Helen Shair

Founder and Director of Authors In Oundle March 2024
Festival Director on behalf of the Oundle Festival of Literature From September 2012 - December 2023

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

Sophy Roberts gave a memorable and emotional talk about her research methods and material uncovered in her latest book, A Training School for Elephants on the 23/04.
It was at times hard to listen to the terrible and misguided actions that happened during this venture and also to hear about the decimation of the elephant population in Africa, but we must hear if it is to stop. Sophy is working hard with conservation projects sponsored by The Safarious Fund and her amazing book will also help to raise awareness. Thank you to Sophy for coming to Oundle and to my amazing crew for ensuring that we all enjoyed a memorable evening.
#authorsophyroberts, #theesafarioustrust,

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

I enjoyed a lovely morning at the beautiful setting of Molecey Mill, near Market Deeping on the 3rd May. The Deepings Literary Festival had done a magnificent job of organising events with authors Jo Bell and Julia Jones. Both are amazing ladies with interesting stories to tell. Plus there was music, bacon butties and the wonderful artwork of Jamie Poole.
#lovelyday, #literatureevents #thedeepingsliteraryfestival

[#WOMENSART @womensart1]

'Rooks' by Jackie Morris, contemporary artist, author and illustrator based in a little cottage near the sea in Wales
#Womensart

[Peter Cox @CardinalPeteCox]

#PeterboroPub_Scrawl Crime novel being launched at @WaterstonesPB on Thursday

[Fisher Investments UK @FisherInvestUK]

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[ALISON BRACKENBURY @ABRACKENBURY]

'Village',my non-fiction prose book,was featured on Tom Lane's Friday 'Lincolnshire Folk' on LCRFM radio.The villagers heartily approve of Tom's fine music & add that the Kindle/phone/computer version of 'Village' is FREE today Sun 3 May!
SEARCH ALISON BRACKENBURY VILLAGE AMAZON

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

@MomentMag Last few tickets remaining for Sophy Roberts: A Training School For Elephants
Thursday 23rd April at 7.45pm, The Whitwell Room, Talbot Hotel, Oundle
Thursday is World Book Day. Come and join us to support the wonderful authors whose books we all enjoy reading.
"What an incredible, improbable story this is... a beautiful, intelligent and heartfelt book, a brilliantly researched account of an imperial fever dream alongside a no less feverish contemporary journey. It will haunt me." — Sunday Times —
"A Training School for Elephants works precisely because it is so evocative, and because many of the characters within are more complex – in all their greed and prejudice, but also courage and misguided idealism – than might be fashionable to admit in our censorious times." — TLS
Tickets £10 (£8), available from Leo’s Pet Supplies, Oundle (cash only) or online https://t.co/zzdPY2NX4A

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[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

@Library_Plus Last few tickets remaining for Sophy Roberts: A Training School For Elephants
Thursday 23rd April at 7.45pm, The Whitwell Room, Talbot Hotel, Oundle
Thursday is World Book Day. Come and join us to support the wonderful authors whose books we all enjoy reading.
"What an incredible, improbable story this is... a beautiful, intelligent and heartfelt book, a brilliantly researched account of an imperial fever dream alongside a no less feverish contemporary journey. It will haunt me." — Sunday Times —
"A Training School for Elephants works precisely because it is so evocative, and because many of the characters within are more complex – in all their greed and prejudice, but also courage and misguided idealism – than might be fashionable to admit in our censorious times." — TLS
Tickets £10 (£8), available from Leo’s Pet Supplies, Oundle (cash only) or online https://t.co/zzdPY2NX4A

[Royal Society of Literature @RSLiterature]

Congratulations to the three RSL Fellows recognised in the 2026 King’s New Year Honours list, marking their outstanding contributions to literature and the arts: Ekow Eshun OBE, Andrew McMillan MBE and Dame @MeeraSyal.

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

@RSLiterature Last few tickets remaining for Sophy Roberts: A Training School For Elephants
Thursday 23rd April at 7.45pm, The Whitwell Room, Talbot Hotel, Oundle
Thursday is World Book Day. Come and join us to support the wonderful authors whose books we all enjoy reading.
"What an incredible, improbable story this is... a beautiful, intelligent and heartfelt book, a brilliantly researched account of an imperial fever dream alongside a no less feverish contemporary journey. It will haunt me." — Sunday Times —
"A Training School for Elephants works precisely because it is so evocative, and because many of the characters within are more complex – in all their greed and prejudice, but also courage and misguided idealism – than might be fashionable to admit in our censorious times." — TLS
Tickets £10 (£8), available from Leo’s Pet Supplies, Oundle (cash only) or online https://t.co/zzdPY2NX4A

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

@jondrori Last few tickets remaining for Sophy Roberts: A Training School For Elephants
Thursday 23rd April at 7.45pm, The Whitwell Room, Talbot Hotel, Oundle
Thursday is World Book Day. Come and join us to support the wonderful authors whose books we all enjoy reading.
"What an incredible, improbable story this is... a beautiful, intelligent and heartfelt book, a brilliantly researched account of an imperial fever dream alongside a no less feverish contemporary journey. It will haunt me." — Sunday Times —
"A Training School for Elephants works precisely because it is so evocative, and because many of the characters within are more complex – in all their greed and prejudice, but also courage and misguided idealism – than might be fashionable to admit in our censorious times." — TLS
Tickets £10 (£8), available from Leo’s Pet Supplies, Oundle (cash only) or online https://t.co/zzdPY2OuU8

