An exhibition and series of public events was held in the first week of October to celebrate the University's internationally renowned collection of manuscripts from the Nobel Prize-winning writer Samuel Beckett (1906-1989).
Public Exhibition: Samuel Beckett in London - the Murphy Notebooks
Wednesday 1 - Saturday 4 October
Museum of English Rural Life
Alongside a wide range of other material, the University's recently acquired notebooks for Beckett's novel Murphy were on display at this exhibition, which focussed on Beckett's time in London between 1934 and 1935.
Beckett Archive Workshop
Thursday 2 October
Museum of English Rural Life
Open to all, this free two-hour workshop introduced participants to the University's Beckett archive. It was open to any interested members of the public and was well-received.
Public Lecture and Drinks Reception
Professor Dan Gunn: "Samuel Beckett Through his Letters"
Friday 3 October
Minghella Building, Whiteknights Campus
Dan Gunn, Professor of Comparative Literature and English at the American University of Paris, gave an interesting talk about the processes involved in compiling the Letters of Samuel Beckett series.
The Beckett International Foundation Annual Research Seminar 2014
Saturday 4 October
Museum of English Rural Life
This day-long advanced seminar explored the latest research in Beckett Studies, with papers from Emeritus Professor John Pilling and Professor Andrew Nash (University of Reading) on the Murphy manuscript, Dr Judith Wilkinson (independent scholar) on Beckett and visual art, Dr Anthony Paraskeva (University of Roehampton) on Beckett and the cinema, and Dr Helen Bailey (University of Reading) on unheard music and suppressed spirituality in Beckett's Watt.