Surrey New Writers Festival, 2025

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and buy I will receive a percentage commission at no extra cost to you.

Each Spring, budding writers and recently published authors descend on the University of Surrey for a day of inspiring talks and growing TBRs. This was my second time attending, and although I do always feel like a bit of an interloper as neither a student nor faculty, it is a brilliant day.

First up were Jenny Mustard and Michael Amherst, discussing their new books which both deal with coming-of-age themes. In Mustard’s What A Time To Be Alive twenty-one year old Sickan struggles to adjust to life at Stockholm University. Although she finds it difficult to form bonds with people she’s also determined to make a fresh start for herself, create a new version of herself. Amherst’s protagonist in The Boyhood of Cain is younger at twelve years old but he is similarly trying to find his place in the world amid upheaval and looks to others for guidance. Both authors spoke of starting with their protagonist and building the story and world around them. They also spoke of the importance of humour to counteract the darkness, something which intensifies it in its contrast. There were also similarities in the supporting characters, each having one that borders on being the enemy of our main focus, but also there being something about them which makes it appear they move through the world easily, a trait our protagonists envy and would like to emulate.

Their books may have some overlap, but their writing process couldn’t be more different. Mustard spoke about meticulously planning out the novel on a spreadsheet. Rather than finding this constricting it gave her a sense of freedom to just focus on the scene she was writing rather than worrying about where the story was going next. Amherst on the other hand falls much more into the pantser category, following the narrative as the characters guide. 

Next was a discussion by mother and daughter writing duo Cressida Connolly and Nell Hudson, who discussed how coming from literary families have impacted their writing practice. Connolly’s father was also a well known author while she was growing up and it put her off the idea of writing, but she eventually succumbed to the urge. Hudson had also experienced some reluctance, turning instead to acting as an outlet for her creativity but coming back to writing for the freedom it gives. 

Connolly tends to write historic fiction (although she admits it often feels contemporary to her while she writes it) and talks about the importance for authors of deciding whether they’re going to write post- or pre-technology. They talked about how technology can age a novel instantly, and how it can impact the storytelling. Many mysteries, for example, will find ways to remove technology even if it’s set more recently as they can cause plot problems. Hudson, on the other hand, writes in the contemporary world, wanting to write what she knows, although quips that she’s spent so much time acting in eighteenth century dramas she could probably write a story set then without having to do too much research. 

One of the most impactful moments for me was in response to an audience question about how they overcame reluctance to share their work. They both admit to having initially found it difficult to let anyone read their books, even each other, but now enjoy sharing the writing experience. The simple answer was, the more you write the easier it becomes. If you’ve only written one piece, to share it and receive feedback is excruciating, but once you’ve built up more of a body of work it is less so. They also made the excellent point that even excellent writers write bad stories sometimes. 

Kicking off the afternoon panels was Ela Lee, discussing her novel Jaded, written during the Covid lockdowns. Working in law at the time, sexual misconduct had been common and had become so normalised that it was only when they shifted to working from home that Lee realised how much more relaxed she felt, how she’d been in a constant state of fight or flight in the office. Her novel explores the consequences of sexual assault and is consciously written in a way to make the reader uncomfortable, to make them question their own stance on these issues.

It also explores the experience of growing up mixed race in the UK, something Lee feels is missing in most books. Writing about such personal and sensitive topics, she spoke openly about how anxious she felt about sharing the book with the world. She researched thoroughly not just the content of the novel but also potential agents to ensure she found the right fit. 

Later in the afternoon Ralf Webb and Amy Key had an interesting discussion about writing non-fiction and the authenticity of the writer in doing so, especially when working in the memoir form. They discussed whether everything included has to be 100% factually correct and whether you should put yourself in biographies of others, something editors can encourage but doesn’t always feel appropriate. 

The final panel of the day saw Naomi Wood and Susannah Dickey discuss the experience of working in different forms - long-form prose, poetry, and short story. A comment that was repeated in some of the other panels was that short story publishing is not seen as viable in the long term, that you might get one collection but are generally encouraged toward novels. They spoke eloquently about their experiences of writing, respecting each other’s ability to create in forms the other felt unable to. Wood spoke about the long process that led to her being able to successfully craft short stories, and the difficulty in switching back to writing novels which takes so much longer and where you have to persist with it at the end of each chapter. It was felt that different topics sometimes feel more appropriate in different forms, that a subject might feel very personal and therefore can be expressed better in poetry, for example. 

