The Ultimate Romantic Hero

Tomorrow, June 25, a literary event not to be missed in London:

The Ultimate Romantic Hero:Darcy or Rochester?
with Fay Weldon, Grainne Maguire, Lilian Pizzichini & Professor John Mullan. Chaired by Melvyn Bragg
London Jewish Cultural Center
Wednesday 25 June 2014, 8pm
£12 in advance (£15 on the door)

Darcy and Rochester represent the epitome of the romantic hero. But what would they really have been like to live with? Are they better on the page? We debate the desirability - and the horror - of two of the greatest figures in English literature.

Melvyn Bragg has edited, produced and presented a wealth of award-winning documentaries and programmes across the cultural spectrum.

Grainne Maguire is a stand up comedian, comedy writer and columnist. She writes for the Evening Standard and the Independent.

Fay Weldon CBE, is a novelist, screenwriter and essayist, whose work over the decades has been translated into most world languages. Her novels include, most notably, The Life and Loves of a She-Devil, Puffball, She May Not Leave, Chalcot Crescent and Kehua! She has recently enjoyed success with the publication of her Edwardian trilogy: Habits of the House, Long Live the King and The New Countess. Her novels and stories serve as despatches from the ever changing battleground between the sexes. The least didactic of contemporary chroniclers, she is one of the few authors whose every new novel or story provokes discussion, surprise and argument.

Lilian Pizzichini is a writer and journalist. Her first book, Dead Men's Wages, about her conman grandfather, won the 2002 Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger for Non-fiction. Her second, The Blue Hour: A Portrait of Jean Rhys, was published in 2009 to critical acclaim. Her latest book is Music Night at the Apollo: A Memoir of Drifting published by Bloomsbury in April 2014. Lilian has also been writer-in-residence in prisons. She has taught at universities and is a Creative Writing Mentor and Coach.

Professor John Mullan is a Professor of English at University College London. He specialises in 18th century fiction. He is currently working on the 18th-century section of the new Oxford English Literary History.