OxTalks will soon move to the new Halo platform and will become 'Oxford Events.' There will be a need for an OxTalks freeze. This was previously planned for Friday 14th November – a new date will be shared as soon as it is available (full details will be available on the Staff Gateway).
In the meantime, the OxTalks site will remain active and events will continue to be published.
If staff have any questions about the Oxford Events launch, please contact halo@digital.ox.ac.uk
Join OCLW for a very special event to celebrate the launch of the A DIRTY, FILTHY BOOK: Sex, Scandal, and One Woman’s Fight in the Victorian Trial of the Century by Michael Meyer.
THE FIRST MAJOR BOOK ABOUT AN EMPOWERING PIONEER OF WOMEN’S RIGHTS WHO HAS BEEN OVERLOOKED FOR FAR TOO LONG
London, 1877. A petite young woman stands before an all-male jury, about to risk everything. She takes a breath, and opens her defence. Annie Besant and her confidant Charles Bradlaugh are on trial for the sordid crime of publishing and selling a birth control pamphlet.
Before Britain’s highest judge she declares it is a woman’s right to choose when, and if, to have children. At a time when women were legally and socially subservient to men, Annie’s defiant voice was a sensation. The trial scandalised newspapers, captivated the British public and sparked a debate over morals, censorship and sex.
Critically acclaimed writer and historian, Michael Meyer pieces together unpublished archives, private papers and courtroom transcripts to bring Annie and Victorian London to life. He tells the gripping story of a forgotten pioneer who refused to accept the role the Establishment assigned to her. Instead, she chose to resist.
