gardeners' Question Time.

The son of a farmer, his family have been working the land in East Anglia since Elizabethan times. Flowerdew runs a consultancy landscape service, is President of the Norfolk group of the Soil Association, and also teaches at agricultural college. He has written books on gardening including "Going Organic: The Good Gardener's Guide to Getting It Right".

Presented in association with Clive Conway Productions

Sir Derek Jacobi is an icon of Stage and Screen ... known for his work at the Royal National Theatre, has a BAFTA, Olivier, Emmy, Screen Guild and Tony Award winner and to top it all off Derek was given a Knighthood for his services to theatre by Queen Elizabeth II.  Not bad for a boy who grew up in Essex, the son of a corner shop owner and a secretary. From Leytonstone and the Leyton Players to Hamlet at Edinburgh Fringe and a scholarship to Cambridge.

With peers such as Ian McKellen and Trevor Nunn and as one of the founding members of the National Theatre and invited to be a member of the Birmingham Rep, Derek is an enormous talent with Shakespeare running through his blood.

Six decades and so many favourites ... such as ‘I, Claudius’, ‘Gladiator I’, ‘Gladiator II’, ‘Last Tango in Halifax’, ‘The Crown’, ‘The Day of the Jackal’, ‘Nanny McPhee’, ‘Gosford Park’, The Kings Speech’ and much in between.

His Shakespeare work is vast with notable performances in Hamlet and Othello to name a few. And not to forget ... his audio book work as the narrator for the BBC children's series ‘In the Night Garden’. An incredible body of work.

Richard Clifford actor and producer,

Richard starred in ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ (1993) and ‘Loves Labours Lost’, directed by Kenneth Branagh.  Taken part in the MA course at Brunel University - The Shakespeare Authorship Question and has been a director at the Folger for 20 years to study the collection and look at the “Oxford Geneva” bible.

With Richard in the driving seat for the evening, there will be an incredible of insight, joy of Shakespeare and so much more as he is also Derek’s partner since the 1970’s.  

One of the best-loved and most versatile opera stars of the last 40 years, Sir Willard White's illustrious career has taken him to the most prestigious opera houses and concert halls throughout the world.

Now audiences have the opportunity to share an evening with Sir Willard as he reminisces about his life on stage & screen and sings some of the songs that have been important to him from the Nat King Cole of his youth in Jamaica, through the first truly complete recording of Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess in 1976 to the songs that made the Bass-Baritone singer Paul Robeson famous in the 1920s and ‘30s.

Sir Willard will be accompanied by the Kymaera guitar duo comprising Shane Hill and Simon James who have been performing together for over twenty years. Highlights of the partnership which features guitarists Shane Hill and Simon James have included appearing with the classical vocal legend Maria Ewing as well as the late UK jazz vocal legend Frank Holder.

Sir Derek Jacobi is an icon of Stage and Screen ... known for his work at the Royal National Theatre, has a BAFTA, Olivier, Emmy, Screen Guild and Tony Award winner and to top it all off Derek was given a Knighthood for his services to theatre by Queen Elizabeth II.  Not bad for a boy who grew up in Essex, the son of a corner shop owner and a secretary. From Leytonstone and the Leyton Players to Hamlet at Edinburgh Fringe and a scholarship to Cambridge.

With peers such as Ian McKellen and Trevor Nunn and as one of the founding members of the National Theatre and invited to be a member of the Birmingham Rep, Derek is an enormous talent with Shakespeare running through his blood.

Six decades and so many favourites ... such as ‘I, Claudius’, ‘Gladiator I’, ‘Gladiator II’, ‘Last Tango in Halifax’, ‘The Crown’, ‘The Day of the Jackal’, ‘Nanny McPhee’, ‘Gosford Park’, The Kings Speech’ and much in between.

His Shakespeare work is vast with notable performances in Hamlet and Othello to name a few. And not to forget ... his audio book work as the narrator for the BBC children's series ‘In the Night Garden’. An incredible body of work.

Richard Clifford actor and producer,

Richard starred in ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ (1993) and ‘Loves Labours Lost’, directed by Kenneth Branagh.  Taken part in the MA course at Brunel University - The Shakespeare Authorship Question and has been a director at the Folger for 20 years to study the collection and look at the “Oxford Geneva” bible.

With Richard in the driving seat for the evening, there will be an incredible of insight, joy of Shakespeare and so much more as he is also Derek’s partner since the 1970’s.  

British actress, comedian and singer, Dame Patricia Routledge, is best known for her role as Hyacinth Bucket in the BBC sitcom Keeping Up Appearances, for which she was nominated for the BAFTA TV Award for Best Light Entertainment Performance in 1992 and 1993. She is also known for her roles in ‘To Sir, with Love’ as Clinty Clintridge, ‘Lock Up Your Daughters’ as Nurse, and ‘Pretty Polly’ as Miss Gudgeon.

It is still one of the best kept secrets in show business that Patricia Routledge trained not only as an actress but also as a singer and had considerable experience and success in musical theatre, both in this country and in the United States of America.

