Colm Eastwood addresses the House of Commons
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Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
Sally Rooney: I support Palestine Action. If this makes me a ‘supporter of terror' under UK law, so be it
On Saturday, August 9th, UK police arrested more than 500 peaceful protesters on suspicion of terror offences. The vast majority of these arrests took place on Parliament Square, London , where Irish citizens such as Sinéad Ní Shiacáis, from Limerick, were among those detained, but in Belfast too, a woman was arrested by the PSNI. These protesters were not engaged in any violent acts, nor were they promoting any violence against any living creatures at all. And yet they may now face life-altering terror charges, some of which could result in up to 14 years in prison. Why? Because, with a full understanding of the consequences, these brave individuals chose to express support for the protest group Palestine Action. Since its foundation in 2020, Palestine Action has primarily organised direct-action protests against weapons manufacturers: defacing buildings, breaking windows and occupying factories. This summer, as the UK continued to offer material and diplomatic support for the ongoing genocide in Gaza , activists broke into an RAF airbase and used spray-paint to vandalise two aircraft. The Government responded by proscribing Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation, placing the group on the same legal footing as al-Qaeda and Islamic State. The group's cofounder, Huda Ammori, is now rightly fighting this designation in the courts, but in the meantime, any expression of support for Palestine Action, even a simple placard or T-shirt, constitutes a serious terror offence under UK law. Meanwhile, the Irish Government – along with virtually every humanitarian organisation worldwide – has recognised that Israel is committing genocide in Palestine . Genocide is the gravest of international crimes and, for most of us, quite aside from any legal framework, the most abhorrent wrong imaginable. Under the Genocide Convention, to which both Ireland and the UK are signatories, nation states have a duty not only to punish but also to prevent the commission of this incomparably horrifying crime. Activists who disrupt the flow of weapons to a genocidal regime may violate petty criminal statutes, but they uphold a far greater law and a more profound human imperative: to protect a people and culture from annihilation. But while Irish citizens – including potentially here on the island of Ireland – are accused of terrorism for protesting an acknowledged genocide, the Irish Government has so far remained silent. When our citizens are arrested under authoritarian regimes elsewhere, the State and its consular services tend to spring into action, or at least purport to, in order to defend the human rights of Irish passport holders. Now that the jurisdiction in question is located next door – and indeed closer still – our leaders seem curiously unwilling to act. If the Government in Dublin truly believes that Israel is committing genocide, how can it look elsewhere while its nearest neighbour funds and supports that genocide and its own citizens are arrested simply for speaking out? READ MORE Sally Rooney: 'The ramifications for cultural and intellectual life in the UK will be profound' The arrest of a protester in Belfast surely represents a particularly egregious example of political policing. When a storm damaged an infamous loyalist mural in north Belfast last year, rebuilding commenced immediately, and the wall is now once again emblazoned with the iconography of the Ulster Volunteer Force. No arrests were made on that basis, nor has the mural been taken down, though the UVF is a proscribed terrorist organisation responsible for the murders of hundreds of civilians. Palestine Action, proscribed under the same law, is responsible for zero deaths and has never advocated the use of violence against any human being. Why then are its supporters arrested for wearing T-shirts, while murals celebrating loyalist death squads are left untouched? Can the PSNI explain this demonstrably selective enforcement of anti-terror law? Perhaps the British state should investigate the shady organisations that continue to promote my work and fund my activities, such as WH Smith and the BBC While protesters are labelled terrorists in the UK, Palestinian civilians are, of course, labelled terrorists by Israeli forces. But where UK protesters face trumped-up charges and prison sentences, Palestinians face violent death. Last weekend Israeli forces assassinated a team of Al Jazeera reporters in Gaza, including the renowned journalist Anas al-Sharif , whose work with Reuters was awarded the Pulitzer Prize last year. Rather than