Alistair Cooke Memorial Lecture

Thursday, November 13th, 7:30pm
The Broad Stage
Santa Monica College Performing Arts Center

A Free Event presented by the BBC

In November the BBC is hosting an historic meeting of minds between two great wordsmiths: David Mamet, the American playwright, screenwriter and film director, and Alistair Cooke, the British writer, broadcaster and BBC icon who lived most of his life in the USA.

Alistair Cooke would have been one hundred years old this November. As part of the BBC’s centenary celebrations, David Mamet has been invited to deliver this year’s prestigious Alistair Cooke Memorial Lecture. Established in Alistair’s honour after his death in 2004, the first Memorial Lecturer was Senator John McCain.

David Mamet will give his lecture before an invited audience at the newly opened Broad Stage in Santa Monica, California. It will be broadcast around the world on BBC Radio 4 and the BBC World Service to up to 60 million people. And the subject of the lecture, fittingly, is “language” – a passion for both David Mamet and Alistair Cooke.

The event will be hosted by the BBC’s North America Editor, Justin Webb.