Her many awards include a Tony for her Broadway performance in the Styne-Harburg musical Darling of the Day and a Laurence Olivier Award for her performance in Leonard Bernstein’s Candide.

Her one woman show Come for the Ride toured the UK in 1988 and in 1992 she played Nettie Fowler in the highly acclaimed production of Carousel at the National Theatre.

In this fascinating encounter with the writer and broadcaster Edward Seckerson, Dame Patricia recalls this very special part of her career with access to some rare and treasured recordings.

Presented in association with Clive Conway Productions

Henry Blofeld is widely respected as the voice of Test Match Special ‘Blowers’, brings his wit and wisdom to the stage once again.

For many Henry burbling commentaries provide a pleasingly onomatopoeic backdrop to a day's cricket, and his frequent gaffes and misidentifications merely add to that charm. He is keen to stress though that it’s not all cricket, in fact most of it isn’t and that every show is different. So, even if you’ve been before you can be sure that it’ll never be the same twice. 

“People gather around afterwards in the foyer and say, ‘We had no idea it was like this. We thought it was a cricket show.’ But it’s not. And if you think you’re going to learn how to play a forward defensive, you’ll be sadly disappointed.”

Instead, the talk is based, in the loosest sense, on Henry’s life story, although there’s time for as many after-dinner anecdotes and meandering digressions as there is in a Test Match Special rain break.

The show itself is very tongue-in-cheek and Henry spends a lot of time poking fun at himself and subjects veer from intergalactic travel, to horticulture to mountaineering.

Presented in association with Clive Conway Productions

Legendary cricket broadcaster, Henry Blofeld, takes readers on a charming journey through modern cricket, while looking back at the great games of yesteryear.

Henry has been close to the heart of cricket for over fifty years.  He has seen the game grow into a hugely international sport, where franchises continue to have massive influence and more and more games are added to the world calendar.  It wasn't always this way and Blowers reflects on how cricket used to be and where it is headed.

In this new book he explores the big shifts, innovations and challenges facing the game today, while looking back at his life and career, recounting his cherished memories of his beloved sport.  With his signature wit and insight, he compared the cricketing landscape of today with the cherished memories of yesteryear.

Henry began writing about cricket, for The Times, in May 1962 and in 1972 he started his long career as a commentator with the BBC's Test Match Special. During his career he has written for numerous papers and broadcast for both radio and television for many networks around the world especially in Australia and New Zealand. Henry now tours the country with his one man show.

Production Company: Clive Conway Productions Ltd.

Consistently one of our best-selling speakers, John Sergeant the former Chief Political Correspondent for the BBC and ITN Political Editor, has been absent from the Clive Conway books for a few years. We are delighted to welcome him back.
An Audience With John Sergeant will be appearing at a theatre near you next year. Watch out for bookings.
Many people will remember John as one of Britain's most popular and respected broadcasters and authors. His award-winning career as a political journalist has been as lengthy as it has been successful and seen him interview big political hitters like Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher, John Major and Tony Blair.

‍
In recent years though John has returned to his first love of light entertainment and can be seen regularly on programmes like The One Show, Have I Got News For You, QI, Room 101 and the News Quiz, and of course there were those appearances on Strictly……Indeed Sergeant’s two left feet approach to the arts of the ballroom consistently found him at the  bottom of the judges score board but the public loved him an d he retrained week after week. He finally left the show in Week 10 saying: "The trouble is that there is now a real danger that I might win the competition. Even for me that would be a joke too far.”
More recently there have been well received documentaries as well including John Sergeant's Tourist Trail, Tracks of Empire - about the Indian Railways, and Britain's First Photo Album about the pioneering photography of Francis Frith.

Consistently one of our best-selling speakers, John Sergeant the former Chief Political Correspondent for the BBC and ITN Political Editor, has been absent from the Clive Conway books for a few years. We are delighted to welcome him back.
An Audience With John Sergeant will be appearing at a theatre near you next year. Watch out for bookings.
Many people will remember John as one of Britain's most popular and respected broadcasters and authors. His award-winning career as a political journalist has been as lengthy as it has been successful and seen him interview big political hitters like Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher, John Major and Tony Blair.

‍
In recent years though John has returned to his first love of light entertainment and can be seen regularly on programmes like The One Show, Have I Got News For You, QI, Room 101 and the News Quiz, and of course there were those appearances on Strictly……Indeed Sergeant’s two left feet approach to the arts of the ballroom consistently found him at the  bottom of the judges score board but the public loved him an d he retrained week after week. He finally left the show in Week 10 saying: "The trouble is that there is now a real danger that I might win the competition. Even for me that would be a joke too far.”
More recently there have been well received documentaries as well including John Sergeant's Tourist Trail, Tracks of Empire - about the Indian Railways, and Britain's First Photo Album about the pioneering photography of Francis Frith.

Spend an evening in the company of the legendary comic John Cleese… in conjunction with Clive Conway Productions.

A man who continues to make us laugh, rock the boat, inspire, and shake things up.