denying responsibility for this appalling war crime, Israel openly took credit for the assassination, claiming – with no credible evidence – that Anas al-Sharif, an accomplished and beloved reporter, was in fact a 'terrorist'. This claim, though baseless, has been repeated widely in western media in the days since. Once the special word 'terrorist' is invoked, it seems, all laws melt into air and everything is permitted. In this context I feel obliged to state once more that – like the hundreds of protesters arrested last weekend – I too support Palestine Action. If this makes me a 'supporter of terror' under UK law, so be it. My books, at least for now, are still published in Britain, and are widely available in bookshops and even supermarkets. In recent years the UK's state broadcaster has also televised two fine adaptations of my novels, and therefore regularly pays me residual fees. I want to be clear that I intend to use these proceeds of my work, as well as my public platform generally, to go on supporting Palestine Action and direct action against genocide in whatever way I can. If the British state considers this 'terrorism', then perhaps it should investigate the shady organisations that continue to promote my work and fund my activities, such as WH Smith and the BBC. Protesters in London last weekend. Photograph: Tolga Akmen/EPA To ensure that the British public is made aware of my position, I would happily publish this statement in a UK newspaper – but that would now be illegal. The present UK Government has willingly stripped its own citizens of basic rights and freedoms, including the right to express and read dissenting opinions, in order to protect its relationship with Israel. The ramifications for cultural and intellectual life in the UK – where the eminent poet Alice Oswald has already been arrested, and an increasing number of artists and writers can no longer safely travel to Britain to speak in public – are and will be profound. But as Sinéad Ní Shiacáis said after her arrest last weekend: 'We are not the story; the Palestinian people are the story. They are begging people to give them a voice.' Palestine Action has been among the strongest of those voices in the UK, taking direct steps to halt the seemingly unstoppable machinery of violence. We owe their courageous activists our gratitude and solidarity. And by now, almost two years into a live-streamed genocide, we owe the people of Palestine more than mere words. Sally Rooney is a novelist
Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
Presidential election: What Catherine Connolly says on Ukraine, the EU and Syria
With little more than two months to go until voters go to the polls, Independent TD Catherine Connolly is the only confirmed candidate in the race to succeed President Michael D Higgins . During her nine years as a TD, Ms Connolly, a committed Gaeilgeoir, has served as Leas-Cheann Comhairle and has proved to be an incisive performer on committees. She is highly regarded by left-leaning parties in the Oireachtas – reflected by the fact she has the backing of the Social Democrats, Labour and People Before Profit in the presidential election. In a contest, however, that places unremitting emphasis on the individual, their history in politics, their character and their actions, she will face criticism and scrutiny over some of her stances and actions. READ MORE The Irish Times posed questions to Connolly regarding her stance on global affairs, including her views on the war in Ukraine, Russia and Nato, the European Union and a controversial trip she took to war-torn Syria in 2018. Here is what she said. The Ukraine war, Russia and Nato Connolly's approach to the war in Ukraine has been to condemn Russia but also criticise western military alliance Nato, which she has argued was 'warmongering' before the conflict began. It is a stance that could be perceived by some as her blaming Nato for Russian president Vladimir Putin 's decision to invade Ukraine. During her nine years as a TD, Catherine Connolly has served as Leas-Cheann Comhairle. Photograph: Alan Betson / The Irish Times In a Dáil debate on the eve of the February 2022 invasion, Connolly said: 'We should be raging against any possibility of war' and Ireland 'should be using our voice as a neutral country'. She criticised Putin as a 'dictator with no respect for democracy' but also contended: 'Nato has played a despicable role in moving forward to the border and engaging in warmongering. Ireland has been hypocritical on many levels.' She has also spoken in the Dáil this year about the need to continue to 'show solidarity with the people of Ukraine'. She referred to the refugees who have come to Ireland and said it was 'really important we call out what Russia has done'. The Irish Times asked Ms Connolly if she believed Nato was equally or partly to blame for the Russian invasion of Ukraine. She said: 'Russia is conducting an illegal invasion of Ukraine – it must immediately end its horrific assault in accordance with international law and an immediate ceasefire. 