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

@Rockstarscars Last few tickets remaining for Sophy Roberts: A Training School For Elephants
Thursday 23rd April at 7.45pm, The Whitwell Room, Talbot Hotel, Oundle
Thursday is World Book Day. Come and join us to support the wonderful authors whose books we all enjoy reading.
"What an incredible, improbable story this is... a beautiful, intelligent and heartfelt book, a brilliantly researched account of an imperial fever dream alongside a no less feverish contemporary journey. It will haunt me."
— Sunday Times —
"A Training School for Elephants works precisely because it is so evocative, and because many of the characters within are more complex – in all their greed and prejudice, but also courage and misguided idealism – than might be fashionable to admit in our censorious times." — TLS
Tickets £10 (£8), available from Leo’s Pet Supplies, Oundle (cash only) or online https://t.co/zzdPY2NX4A

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

Last few tickets remaining for Sophy Roberts: A Training School For Elephants
Thursday 23rd April at 7.45pm, The Whitwell Room, Talbot Hotel, Oundle
Thursday is World Book Day. Come and join us to support the wonderful authors whose books we all enjoy reading.
Sophy won the 2026 Travel Book of the Year at the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards with this book.
"What an incredible, improbable story this is... a beautiful, intelligent and heartfelt book, a brilliantly researched account of an imperial fever dream alongside a no less feverish contemporary journey. It will haunt me."
— Sunday Times —
"A Training School for Elephants works precisely because it is so evocative, and because many of the characters within are more complex – in all their greed and prejudice, but also courage and misguided idealism – than might be fashionable to admit in our censorious times." — TLS
Tickets £10 (£8), available from Leo’s Pet Supplies, Oundle (cash only) or online https://t.co/zzdPY2NX4A

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

Sophy Roberts: A Training School For Elephants
Thursday 23rd April at 7.45pm, The Whitwell Room, Talbot Hotel, Oundle
(Note: this is a change of venue)
Join us on World Book Night 2026
Sophy won the 2026 Travel Book of the Year at the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards with this book.
The story is tethered to an 1879 expedition to Africa commissioned by King Leopold II of Belgium. Four Asian elephants were shipped from India to Dar es Salaam, then marched inland towards Congo.
Leopold wanted to establish a training school for taming wild African elephants. He needed a transport system to extract the region's resources, including its ivory, for piano keys, billiard balls and more. Weaving past and present, I follow in the expedition's footsteps to interrogate a forgotten story of cruelty and folly.
The consequences of that little-known elephant expedition are geographically and thematically far-reaching, extending into Belgium, Scotland, Ireland, Iraq, India, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Like her first book, The Lost Pianos of Siberia, Sophy combines history and archive images with travel and contemporary reportage. She brings to life a cast of characters, and questions what is missing from the stories we inherit.
Tickets £10 (£8), available from Leo’s Pet Supplies, Oundle (cash only) or online https://t.co/zzdPY2NX4A
Enquiries contact [email protected]

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

@AspectsHistory Sophy Roberts wins a prestigious award with her latest book, A Training School for Elephants. She will be in Oundle on April 23rd to share details of this marvellous book and the characters she met along the way during her extensive research. Sophy won the 2026 Travel Book of the Year at the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards. https://t.co/pUwpJufg5b... Sophy Roberts exposes a sad tale of colonial greed which our judges praised as “Incredibly well researched and a genuinely gripping narrative”. The judges appreciated the detailed maps and extensive use of historic photographs in the book. The judges also noted the “very well written details of Roberts own adventures” in researching this book. Don't miss your chance to hear this amazing author live in Oundle on the 23rd April. https://t.co/gUygxPWRnB

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

@HistoriaFrankie Sophy Roberts wins a prestigious award with her latest book, A Training School for Elephants. She will be in Oundle on April 23rd to share details of this marvellous book and the characters she met along the way during her extensive research. Sophy won the 2026 Travel Book of the Year at the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards. https://t.co/pUwpJufg5b... Sophy Roberts exposes a sad tale of colonial greed which our judges praised as “Incredibly well researched and a genuinely gripping narrative”. The judges appreciated the detailed maps and extensive use of historic photographs in the book. The judges also noted the “very well written details of Roberts own adventures” in researching this book. Don't miss your chance to hear this amazing author live in Oundle on the 23rd April. https://t.co/gUygxPWRnB

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

@HerewardRadio1 Sophy Roberts wins a prestigious award with her latest book, A Training School for Elephants. She will be in Oundle on April 23rd to share details of this marvellous book and the characters she met along the way during her extensive research. Sophy won the 2026 Travel Book of the Year at the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards. https://t.co/pUwpJufg5b... Sophy Roberts exposes a sad tale of colonial greed which our judges praised as “Incredibly well researched and a genuinely gripping narrative”. The judges appreciated the detailed maps and extensive use of historic photographs in the book. The judges also noted the “very well written details of Roberts own adventures” in researching this book. Don't miss your chance to hear this amazing author live in Oundle on the 23rd April. https://t.co/gUygxPWRnB

[Helen Shair @AuthorsinOundle]

@TheLocalView1 Sophy Roberts wins a prestigious award with her latest book, A Training School for Elephants. She will be in Oundle on April 23rd to share details of this marvellous book and the characters she met along the way during her extensive research. Sophy won the 2026 Travel Book of the Year at the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards. https://t.co/pUwpJufg5b... Sophy Roberts exposes a sad tale of colonial greed which our judges praised as “Incredibly well researched and a genuinely gripping narrative”. The judges appreciated the detailed maps and extensive use of historic photographs in the book. The judges also noted the “very well written details of Roberts own adventures” in researching this book. Don't miss your chance to hear this amazing author live in Oundle on the 23rd April. https://t.co/gUygxPWRnB

[The Local View @TheLocalView1]

The Local View are a community partner at the next AI summit which is back TOMORROW at Anglia Ruskin University!

Peterborough AI Summit: Exploring the Future of #AI in Business and Society

More info: https://t.co/3VU8nS60oN
Free ticket: https://t.co/IjcBVG3TuJ