John was born on October 27, 1939, in Weston-Super-Mare, England, into a family of modest means, who considered it important that John had a good education. Here he was often tormented for his height, having reached a height of six feet by the age of twelve, and eventually discovered that being humorous could deflect aggressive behaviour. He grew to love humour and has made an incredible career from his writing and comedy.

Some of John’s life highlights are…… attending Cambridge University to read (study) Law; being a member of the university's legendary Footlights group, where he wrote and performed in comedy reviews such as “Cambridge Circus,” which toured internationally and went on to spawn so many other comedy classics, such as  “I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again,” Monty Pythons’s Flying Circus and the Monty Python films….with Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones and Michael Palin.

And let’s not forget one of the funniest series ever, that John and then-wife Connie Booth collaborated in, the legendary television series Fawlty Towers (1975).

More recently John has appeared in the Harry Potter series and the James Bond series as Q, in which he began as R before graduating to Q.

John’s two daughters are what he considers to be real highlights of his life alongside promoting education and learning which he does as  professor-at-large of Cornell University in New York. John lives in Santa Barbara, California.

Spend an evening in the company of the legendary comic John Cleese… in conjunction with Clive Conway Productions.

A man who continues to make us laugh, rock the boat, inspire, and shake things up.

John was born on October 27, 1939, in Weston-Super-Mare, England, into a family of modest means, who considered it important that John had a good education. Here he was often tormented for his height, having reached a height of six feet by the age of twelve, and eventually discovered that being humorous could deflect aggressive behaviour. He grew to love humour and has made an incredible career from his writing and comedy.

Some of John’s life highlights are…… attending Cambridge University to read (study) Law; being a member of the university's legendary Footlights group, where he wrote and performed in comedy reviews such as “Cambridge Circus,” which toured internationally and went on to spawn so many other comedy classics, such as  “I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again,” Monty Pythons’s Flying Circus and the Monty Python films….with Eric Idle, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones and Michael Palin.

And let’s not forget one of the funniest series ever, that John and then-wife Connie Booth collaborated in, the legendary television series Fawlty Towers (1975).

More recently John has appeared in the Harry Potter series and the James Bond series as Q, in which he began as R before graduating to Q.

John’s two daughters are what he considers to be real highlights of his life alongside promoting education and learning which he does as  professor-at-large of Cornell University in New York. John lives in Santa Barbara, California.

Henry Blofeld is widely respected as the voice of Test Match Special ‘Blowers’, brings his wit and wisdom to the stage once again.

‍
For many Henry burbling commentaries provide a pleasingly onomatopoeic backdrop to a day's cricket, and his frequent gaffes and misidentifications merely add to that charm. He is keen to stress though that it’s not all cricket, in fact most of it isn’t and that every show is different. So, even if you’ve been before you can be sure that it’ll never be the same twice.

‍
“People gather around afterwards in the foyer and say, ‘We had no idea it was like this. We thought it was a cricket show.’ But it’s not. And if you think you’re going to learn how to play a forward defensive, you’ll be sadly disappointed.”

‍
Instead, the talk is based, in the loosest sense, on Henry’s life story, although there’s time for as many after-dinner anecdotes and meandering digressions as there is in a Test Match Special rain break.

‍
The show itself is very tongue-in-cheek and Henry spends a lot of time poking fun at himself and subjects veer from intergalactic travel, to horticulture to mountaineering.

‍
Presented in association with Clive Conway Productions

Bob Flowerdew is one of Britain's leading organic gardeners, and a television and radio presenter. He is a regular panel member of BBC Radio 4's Gardeners' Question Time.

The son of a farmer, his family have been working the land in East Anglia since Elizabethan times. Flowerdew runs a consultancy landscape service, is President of the Norfolk group of the Soil Association, and also teaches at agricultural college. He has written books on gardening including "Going Organic: The Good Gardener's Guide to Getting It Right".

Consistently one of our best-selling speakers, John Sergeant the former Chief Political Correspondent for the BBC and ITN Political Editor, has been absent from the Clive Conway books for a few years. We are delighted to welcome him back.

An Audience With John Sergeant will be appearing at a theatre near you next year. Watch out for bookings. 

Many people will remember John as one of Britain's most popular and respected broadcasters and authors. His award-winning career as a political journalist has been as lengthy as it has been successful and seen him interview big political hitters like Prime Ministers Margaret Thatcher, John Major and Tony Blair.

In recent years though John has returned to his first love of light entertainment and can be seen regularly on programmes like The One Show, Have I Got News For You, QI, Room 101 and the News Quiz, and of course there were those appearances on Strictly……Indeed Sergeant’s two left feet approach to the arts of the ballroom consistently found him at the  bottom of the judges score board but the public loved him an d he retrained week after week. He finally left the show in Week 10 saying: "The trouble is that there is now a real danger that I might win the competition. Even for me that would be a joke too far.”

More recently there have been well received documentaries as well including John Sergeant's Tourist Trail, Tracks of Empire - about the Indian Railways, and Britain's First Photo Album about the pioneering photography of Francis Frith.