Event Information

A 'Quite Interesting' Evening with John Mitchinson

Date: 22 June 2010   Drinks: 18:30   Talk Starts: 19:30 OPuS Event

Review - Post Event

Although I have been involved in but a few of the author talks that OPuS have put on to date, I feel confident in claiming that only in this latest edition have kangeroo vaginas* been featured as a topic. Similarly, I suspect that tardigrades (tiny acquatic creatures capable of surviving almost anything that nature or man can throw at them) have hitherto enjoyed little attention from any of the august speakers that have graced this hotly-anticipated annual event. These two, rather different, natural phenomenon were among the "Quite Interesting" facts that sprinked the talk from John Mitchinson hosted at Brookes' wonderful Headington Hill Hall.
John is, of course, head of research for television's popular QI programme, managing director of Quite Interesting Limited and co-writer (with John Lloyd) of the QI series of books. The format of Tuesday evening's events was that of monologue from John, followed by informal interview between John and Will Atkinson (his sales director at Faber) and finally questions from the audience. As a former bookseller (he was marketing director for Waterstones), publisher (he ran the Harvill Press, Cassell & Co and acted as deputy publisher of the Orion Group) and now author John he is, as he put it, "poacher, turned gamekeeper, turned game". As you might expect, such a depth of publishing experience, married to a wealth of trivia (collated in a professional capacity) made for a highly entertaining evening.
This was all very different from the inimitable Wendy Cope event last year, but no less enjoyable. A few more could have squeezed into the venue (lured elsewhere by the heady sunshine no doubt) but those that did attend found it more than a little bit "Quite Interesting".
* The quite interesting fact about kangeroo vaginas being that each (female) kangeroo has three of them...

Description

John Mitchinson, bookseller, publisher and author, has at one time been Marketing Director of Waterstones, Managing Director of both Harvill Press and later Cassell, as well as Deputy Publisher of the Orion Group.

With John Lloyd, he created the QI sequence of television programmes and accompanying books. QI sets off to find ‘undiscovered connections and hidden patterns – just like comedy’. Curiosity in what life has in store, in history, in science, in the world around us – this is what drives the QI ambition.

In conversation with Will Atkinson, Sales Director of Faber & Faber, John Mitchinson will talk informally about his present role as author of the QI books, while reflecting on the prospects for publishing and bookselling. He will also peer into his Futurescope and give us his predictions about how the media industries will fare in the coming years.

QI books will be on sale during the evening and John Mitchinson will be available sign them.