As short week, but once in which I interviewed a childhood heroine – Judith Kerr – author of The Tiger who came to Tea and the wonderful Pink Rabbit trilogy. At nearly 90 she was .and is a remarkable women; witty, charismatic and genuinely a pleasure to speak to. Most interesting were here views, as a former refugee, on immigration and its positives.
Elsewhere, I reported on Melanie Phillips’ plan to run her own publishing company, covered the tale of Polish-born spy during the Second World War, who was remembered at a ceremony tis week, and wrote about what will be on offer in the third series of the channel 4 comedy Friday Night Dinner.
I interviewed a very humble writer called Josef Novakovich, who is in the running for the international Man Booker prize, and discussed why he believes Stephen Hawking’s academic boycott is counterproductive. And I reported on a talk by National Theatre director Sir Nicholas Hytner, in which he discussed his views on the prejudice in Othello and The Merchant of Venice.
And in comment I featured a review of a new book on Hollywood and Hitler, and commissioned a piece by Jonni Berger who, with his sister, launched a campaign to find his mother a stem-cell donor – a successful campaign, I should add.
Getting Lippy 