Who is the Poet?
Posted by Speakeasy News > Monday 23 March 2020 > Celebrate
A famous poet is celebrating an important anniversary. Find out who by watching the quiz below.
He Wandered Lonely as a Cloud
Posted by Speakeasy News > Friday 31 January 2020 > Celebrate
William Wordsworth was a leading light of the Romantics, famous in habitant of the Lake District, and Poet Laureate. 2020 marks his 250th anniversary. Wordsworth (1770-1850) is chiefly remembered as a nature poet in his beloved Lake District, where he was born and lived much of his life. But he was also a radical in … Continue reading “He Wandered Lonely as a Cloud”
Do Good in December
Posted by Speakeasy News > Monday 02 December 2019 > Celebrate
Do you fancy using an advent calendar in class in December as a cultural reference, but want to avoid the religious connection? How about using this fabulous December Kindness Calendar instead? Produced by British charity Action for Happiness, it encourages you to do a kind act each day, like counting your blessings or seeing how … Continue reading “Do Good in December”
Vampires from “Dracula” to “Twilight”
Posted by Speakeasy News > Friday 25 October 2019 > Celebrate
The cinema industry has long had a love affair with vampires, most often Dracula, based on Eastern European legends and Bram Stoker’s eponymous book. An exhibition at the Cinémathèque in Paris is a great opportunity to revisit the fascination with the undead across the arts: literature, painting, TV and film. It’s also an opportunity to … Continue reading “Vampires from “Dracula” to “Twilight””
Celebrate Scotland in St-Germain-en-Laye
Posted by Speakeasy News > Friday 20 September 2019 > Celebrate
St-Germain-en-Laye in the Yvelines has a long historic connection with Scotland, and is twinned with the Scottish seaside town of Ayr. For the weekend of 21-22 September, St Germain will be taken over by kilts and bagpipes for a Highland Games. The castle in St Germain was home to the exiled King James II of … Continue reading “Celebrate Scotland in St-Germain-en-Laye”
On Route 66
Posted by Speakeasy News > Thursday 08 August 2019 > Celebrate
Route 66 has mythical status in the U.S.A. and around the world. It’s been immortalised in songs, novels and films. Although it’s no longer a major highway, it still draws visitors keen to experience the iconic home of the road trip. Every September, enthusiasts gather in Springfield, Illinois, for the Mother Road Festival, using the … Continue reading “On Route 66”
Landing on the Moon
Posted by Speakeasy News > Monday 15 July 2019 > Celebrate
NASA is marking the fiftieth anniversary of the first Moon landings. Fifty years after Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the Moon, and 47 years after the end of the Apollo program, the U.S. space agency is preparing to go back to Moon by 2024. On July 20, 1969, Armstrong and Aldrin boarded the … Continue reading “Landing on the Moon”
They Shall Not Grow Old
Posted by Speakeasy News > Monday 01 July 2019 > Celebrate Shine Bright Lycée
A new documentary film by Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson brings the soldiers in the First World War to life to commemorate the centenary of the Armistice. The First World War was the first major conflict after the invention of film cameras. To mark the centenary of the end of the War on … Continue reading “They Shall Not Grow Old”
Victoria 200
Posted by Speakeasy News > Monday 24 June 2019 > Celebrate
2019 marks the bicentenary of the births of Britain’s Queen Victoria and her beloved husband Prince Albert. Victoria reigned from 1837 until 1899, the longest reign of any British monarch until the current Queen overtook the record in 2015. Victoria reigned over an era of imperial expansion, ultimately ruling over a quarter of the world’s … Continue reading “Victoria 200”
D-Day in Sound and Poetry
Posted by Speakeasy News > Monday 03 June 2019 > Celebrate
As part of the commemorations of the 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings, the town of Bayeux is hosting an immersive audio performance in English about British war poet and D-Day veteran Keith Douglas. Douglas was a WWII tank commander, who fought in North Africa and participated in the Normandy landings. He was killed three … Continue reading “D-Day in Sound and Poetry”