An Evening With Simon Garfield
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Simon Garfield will discuss the history of the pen at Waterstones Edinburgh West End on 20 October. His talk covers the tool's impact from ancient Egypt to modern figures such as Jane Austen and Margaret Atwood. Tickets start at £5 for general admission.
The pen is our oldest tangible connection between an individual mind and the world at large, enabling the grandest proclamations and our most intimate confessions. But the pen's own story is just as eventful as anything it has described. This is the illuminating story of how the simplest tool has shaped our lives. Simon Garfield takes us from a reed on the Nile to the home of Montblanc and Bic, and from the wartime trenches to the desks of Jane Austen, Sigmund Freud and Margaret Atwood. He explains why fountain pens make such good gadgets for spies and tells the story of the bestselling pen that wouldn't actually write. He introduces us to the very highest echelons of pen artistry costing small fortunes - but also to generations of schoolchildren with ink stains on their hands.
Description supplied by the event organiser.
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Editorial summaryAbout this event
Simon Garfield will discuss the history of the pen at Waterstones Edinburgh West End on 20 October. His talk covers the tool's impact from ancient Egypt to modern figures such as Jane Austen and Margaret Atwood. Tickets start at £5 for general admission.
This summary was automatically generated from event data sourced from official ticketing providers.
The pen is our oldest tangible connection between an individual mind and the world at large, enabling the grandest proclamations and our most intimate confessions. But the pen's own story is just as eventful as anything it has described. This is the illuminating story of how the simplest tool has shaped our lives. Simon Garfield takes us from a reed on the Nile to the home of Montblanc and Bic, and from the wartime trenches to the desks of Jane Austen, Sigmund Freud and Margaret Atwood. He explains why fountain pens make such good gadgets for spies and tells the story of the bestselling pen that wouldn't actually write. He introduces us to the very highest echelons of pen artistry costing small fortunes - but also to generations of schoolchildren with ink stains on their hands.
Description supplied by the event organiser.
WhereWaterstones Edinburgh West End
128 Princes Street, Edinburgh New Town EH2 4AD
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128 Princes Street, Edinburgh New Town EH2 4AD
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Ended on Tuesday, 20 October 2026
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