Strong Roots; Bread & War -The Enduring Spirit of Ukraine
Part of the Bury St Edmunds Literature Festival 2025!
Location
Unitarian Meeting House, Churchgate Street, Bury St Edmunds IP33 1RH
Telephone
- Next Event
- 11th October 1:30pm
- Event Finishes
- 11th October 2:30pm
About this event
When Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 Ukrainian chef Olia Hercules decided it was finally time to tell her family’s history. Strong Roots is the story of a century in Ukraine told through four generations of one extraordinary family.
It lays bare the compromises and betrayals of generations struggling and surviving through war, peace, invasion and exile, and is an uplifting reminder of how much the human spirit can endure.
Olia will be in conversation with TV producer and journalist Felicity Spector, whose new book Food and War asks how you source, cook and take joy in food in the midst of war and loss?
Books: Olia Hercules: Strong Roots, Home Food, Summer Kitchens (Bloomsbury), Kaukasis, Mamushka (Octopus), Felicity Spector:
Bread & War (Duckworth Books)
Olia Hercules & Felicity Spector chaired by Nic Miller.
Suitability: 12+ Timing: 50 minutes, followed by book signing
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About the Venue
Bury St Edmunds' finest building
The Meeting House was built in 1711 for its Presbyterian congregation, and is a fine example of the English Baroque style in its softer, more provincial manner. Fully restored between 1975 and 1991, the Grade 1 listed building is now one of Bury St Edmunds' most elegant venues.
The facade to Churchgate Street is one of the jewels of the town, with its gauged and rubbed brickwork in two tones of red, and excellent proportions.
Superb Acoustics
The warm wood floor, good height, and human scale combine to provide a clear and sympathetic sound for a variety of public uses. After all, it was built to ensure commanding solo performances!
A highly adaptable space
The interior is a classic example of a nonconformist meeting house of the period. The central open space is dominated by a fine two-tiered pulpit and surrounded on three sides by galleries containing the original box pews.
Serving Bury St Edmunds
The Meeting House is currently owned by Unitarian Trustees, and managed by the House Committee which includes representatives of the Community. The aim is to ensure wide and appropriate public use of the building for many years to come.
The House Committee is a committee of the Unitarian Trustees, an excepted charity