Rounding up the day was a keynote talk by Daisy Johnson, who had also recently published a short story collection but who was also not encouraged to think of it as a regularly repeatable experience. She spoke honestly about how becoming a mother had impacted her writing, and how her current work-in-progress has stalled for quite some time. She also spoke about how she doesn’t usually write to a hard deadline, but has occasionally had to and the way this impacts her approach to it. She also explored the ways the land inspires and holds hidden stories which she tries to incorporate into many of her works. 

The Cyber Effect, Mary Aiken

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and buy I will receive a percentage commission at no extra cost to you.

It’s not uncommon to hear about people attempt a digital detox, to disconnect from technology and re-connect with the physical world around us. Many have a sense of unease about the prevalence of tech in our lives and what it means for the future of humanity, but how is it, and specifically the internet, impacting how we behave and interact? Forensic cyberpsychologist Dr. Mary Aiken guides us through how it normalises deviant behaviours, changes our children’s brains, and impacts how we find and maintain love. Published in 2016, thinking has moved on to a certain degree, technology has become even more integrated in our lives, but this remains an important, fascinating read.

Perhaps most compelling are Dr. Aiken’s chapters on babies through to teens. She talks about how parents will often ask about when it’s OK to introduce screens to their infants but almost never ask about how their own screen use impacts their baby’s development and their relationship with them. Her conclusion is that older family members being glued to their phones has huge impacts on their development. A parent staring at their phone while they feed their baby might feel like a natural multi-tasking activity, but it means the amount of eye contact the baby receives is drastically less than previous generations. Missing out on this attachment forming necessity can impact how they function in relationships for the rest of their lives. It’s not just our smartphones, having screens on in the home reduces physical interaction and play with family members which is fundamental to learning and development. Even as the child grows, Aiken explains how they come to see their parents’ smartphones as competition - studies have shown the disappointment they feel when they see their parents waiting at the school gate using their phones. Again, they crave that eye contact and attention.

As to when they should be given their own tech? It’s recommended that there be no screen time before the age of two. Before this time they can’t understand what the screen is showing them and won’t benefit from apps and videos designed to be educational. It can negatively impact their language development, sense of object permanence, and their eyesight, which develops quickly at this age. Teachers increasingly report that 5-6 year olds arrive at school with the communication skills of a 2-3 year old. Aiken reminds us that correlation does not equal causation but strongly suggests that in these instances they may well.

Children who have never been given time to be bored, having devices placed in front of them constantly, naturally grow into teenagers who are not only very comfortable with tech but already quite addicted. Aiken marvels at the blasé attitude to allowing young people free reign of the internet when we know it’s all too easy to stumble into very dark places. She acknowledges that smart phones have made it much more difficult to monitor online behaviour than when a family computer was being used in a communal area of the home. She flags the lack of concern of social media companies who have access to huge amounts of information about all users but claim not to be able to ascertain if a user is underage. Recent announcements of child-friendly versions of apps for users whose age hasn’t been verified would likely be welcomed.

Aiken does not write with judgment of parents using technology to make an already difficult job feel a little easier but acknowledges how susceptible fully developed adult brains are to the addictive tech we carry with us everywhere, let alone those still trying to find their place in the world. The problem, she states, is that you can’t go cold turkey with tech, so integral has it become to our lives, but we must all strive to create healthy habits around it. It doesn’t have to be inevitable that the internet is a place of exploitation and hate. Moderation by those controlling services go a long way. The internet opens up the world and helps people connect where they might otherwise feel alone, yet we willingly give up our privacy and attention for something whose dark side is incredibly bleak. Despite the sometimes alarmist messaging, this doesn’t feel like a book of despair. Aiken offers studies and facts which can help readers decide what role tech plays in their life and re-consider what we sacrifice for convenience.

Pick up a copy:

Waterstones

Medea, Eilish Quin

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and buy I will receive a percentage commission at no extra cost to you.

In this re-telling of one of mythology’s most infamous women Quin attempts to give Medea a story that will make at least some of her decisions understandable. Brought up on Kolchis with a mother who would rather return to the ocean than spend time with her family, a cruel father, and a sister who seems to fit much more easily into the world. Her mother keeps her at a distance, and when she discovers the cause is a gruesome glimpse into the future she wonders at her own capacity for evil.

