An Evening with Griff Rhys Jones

An evening in support of SAVE Britain's Heritage, includig a talk by comedian and presenter of BBC2's Restoration Griff Rhys Jones

On the 11th April 2007, SAVE Britain’s Heritage will be hosting an evening with Griff Rhys Jones at the Cadogan Hall, London.

Mr Rhys Jones is well known as both a comedian and as the presenter of BBC2’s “Restoration” series, reflecting a passionate enthusiasm for our nation’s built heritage. He has been active in the field for many years, restoring old buildings in which to live, as well as taking a major role in the campaign to restore the Hackney Empire. He has recently published the first part of his memoirs. Peter Stothard of the Times Literary Supplement, reacted to them as “that rare and uncritical thing – simple bloody marvel”, while the Independent described them as an “effective counterbalance to celebrity self-congratulation”.

In his own words “Griff Rhys Jones is known as the presenter of "Restoration". A former comedian, now perhaps in need of some attention himself, as well as his television work, he has restored two houses in Suffolk, a farmhouse in Wales and a Robert Adam House in London. In he 1988 converted a chicken plucking machine factory in Clerkenwell, winning the first Geoffrey Gribble award for conservation in Islington. In his spare time he led an aggressive campaign to restore the Hackney Empire in the East End, which is now finished, apart from another million pounds needed to pay for overruns. During all this, he has undoubtedly inadvertently broken most of the tenets of proper conservation, and is interested in education and expertise as a result. Not a professional, Griff recognises that he is a woolly minded aesthete, but over the years he has got his hands dirty and has learned about conservation from personal experience. He is certainly interested in money, finding it, begging for it, distributing it and trying to stop people wasting it. He will be presenting a talk based on his experience as a fund raiser and the man in the falling down street.”

SAVE is delighted that he is giving our Spring lecture.

Doors open for the evening with Mr Rhys Jones at 18.15, with the lecture starting at 19.00 prompt. He will be available to sign books after the lecture.

Tickets are available from the Cadogan Hall Box Office: 020 7730 4500 priced £15 (£12 for Friends of SAVE)

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