Details
23 June 2021
7.00pm-8.00pm
From £4.00 per person for RGS-IBG members, £6 standard
What does the foghorn sound like? It sounds huge. It rattles. It rattles you. It is a booming, lonely sound echoing into the vastness of the sea. When Jennifer Lucy Allan hears the foghorn’s colossal bellow for the first time, it marks the beginning of an obsession and a journey deep into the history of a sound that has carved out the identity and the landscape of coastlines around the world, from Scotland to San Francisco.
Within its sound is a maritime history of shipwrecks and lighthouse keepers, the story and science of our industrial past, and urban myths relaying tales of foghorns in speaker stacks, blasting out for coastal raves.
An odyssey told through the people who battled the sea and the sound, who lived with it and loathed it, and one woman’s intrepid voyage through the howling loneliness of nature.
Like a traditional book club, attendees will share their thoughts about the book and discuss its themes in small groups. Please read the book beforehand (if you can) and bring your thoughts to share with the group. We encourage participants to switch on their video so the event can be as close as possible to an in-person book, but if you’re feeling shy there will be no pressure to speak and you’re very welcome to just come along and listen.
Olivia 'Lilly' Edward will guide the evening's discussion. Olivia is a nature journalist who worked as Reviews Editor/Staff Writer/Digital Editor at Geographical magazine for more than six years, and continues to review for them on a regular basis. She likes nothing more than having discussions about nature and coming across interesting ideas that allow her to view the world in a new light.
Joining information
You will receive joining instructions for this event at 10.00am the day after making your booking, or 30 minutes prior to the event if you book on the day.