Her father Aetes reluctantly begins to teach her Pharmakon when it seems he might not have a son to pass his knowledge to. When her brother Phaethon is born and she is told he will one day be brutally murdered she turns her attention to magic that might be able to save him. These experiments involve the murder and grisly dissection of animals, and she begins to worry at the darkness within her. As the book progresses her tolerance for murder seems to expand as she successfully uses it to get what she wants. Her mother’s prophecies often seem to lead her down a dark path but with time she turns to these actions in plots of her own devising. For the most part she does experience guilt and doubt but some of the cruelty she enacts is beyond any reasonable justification. She always holds on to the thought her father is evil and she wants nothing to do with him, but by the end she is forced to admit she is not all that different.

Her first flushes of romantic feeling are toward Phrixus, who lands in her world in a sorry state. His own experiences have taught him not to trust women and Medea is caught between desire and the realisation that women are frequently used only as far as they serve their purpose. He is, nonetheless, destined for her sister, Chalciope, with the help of some love magic, unwillingly administered, the first of Medea’s experiences with manipulating lives with her powers. This is also her first taste of the consequences of interfering with lives, and the distress it can cause to all involved.

Medea believes herself unsuited to marriage and motherhood but when her own mother tells her she must help Jason retrieve the golden fleece she realises, dispassionately, that marriage to Jason may be her and Phaethon’s ticket to freedom. She has preconceptions about what he will be like as a hero, and her role in the escape means he sees her in her worst moments early on in their relationship. These two angles repeatedly rear their heads and cause problems. Jason is ambitious and power-hungry and in trying to help him and protect their family Medea carries out more unspeakable acts. She finds ways to justify this but later, in her spite, she realises how extreme her behaviour has become, how terrible her actions have been, and she pays the ultimate price.

This is a well-written, engaging read. As someone not familiar with the mythology surrounding Medea I was able to enjoy the story with fresh eyes, not knowing what to expect. Others, I know, have found issue with some of the choices and anachronisms. For me it was an interesting examination of the role of women, family ties, and ambition. Medea is certainly a sympathetic character to begin with but as the book progresses she becomes increasingly difficult to relate to. Quin does humanise her sufficiently that her horror and grief at the consequences of her actions do hit an emotional spot, but there are many moments of dismay for the reader before this. 

Pick up a copy:

Waterstones

Bookshop

Lessons In Chemistry, Bonnie Garmus

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and buy I will receive a percentage commission at no extra cost to you.

The year is 1961 and TV star Elizabeth Zott is balancing her responsibilities as a mother, a talented chemist, and the demands of a daily TV show. She is, we learn, perpetually depressed, and from the notes she leaves in her daughter’s lunchbox, ‘it is not your imagination, most people are awful’ we see that she treats her young child as the intelligent person she is. We learn, also, that her daughter, Madeline, is intellectually advanced for her years but is determined to hide this fact from her peers, determined to fit in as she sees what has happened to her mother as a consequence of her refusal to. Before long we have jumped back in time to see how they all arrived at this point. Elizabeth is working at the Hastings Research Institute, the only woman in a team of chemists. She soon meets her future love, Calvin Evans, the Institute’s star chemist who nobody really likes but tolerates for the funding he brings in. She is largely unimpressed with him when they first meet but they soon fall hard for each other and she comes to understand why he has isolated himself at work. Their blossoming relationship is looked on with disdain from their colleagues, jealous of her good looks and his brilliance, although some of the women in the office are pleased that she is no longer their competition. Everyone’s perception of them having an easy time of it for their natural advantages miss entirely the difficulties they have both faced. As time passes and Calvin is no longer around things become increasingly difficult for Elizabeth. Hastings try to fire her for being pregnant and unmarried (she refuses to accept their dismissal), she struggles to earn enough money to look after herself and her daughter, and her attempts to be respected for her scientific endeavours are constantly belittled, despite the fact they know her work is good, good enough to steal.

