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London, 10 December 2015 and
Online, 14 June 2021

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Annett Gröschner (left, © Susanne Schleyer); Katy Derbyshire (right, © Anja Pietsch)

The prolific and wide-ranging output of writer, journalist, academic and performer Annett Gröschner includes two novels, Moskauer Eis [Moscow Ice] (2000) and Walpurgistag [St Walpurga's Day] (2011), as well as poetry, plays, radio features and documentary literature. Her most recent books are Berolinas zornige Töchter [Berolina's Angry Daughters] (2018), tracing the Berlin women's movement, and Berliner Bürger*stuben (2020), a collection of snapshots and observations of life in Berlin. Her several awards include the prestigious Fontanepreis (March 2020). She has been part of the performance collective SheShe Pop since 2012, and has held a visiting professorship at the Berlin Universität der Künste since 2015. Gröschner reads from and discusses her most recent work in the context of the changed social landscape under the restrictions imposed by Covid-19. 

Gröschner is joined by translator Katy Derbyshire, who translates the work of contemporary German writers, including Annett Gröschner, Olga Grjasnowa, Heike Geissler and Clemens Meyer. She lives in Berlin, where she co-hosts a monthly translation lab and the bimonthly Dead Ladies Show, presenting women who were wonderful while they were alive. Derbyshire is now also publisher at the V&Q Books imprint, which exports ‘remarkable writing from Germany’ to the UK and Ireland. 

These events were sponsored by the Keith Spalding Bequest and the University of Nottingham.

Podcast (14 June 2021)

Podcast (10 December 2015)