'I have criticised Nato as its warmongering and escalation towards conflict over the years is at odds with achieving peace in regions across the world.' The European Union, US, UK and France During a Dáil speech on the third anniversary of the Ukraine war in February this year, Ms Connolly made criticisms of the US, the UK, France and the European Union (EU), and she highlighted the ongoing war in Gaza. She has been vocal in her criticisms of Israel , accusing it on other occasions of genocide in its campaign in Gaza and Palestine. During the Dáil contribution in February, Ms Connolly referred to Government plans to scrap the triple lock on the deployment of Irish troops abroad – a proposal she opposes, arguing it threatens Ireland's neutrality. Ms Connolly agreed with another contributor in the debate that there are countries 'we certainly cannot trust', adding: 'America is one of those and England and France are others. 'What is behind their motivation is simply an arms industry, more war, ongoing war, normalising war and making huge profits. That needs to be called out over and over.' She accused US president Donald Trump of 'supporting Israel trampling on international law and reducing Gaza to nothing'. Ms Connolly said: 'We do not seem to see any contradiction in calling out Russia – rightly so – but not calling out America or any of the other major powers. I have a huge problem with that.' She also said she has a 'huge problem with the EU, which has lost its direction', and she criticised EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen's stance on Gaza which is seen by many to be too pro-Israel. [ The Irish Times view on the presidential election: the race now looks very different Opens in new window ] The Irish Times asked Ms Connolly if she is saying the UK and France, two of Ireland's closest neighbours, cannot be trusted and if she is a supporter of the EU. In response, Ms Connolly said: 'The US, England and France are deeply entrenched in an arms industry which causes bloodshed across the world – as a staunch advocate for neutrality, this behaviour must be condemned.' She also said: 'The European Union, which I support, has lost sight of its foundations: a project developed to promote and preserve peace.' Ms Connolly contended: 'The EU has become increasingly militarised under the leadership of Ursula von der Leyen and the European People's Party – this direction can only bring pain. As Irish people, we must resist this trend towards imperialism and show support for Palestine and Ukraine as Europeans.' She said: 'The EU has lost its moral compass.' The Syria trip Ms Connolly travelled to Syria in June 2018 along with then-fellow Independent TDs Maureen O'Sullivan, Clare Daly and Mick Wallace. At the time of the trip, dictator Bashar al-Assad was still in power and engaged in a brutal civil war. The country was under western sanctions. During her presidential campaign launch, Ms Connolly said she funded the trip herself, its purpose was 'fact-finding', and she 'met no member of government' and 'nor did I ever utter one word of support for Assad'. She said the delegation visited a refugee camp outside Damascus and 'saw first-hand the destruction of a whole city'. They travelled to Aleppo and met the Chamber of Industry, and also had a meeting with Unicef workers as well as visiting a convent. While in Aleppo, the Irish delegation met Syrian businessman and politician Fares al-Shehabi. Although he was an Independent MP, Mr al-Shehabi was a supporter of the military actions taken by the government side in the civil war. He was deemed a supporter of the Assad regime and placed under EU sanctions. After her return from Syria, Ms Daly challenged the Government in the Dáil to issue a visa to Mr al-Shehabi 'so that he might come to Ireland as a businessman and Sunni Muslim who believes in secular values and talk about what has happened in Syria'. The Irish Syria Solidarity Movement has previously criticised the trip taken to Syria by the four TDs, arguing it 'provided legitimacy to the Assad regime'. Photograph: Sam Boal/ Collins Photos During the same contribution, Ms Daly responded to criticism of Russia's role on the regime side of the civil war, arguing 'in many cases' people in Syria 'think the Russians are heroes'. The Irish Syria Solidarity Movement (ISSM) has previously criticised the trip taken to Syria by the four TDs, arguing it 'provided legitimacy to the Assad regime and its narrative'. In response to questions from The Irish Times, Ms Connolly rejected any such suggestion, saying: 