One of the main themes of the novel is the treatment of women. Elizabeth does not want to marry or become a housewife but she completely respects those who choose that life. Sadly, some of her colleagues are less understanding. Miss Frask ‘like so many other women, assumed that downgrading someone of her own sex would somehow lift her in the estimation of her male superiors.’ Elizabeth does not accept limitations either for herself or others. From the days of her PhD she has struggled to be taken seriously, and has repeatedly had to fight off unwanted approaches from male colleagues. She persists nonetheless, confident in her abilities, and even creates a lab at home when she is pushed out at Hastings. When she unexpectedly gets her own TV show she uses the opportunity to teach some chemistry through cooking, but also uses her platform to advocate for respect for the work women do in the home, and to inspire those who dream of a different life. It’s aspirational if not a little unrealistic at times.

Elizabeth feels that she has never been seen as her own person. As a child, she was seen either as the arsonist’s daughter or the sister of a suicide. Dating Calvin she worries that she is seen merely as the girlfriend of a famous chemist. Their discussions around marriage and why she doesn’t want it reveal that she doesn’t want to be even more subsumed by this. If she published under the name of Evans people would assume the work was his. When he pushes back on this she asks if he would change his name to hers, unsurprisingly he isn’t keen on the idea. 

Calvin’s story is revealed to us gradually. He reveals to Elizabeth that he was adopted and then sadly orphaned, growing up in a boys home. He has since been plagued with letters from people claiming to be long lost family members. When Madeline is set the homework of creating a family tree she begins to delve more into the life of her father. His frequent correspondence with a pen pal, the Reverend Wakeley, reveals much about his views and life choices. She attempts to track down the home he grew up in, and unwittingly opens a can of worms that is wrapped up by the end of the book. This is a book of huge coincidences, missed opportunities, and many selfish and unkind characters. The resolution may feel a little overdone, but the twists and turns will doubtless inspire strong emotions.

Many of the characters Elizabeth interacts with, especially at work, are quite contemptible, but she also finds goodness in many others. Her neighbour Harriet, although nosy, is kind and becomes a real support for her. She may not agree with all of Elizabeth’s decisions, but she helps her to achieve her goals by sharing the burden of childcare. Madeline, through the innocence of childhood seems to bring out honesty in the adults around her. She comes to know Reverend Wakeley, and he admits to her his doubts about his vocation. Even Miss Frask eventually reveals to Elizabeth her own frustrations and the traumas they share. There is a clear divide between the good and bad characters, but within that, certainly the good characters have layers.

This is an enjoyable read, and although it deals with difficult topics such as grief, sexual assault, and sexism it doesn’t feel like a heavy read. Elizabeth is a headstrong, to the point protagonist, and we’re able to see a little more of how hard she has to fight to keep going through the eyes of Madeline. Their dog, Six Thirty, makes a sympathetic narrator at times. He is kind and riddled with guilt. Always looking out for the family, his voice is a sweet addition. The many injustices Elizabeth faces will make you rage against the perpetrators, yet within a few pages you’ll be chuckling over something else. Garmus writes compelling characters with sensitivity and realism and easily keeps you turning the pages. 

Pick up a copy:

Bookshop

Waterstones

The Chaos Machine: The Inside Story of How Social Media Rewired Our Minds and Our World, Max Fisher

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and buy I will receive a percentage commission at no extra cost to you.

A lot of us who are perpetually online have likely considered at some point that we should have something of a digital detox, that perhaps being constantly glued to our smartphones isn’t good for our physical or mental health, or for the relationships we have with people in the same room as us. There is a lot of sense in this, but reading Fisher’s book highlights that this is so much more than an individual problem, that social media has impacted people’s lives in ways unimaginable when it first popped up. This is a book which calls for systemic, international change in the ways social media is run and how it is legislated. 

At the heart of the problem seems to be the algorithms which drive engagemen,. The aim of the companies is to keep you using their services, to watch more videos, comment on more posts etc. As a result, the most inflammatory posts are promoted the most as they are most likely to encourage engagement. People searching for information about vaccines will more often than not be shown posts arguing against their efficacy. These posts will keep users online, reading and watching more on the topic than promoting pages where people agree that vaccines are a force for good, which don’t encourage ongoing engagement. YouTube, the pioneer of this type of algorithm, experimented with suggesting radicalising videos to those who had never searched for related content. For those that do have a passing interest in less extreme versions of topics, within a few clicks they are likely to be shown videos promoting extreme positions. If you allow the site to play videos unchecked it quickly becomes clear how an innocent search can quickly turn dark. The impacts of this are very real.

