Nerd Nite London- June 3rd
Nerd Nite London is a monthly event where three speakers give 18-21 minute fun-yet-informative talks across all disciplines, while the audience drinks along.
Address: Library Gallery, 184 Stoke Newington Church Street, N160JS
Details: Saturday June 3rd.
Tickets: General admission £6, Tickets available here
Doors open 7.30pm, event starts 8pm
Nerd Nite London returns to Stoke Newington Literary Festival with myths, legends, spiders, corpses, and an explanation of the origins of the dollar sign. Be there and be square.
The Corpse on the Tube and other Urban Legends
Just as fairy tales warn of the dangers of going into the woods alone and explain strange things in the rural landscape, London’s urban legends are often horror stories about going alone down into the London underground, and the folklore of strange things in the cityscape. Plague pits seethe beneath your feet, corpses ride on the tube and secret tunnels lead to…..? Some of these urban legends are older than they appear; others are new stories posing as history. Scott will tell these contemporary folktales, map them across London and then show how they may have come to be.
Scott Wood is the author of London Urban Legends: The Corpse on the Tube and the (occasional) Fortean London column for Londonist, co-host of the Forteana Podcast and host of the London Fortean Society.
Gossamer Days: Spiders, humans and their threads
What happens when one making animal meets another? This presentation will look at the human uses of spider silk, from gun sights to sticky tunics via acoustic lures, royal underwear and the mystery of the disappearing spider goats, examining the strange, centuries long entanglement between humans and spiders.
Eleanor Morgan is an artist living in London. She uses printmaking, sculpture, video and drawing to explore materials and processes of making. This has included serenading a spider, making a diamond from the dead creatures of the River Thames and embracing a giant green sea anemone. Eleanor is the author of the illustrated book ‘Gossamer Days: Spiders, Humans and Their Threads’ (Strange Attractor Press)
Why Australia is called Australia
From Nike trainers to Trident Gum, Dan Walker Smith traces the contemporary world around us back to ancient myths. And in the sometimes tradition of nerd nite presenters keeping to topic, he will explain why Australia is called Australia.
Dan Walker Smith has tried his hand at stand up & radio presenting, break dancing and improv. He is a regular speaker at Nerd Nite London. He likes myths and folklore, travel and snowboarding.
All proceeds from Nerd Nite London go to charity. For Stoke Newington Literary Festival, proceeds go to support literacy projects in Hackney. More information about Nerd Nite London can be found by following us on Twitter @nerdnitelondon, liking us on Facebook www.facebook.com/NerdNiteLondon or visiting www.london.nerdnite.com. For more information about the Stoke Newington Literary Festival, visit: http://stokenewingtonliteraryfestival.com/the-programme/