'The notion that my visit to Syria to gain an understanding of a humanitarian crisis, that the EU had a hand in worsening, aligns me in any way with Assad's government is not acceptable.' She repeated she has 'never uttered one word of support' for Assad 'nor the actions of his government'. She said: 'Assad's dictatorship committed countless atrocities and human rights abuses, all of which I have criticised on the floor of the Dáil.' She said the year before the trip, 'many NGOs and charities on the ground, including the World Health Organisation, urged US and EU sanctions to be rescinded as they were not targeted, serving only to harm innocent civilians, often denying them essential medical supplies, leading to unnecessary deaths. A UN report and leaked memos at the time corroborated these facts'. Ms Connolly said: 'These sanctions served as the reason for my fact-finding mission – I also made this clear on the floor of Dáil Éireann.' Referring to Mr al-Shehabi, Ms Connolly she said 'met with a member of the Syrian opposition in his capacity as a member of the Aleppo Chamber of Commerce to get an idea of how things were on the ground'. Ms Connolly also said: 'If activists, NGOs and charities are to be blacklisted for such excursions, we will be damned to repeat the same mistakes in the future – it is only because of these fact-finding missions that we learned the extent of the destruction sanctions were causing to ordinary lives. 'Sanctions should never result in civilian casualties.' Ms O'Sullivan, who retired from politics in 2020, said the trip was a 'humanitarian visit' and 'we weren't going there to support Assad'. Asked about their interaction with Mr al-Shehabi, Ms O'Sullivan, said she did not have 'any idea of what his political views were. We met him as a businessman who wanted to get the economy in Syria back up and running again.' She insisted the trip was not 'political'. Ms O'Sullivan is strongly supporting Ms Connolly's presidential bid, describing the Independent TD as 'a woman of integrity and honesty' who is 'not afraid to speak the truth. 'She will be an excellent president particularly with her stance on human rights.' Ms Daly and Mr Wallace did not respond to attempts to contact them for comment. [ Can you have too much democracy? Opens in new window ] Áras an Uachtaráin, the official residence and principal workplace of the President of Ireland. Photograph: Getty Images Ireland's Defence Forces During a Dáil debate on a Defence Bill last year, Connolly said: 'We do not need an army.' Taken in isolation these remarks could raise eyebrows and prompt criticism, given she is seeking to become president, the supreme commander of the Defence Forces. The context, however, was a lengthy contribution where she also noted this role of the presidency; the army's aid to civil power and peacekeeping functions and said she is 'very proud' of the Defence Forces. While they are 'under-resourced', she said 'we all stand fully behind their most basic demands in terms of money and conditions' and made criticisms of the Government over the situation. She also said: 'Ireland will never be able to have an army. We do not need an army. We are an independent, neutral, sovereign country. Our strength lies in our independent voice. Our strength lies in making the UN institutions function better.' The Irish Times asked Connolly to respond to the suggestion that saying Ireland did not need an army while highlighting roles it performs, like peacekeeping, is contradictory. She reiterated that she is 'immensely proud of our Defence Forces' and its members adding: 'but pride cannot blind us to reality: conditions are worsening. 'The Defence Forces remain underfunded, under-resourced, and its members underpaid, who are left to serve and live in settings that are far below the standard they deserve. That is unacceptable, and it is long past time for change.' [ The Irish presidency is a moral role much more than a political one Opens in new window ] She said: 'There is no contradiction between what I said in 2024 and what I say today. 'Then, as now, I was clear: our Defence Forces are defined by their civic duties at home and their peacekeeping work abroad. 'They are not, and should never become, an army. Armies fight wars. They are increasingly militarised. They are, by their nature, at odds with a nation's neutrality. 'Our Defence Forces exist to protect our people, our sovereignty, and – in Ireland's case – to foster peace where conflict has broken out.' She added: 'Ireland needs our Defence Forces. We must value, respect, and support their members. But Ireland does not need an army. 'Our true strength is in our independent voice, carried above the shouts of those who beat the drums of war. 'That voice must be safeguarded and amplified – at all costs.'
Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
Nicola Sturgeon on Leo Varadker's shyness, Enda Kenny's charm and Martin McGuinness's bear hugs
You know there's another British heatwave coming – this summer's fourth – when even Manchester is balmy. Yet Nicola Sturgeon , former first minister of Scotland and once the most powerful woman in UK politics, is cool as a breeze on Monday as she strolls into the bar of the Lowry Hotel in the northwest English city: the halfway point between her Glasgow home and London. Then she utters a surprising aside which, if someone else had said it, she might have justifiably resented. 'Ach, look at me in these scruffy old things,' the former Scottish National Party (SNP) leader says with a smile but still somewhat apologetically. READ MORE Despite the rising temperatures I'm huffing like a sweaty dolt in a formal blazer, regretting my sartorial choices. Sturgeon, meanwhile, is far more appropriately coiffed in light, casual clothes. And they're neither scruffy nor old, not that it matters. But as we shake hands, my mind returns to a section of her new memoir, Frankly, where she laments the sexism that means women in politics are unfairly judged on their clothing in a way that men are not. In her book, Sturgeon, is often harsh on herself. 'On many days, even at the height of my political powers, the toughest battle I would fight was with the voice in my head telling me I wasn't good enough,' she writes. Nicola Sturgeon speaks to reporters in March after announcing she will stand down as an member of the Scottish parliament. Photograph: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty And as we sit down, she says: 'That lack of confidence, that female sense that you're not good enough – the impostor syndrome … it also became my superpower because it drove me on to try to make up for it by working harder than everybody else.' Writing about herself rather than talking is Sturgeon 'in her comfort zone'. In Frankly, she gets comfortable discussing everything from her opinions on British prime ministers such as Boris Johnson and taoisigh Enda Kenny and Leo Varadkar to her travails as Scotland's leader during Covid and her failed efforts to win Scottish independence. Sturgeon reveals her unlikely friendship with Martin McGuinness , the late former Sinn Féin deputy first minister of Northern Ireland, and discusses the behind-the-scenes co-operation between the SNP and the Republic of Ireland during the tumult of the Brexit negotiation years. She also reveals much of herself in a candid, if one-sided, account of her bitter falling out with her old mentor, the late Alex Salmond , as well as her shock decision to step down as Scottish first minister in spring 2023 – Sturgeon still insists it had nothing to do with an SNP financial scandal that would break just eight days later. Nicola Sturgeon is hugged as she arrives at the SNP annual conference in Aberdeen in 2023. Photograph: Andrew Milligan/PA She was arrested in that matter but never charged and always maintained her innocence of any wrongdoing. But the affair has still clouded some perceptions of her. A leisurely sit-down with her on Monday this week confirms what is obvious in her new book: Sturgeon is a talented and complicated person who juggles certain contradictions. She was SNP leader or deputy leader for more than 18 years, a politician of substance. While Sturgeon may be seen as one of the most articulate leaders of recent decades who often shone in big moments, she still considers herself a 'shy, awkward introvert'. There are other contradictions. Once the victim of puerile, unsubstantiated gossip about lesbian affairs (which she denies), she argues her love life should be nobody's business. Yet out of nowhere, she also chooses to announce in her book that her sexuality is 'not binary,' a revelation that will inevitably lead some to wonder if she is clearing the way to be redefined in future. She split earlier this year from her husband, former SNP official Peter Murrell, who was at the heart of the party's financial scandal that broke after her exit from the party. In the Lowry bar on Monday, Sturgeon is always a half a yard out of the metaphorical reach of her interviewer. I can never quite seem to catch up with her as she flits between disarming openness and cautious reserve; between self-assurance over her legacy to moments of uncertainty over key decisions; between gregariousness and icy suspicion at certain questions. She was a working-class Ayrshire law graduate who became the 'rock star politician' who dominated Scottish politics for a decade. In a vivid and moving passage about a miscarriage she suffered around New Year's Eve in 2010, she discusses her guilt for once wanting to be childless. She never had children. Isn't it uncomfortable for a self-described introvert such as Sturgeon to discuss such intimate details of her life with people whom she barely knows? 'I'm no stranger to intense scrutiny of every aspect of my life,' she says. 'Putting the details down in your own words and being asked about them feels exposing and makes you vulnerable. But I wanted to write my story in my words. You owe it to readers to put something of yourself in it.' Sturgeon says there are 'caricatures aplenty' of her in Scotland that she wants to avoid. Nicola Sturgeon reacts at the count centre in Glasgow after votes are counted in the UK 2019 general election, which was won by Boris Johnson. Photograph: Andy Buchanan/Getty Like many Scottish nationalists, she also has an affinity for and an interest in Ireland, long a model of Celtic aspiration for the independence-seeking SNP. In Frankly, she describes how she got on well with former taoiseach Enda Kenny at British-Irish Council (BIC) east-west intergovernmental meetings, admiring his 'gift of the gab' and how he'd have the UK and devolved nation leaders 'eating out of his hand'. 