Social media has been shown to play an important role in political opinions, and even in creating radical groups who go out and do harm in the world. An independent audit of Facebook in 2020 concluded that its policies allowing misinformation could undermine elections, and that its algorithms and recommendations push people into echo chambers of extremism, training them to hate. Studies have also shown the very real part social media played in genocide in Rwanda and violence and riots in Sri Lanka. When warned about the unintended outcomes of the way their services are run, for the most part, the companies did nothing to prevent further harm. It seemed that it was only when it would harm their business were they willing to act.

These radicalising algorithms combined with the addictive quality of our smartphones and specifically social media lead to a dangerous, volatile world. The way we are manipulated by these systems are likened to gambling addiction and abusive behaviours. Never knowing how much engagement we’ll get from a post makes us want to keep posting, forgetting that social media is an intermediary, who the algorithm decides to show your content to has much more to do with the reaction you get to it than what you’ve actually posted. Studies have shown that even relatively short breaks from social media can increase happiness levels and decrease anxiety, yet we have been trained into an addiction that keeps us acting against our own best interests.

Fisher acknowledges that in the early days of social media there was the possibility of people finding a sense of community and understanding, connecting people with similar experiences. However, the lack of regulation and the constant push to increase engagement meant that what once felt like a support group so often turns into hate groups, blaming others for members’ perceived suffering and injustices. Pile ons happen regularly, with the distance provided by your screen helping users to forget that the person on the receiving end is real and will have negative emotional reactions to what is being said to them. It has gone much further than this however, with death and assault threats common, people sharing the victim’s addresses and other personal details, encouraging others to carry out the threats that appear online. Lives have been ruined in this way, with victims having to leave jobs and move away from their loved ones for fear that they will also become unsafe. This can happen whether or not the victim is actually guilty of the perceived indiscretion. 

This is an enlightening, terrifying read which reveals just how dark large sections of the internet are, and how this content is now part of the mainstream. You don’t have to go looking for it, the algorithm will deliver it to you. This has been shown to create groups of radicals where participants had previously not felt hard done by or indeed even cared about the issue that they become inflamed by through manipulation. It is genuinely worrying to see how much social media has negatively impacted the world around us, that people have lost their lives for the sake of watch time and engagement targets. As someone who has mercifully managed to stay in the more positive realms of the online world, it was shocking to discover how far reaching the inflammatory aspects are, how easily anyone can stumble upon radicalising content, and how this is manifesting offline. A difficult, anxiety inducing read, but an important one. 

Pick up a copy:

Waterstones

Bookshop

Landlines, Raynor Winn

This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and buy I will receive a percentage commission at no extra cost to you.

We catch up with Moth and Raynor in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic on their thriving farm in Cornwall. Moth’s health is as bad as it's ever been as he struggles to walk short distances and has a fall that makes them worry his decline is reaching the point of no return. Raynor can’t help but hold on to the hope that their previous long distance walks gave her. Wracked with guilt, she broaches the topic of another one. When the state of the world allows it, they head north to tackle the Cape Wrath trail, famously one of the toughest, wildest walks the UK has to offer, and one Moth has always dreamed of. The fear that she’s pushing him too far, doctor’s words about not doing anything too strenuous circling her mind at every sign of difficulty. Moth has lost the confidence of his stride and developed a vertigo that makes scrambling up the sides of mountains a real challenge. As they battle bad weather, closed cafes, and communities that are suspicious of any outsiders, will their longest walk yet give them the miracle they’re dreaming of?

As they wind their way through the wilds of Scotland, Wynn reflects on the challenges of the communities they pass through. Many cafes won’t let them inside for fear of Covid, shops are bare of supplies because stock is held up at the ports in Brexit bureaucracy, and the landscapes are frequently devoid of the wildlife that should be there. She talks about the overfarming of land and how it is stripping away the goodness of the soil, losing the insects that signify a healthy ecosystem. Their own land in Cornwall has flourished with their gentler approach, with wildlife re-emerging. She often comments on the climate emergency and the role humans have and continue to play in it. 

