Baroness Joan Bakewell, Sir John Curtice, and Christina Patterson join Humanists UK Convention line-up

Humanists UK has announced a slew of exciting new speakers for its 2019 Annual Convention in Leicester. 

Baroness Joan Bakewell, co-Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Humanist group, Christina Patterson, journalist and author of The Art of Not Falling Apart, and Professor Sir John Curtice, President of the British Polling Council and election night exit poll guru have all been added to the existing line-up.  

Hundreds of tickets for the three-day event in Leicester have been sold already. The ancient city of Leicester will play host to Humanists UK Convention 2019, to be held in the beautiful Art Deco surrounds of the Leicester Athena over 21–23 June 2019.

Tickets start from just £99, and £69 for students, for an entire weekend of wonder and inspiration, jam-packed with exciting ideas and amusements from some of the UK’s leading thinkers and entertainers.

Joan Bakewell has promoted humanist and liberal ideas, the arts, and has consistently defended the poor and vulnerable since entering Parliament in 2011. She’s given more than 140 speeches in the House of Lords, and in 2017 was named Humanist of the Year by Humanists UK, in recognition of her lifelong dedication to putting humanist values into practice. She has been a journalist, asking difficult questions of the British public, for over 50 years. 

Christina Patterson is a writer, broadcaster and consultant. She has been described by Clive James as ‘a wonderful, gutsy’ writer, and by the poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy as ‘a clear and important voice in British journalism’. Her time at The Independent ended dramatically. This forms the opening scene of her book The Art of Not Falling Apart, which is a mix of memoir and interviews about how we cope when life goes wrong. It was picked as an editor’s choice in The Bookseller and described as ‘brilliant, poignant, but also very funny’.

Professor Sir John Curtice is a psephologist and political scientist and is an election night favourite, regularly confounding politicians and commentators with his exit polls – initially shocking, and shown to be correct as the night unfolds. He is a senior research fellow at NatCen Social Research – the UK’s largest independent social research agency – and president of the British Polling Council. He received a knighthood in 2017 for services to social sciences and politics.

Further historians, authors, scientists, comedians, activists, and more are set to be announced in the coming weeks and months.

Humanists UK’s 2018 Convention, held in Newcastle, was a resounding success. Feedback data from attendees was that it was the best Convention held to date.

Humanists UK urges members and supporters to book their place soon.

The Humanists UK Convention is always a wonderful opportunity for humanists to gather, eat, drink, network, and celebrate humanism. This year’s Convention begins on 21 June, coinciding with global celebrations for World Humanist Day. It will take place in ancient city of Leicester, a city with a deep and rich history of humanist thought and activism. The Athena also sits in the heart of Leicester with excellent and affordable accommodation close at hand.

‘It was great to have a chance to meet and catch up with other people around the country who are working for the same cause,’ said one attendee of 2018’s Convention. Another, describing their weekend, commented ‘There were amazing talks, with well-reasoned and respectful debate and discussions.’ ‘We had the best time,’ said one pair. ‘Organisers should be widely congratulated for a really good convention and for going out of their way for making it a good event for people to attend.’

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