'I love Enda,' she says on Monday. 'I think he's absolutely brilliant. It was a running joke at BIC that he'd always arrive massively late. Then he'd sit down and launch into the conversation – it wouldn't matter what we were talking about. He would just tell us tales of what had gone on at European Council meetings or whatever. He'd just talk and talk.' Sturgeon says she was 'really fond' of Micheál Martin , but ultimately she was closer to Varadkar because of the overlap in their terms of office during the toughest years of the Brexit negotiations with Theresa May and Johnson. 'Leo won't mind me saying this, but when I was there [at BIC meetings] he knew he wouldn't be the only shy person there. He was even more introverted than I was.' It was McGuinness, however, to whom Sturgeon was most drawn. She believes he saw a sense of vulnerability that resided within her. She writes in Frankly of how he made a beeline to give her 'bear hugs' whenever they met. Sturgeon acknowledges that her recollections of her warm relationship with a former IRA commander may spur criticism in some sections of Scottish society, a nation that knows something of the sectarian divisions that have plagued Northern Ireland over the years. 'I grew up when the Troubles were in full swing and Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness were scary guys from the news,' she says. 'I wasn't in any way naive about Martin's past. But the guy I knew was kind and gentle. His eyes would twinkle at you. He was also 100 per cent committed to the peace process.' She spoke to him not long before he died in March 2017. He had been 'hale and hearty' at a BIC meeting in November, but by the time he quit politics on health grounds in January, she was 'shocked' by his physical appearance when she saw him on television. 'I texted him. We spoke on the phone. He knew he was seriously ill. We spoke about politics and independence and such matters, of course. But this was a personal thing. I was very fond of Martin. His family invited me to his funeral, but I just wasn't able to go.' Meanwhile, she also recalls being in a Glasgow lift with President Michael D Higgins in June 2016 as news came through that England had been beaten by Iceland in the European football championships tournament. 'We laughed and a little 'wa-hey' moment about it,' she says. The Irish government was, she says, 'a useful source of information' for her in the depths of the Brexit negotiations – Scots had voted to remain in European Union in the 2016 referendum on the UK's membership of the bloc. Meanwhile, Irish sources say the SNP's then-huge cohort of MPs could also be helpful for the State when Dublin wanted an issue raised in parliament. Despite Scotland having no obvious political or legal path to ceding from the United Kingdom – an issue that, along with transgender culture wars, contributed to Sturgeon's political exit – she predicts independence for Scotland within 20 years. She also mentions a 'reunified Ireland'. Does she really believe there will a united Ireland alongside an independent Scotland within two decades? 'Yes. Or even less. If one happened, there would be an impact on the other. Looking from the outside, I think Ireland will be unified again.' Sturgeon writes in Frankly about how she could feel a sense of support for Scottish independence from Irish people in the post-Brexit years. She also clearly reciprocates on Irish unification. 'I was always careful when first minister not to express a view on it. But my personal view would not be a surprise to you.' This might explain why she never had a close relationship with Arlene Foster , the former DUP leader and first minister of the North. 'Also, many women of our age have to become a bit austere to get on in politics.' (Both are 55 and were born two days apart.) Sturgeon did not like Johnson: 'I don't like talking in terms of 'liking' people, so maybe I should just say I didn't have much respect for him. He doesn't take anything seriously. In the pandemic, I found that difficult to take. Yes, he can make you laugh. But he thinks you're laughing with him, at how brilliant he is, when often you're laughing because the alternative is to cry.' She had an awkward personal relationship with May, although she was the British prime minister Sturgeon respected the most. The one she got on best with was David Cameron , who gave Scottish nationalists the 2014 independence referendum they looked set to win at one stage but which they eventually lost. Apart from herself, the most textured character in Sturgeon's book is former SNP leader and first minister Salmond, who died of a heart attack last October. They had been politically close for years – she was his deputy and heir – but they fell out over her handling of allegations within the SNP of historical sexual misconduct by Salmond. He was later found not guilty in court, a fact to which Sturgeon does not give much accord in Frankly. Instead, she focuses more on their bitter falling out, which she blames on him, and what she still insists was his 'inappropriate' behaviour. They hadn't spoken for years by the time he died. Still, does she miss him? Sturgeon hesitates. 'I miss the person I thought he was. I miss the relationship we used to have. We had gone from being the closest allies to arch enemies,' she says. 'It's complicated.' As any follower of Scottish politics might agree, so too is Sturgeon, one of the most gifted, scrutinised, criticised and significant politicians of recent decades. Nicola Sturgeon will be in conversation with Susan McKay at the Seamus Heaney HomePlace on Tuesday, August 19th and with Matt Cooper in the National Concert Hall on Wednesday, August 20th. Both events are sold out. Frankly is published by Pan Macmillan.