The remote northern reaches of Scotland, once quiet communities, have become overrun since the North Coast 500 route was formalised. Now cars and campers line every spare section of road, parking dangerously and harmfully to local residents. They nonetheless find solitude in much of their walk as they move away from the well-trodden paths and roads, finding their own way. By the time they reach Fort William and the popular West Highland Way, the number of walkers make it feel busy compared to the emptiness of the landscapes they’ve traversed to get there. Along the way they have encounters with animals and birds, some of which they haven’t seen for a long time. When times are good the joy and peace of nature shines through.

Winn doesn’t shy away from the difficulties. Of course, they have Moth’s declining health to contend with, but there’s also the relentless rain, dwindling supplies between far flung shops, and the continual challenge of finding somewhere to camp. There are times when it all feels too difficult and they consider turning back, getting a bus to the closest town and taking a train home, but the call of nature is strong, as is their dedication to each other. At the heart of all of Winn’s books is her love for Moth, their shared life, and the confidence and hope it has given them both. There is sadness, of course, at the possible end being close, but it is this that drives them to try everything they can to make Moth well, to give them more precious time together.

With Landlines we return to a more linear story, and one that will inspire and give us all hope. Moth and Raynor are a remarkable couple, putting themselves through extreme challenges, but with a feeling that they are exactly where they are meant to be. It is also nice to see them be able to afford to stop in B&Bs and to buy a bowl of hot chips when they want to, a far cry from The Salt Path where they were having to make pennies stretch across weeks. A love letter to nature, their marriage, and friendship. A lovely read.

Pick up a copy:

Waterstones

Bookshop

Exhibition Review: Versailles: Science and Splendour, The Science Museum, Lonodn

When you think of the extravagant palace of Versailles in France you likely thing of luxury, fantastic balls for the country’s wealthiest, and its famous final royal inhabitants, Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI. You’d be forgiven for not immediately thinking of scientific endeavours, yet this exhibition at the Science Museum in London demonstrates how it was at the centre of scientific developments across the board during the reigns of Louis XIV, XV, and XVI. You are taken thematically through a series of rooms, all designed in such a way to immerse you in the era. We learn variously about bringing water to Versailles, garden design and innovation, the menagerie, astronomy, medicine, and clockmaking. There's something for everyone in this accessible, fascinating exhibition which shows how the French court mixed cutting edge technology with elegance and beauty.

You learn about the tools required to create a grand symmetrical garden, and how water was brought to the Palace. The Marly Machine was designed to lift water out of the Seine before transporting it quite some distance via aqueducts, supplying more water to Versailles than the whole of Paris. The machine, admittedly, didn’t work terribly well, but remained functioning for around 130 years. I also enjoyed learning about the innovations in the fountains, and Louis’ hopes for a constantly changing display. This proved impossible so he had to make do with displays on a rotation of over two hours, with some manual interference when he was out walking to give the appearance of ever changing combinations. 

We then delve into the world of botany and the experiments growing plants not native to the country. A painting commemorates the first successful growth of a pineapple. Soon we’re faced with a full-sized taxidermied rhino as we learn more about the animals that lived at the Palace. There are some quite remarkably modern looking paintings on display.

The section on medical advances is interesting, with an early model of pregnancy used by pioneering midwife Madame du Courdray, who is not the only woman celebrated in the exhibition. We see Émilie du Châtelet’s manuscript of her translation of Isaac Newton’s Principa, which is still used today, highlighting its significance. There is also discussion of the way in which the girls of the royal family were encouraged to experiment and learn subjects that may have been more widely considered unsuitable.

There are some grisly items on display - the tools used to heal Louis XIV’s anal fistula, and an acknowledgment of the sacrifice made of non-royals in working out how to successfully carry out the procedure. In other ways the royals were able to benefit public health by promoting the use of inoculations, happily having them administered, acting as a prominent example of success.

Many of the objects naturally come from France, and it’s wonderful to have the opportunity to see them, but they also acknowledge that much of the royal collection was lost and broken up during the Revolution. They continue to attempt to rebuild it today. There are beautiful, unusual objects on display, and a fascinating thread of innovation and discovery running throughout. The exhibition highlights the fact these experiments were not working in isolation however, acknowledging the work happening in other countries at the time, and the way in which various parties were willing to share knowledge and assist in each other’s endeavours. This lovely exhibition is open until 21st April 2025 and I’d recommend trying to catch it if you’re interested in history, science, or design.