Centre for New Zealand Studies
Birkbeck, University of London

Porgramme - September 2008

The Centre for New Zealand Studies is pleased to announce the following forthcoming events. All sessions are free, with the exception of the September conference, and no prior booking required.
Any enquiries to Dr Ian Conrich <ian@ianconrich.co.uk>.

Tuesday 2 September 2008
B13, Birkbeck cinema, 43 Gordon Sq., London WC1, 6.30-8.30

Special screening of the seminal film
Sleeping Dogs
(1977, Roger Donaldson, 107mins)
To be introduced by C.K. Stead

Based on the novel Smith's Dream, by C.K. Stead, Sleeping Dogs depicts an imagined near-future New Zealand. Predating the 1981 anti-apartheid demonstrations, the film depicts a state of emergency, revolutionary action, and civil division.
Read the original New York Times review at .

This event is in association with the New Zealand Society.
A pre-screening drinks reception will be held from 6.00-6.30.


Wednesday 3 September 2008

Centre for New Zealand Studies, Rm. 330,

North Block, Senate House,Malet St., London WC16.30-8.30

PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS EVENT HAS NOW SOLD OUT

Three PoetsAnna Jackson, Jan Kemp, and Vincent O’Sullivan
Each poet will both read from their own poetry and poetry by Katherine Mansfield.This very special event is limited to 36 seats and we advise that if you wish to attend that you email your reservation to Tory Straker at . The event is free and open to all, but early booking is recommended. Anna’s books of poetry include The Long Road to Teatime (2000), The Pastoral Kitchen (2001), Catallus for Children (2003), and The Gas Leak (2006). Jan’s books of poetry include Against the Softness of Woman (1976), Diamonds and Gravel (1979), The Other Hemisphere (1991), The Sky’s Enormous Jug: Love Poems Old and New (2001), Only One Angel (2002), and Dante’s Heaven (2006). Vincent’s books of poetry include Our Burning Time (1965), Revenants (1969), Bearings (1973), From the Indian Funeral (1976), Butcher & Co. (1977), Brother Jonathan, Brother Kafka (1979), The Rose Ballroom and Other Poems (1982), The Butcher Papers (1982), The Pilate Tapes (1986), Seeing You Asked (1998), I’ll Tell You This Much (2000), Lucky Table (2001), Nice Morning for it, Adam (2004), and Blame Vermeer (2007).

4-6 September 2008
3-day international conference in central London to be held at Birkbeck, University of London.
The Centre for New Zealand Studies together with the University of Northampton presents:
Katherine Mansfield Centenary Conference

The year 2008, as well as being the 120th anniversary of her birth, celebrates the centenary of Katherine Mansfield’s arrival in London in 1908 from New Zealand at the age of nineteen, in order to pursue a career as a writer. This major three-day international conference aims to re-evaluate Katherine Mansfield’s contribution to twentieth-century literature, as well as assessing the state of Mansfield scholarship and criticism today. Special events to co-ordinate with the conference include a screening of John Reid’s Mansfield biopic Leave all Fair, a conference dinner in the Penthouse of New Zealand House, and a one-woman show by Lorae Parry based on the personal writing of Mansfield. 65 speakers in total with 11 keynotes confirmed: Professor Mary Ann Caws, Dr Ian Conrich, Professor Clare Hanson, Kathleen Jones, Professor Sydney Janet Kaplan, Margaret Scott, Professor Angela Smith, Professor C. K. Stead, Professor Vincent O’ Sullivan, and Professor John Worthen. Further details, including the conference poster, registration forms, and hotel accommodation, available at <http://www.nzsa/conferences.htm>. This Conference is sponsored by the New Zealand Society

Thursday 11 September 2008

Centre for New Zealand Studies,

Rm. 330, North Block, Senate House,Malet St.,

London WC16.30-8.00

War, Gold, Land, and Property:
Women in New Zealand, 1857-1885

Professor Barbara Brookes (University of Otago), editor of At Home in New Zealand: Histories, Houses and People (2000), co-editor of Women in History: Essays on European Women in New Zealand (1986), Women in History 2: Essays on Women in New Zealand (1992), 'Unfortunate Folk': Essays on Mental Health Treatment 1863-1992 (2001), Communities of Women: Historical Perspectives (2002), and Sites of Gender: Women, Men and Modernity in Southern Dunedin, 1890-1939 (2003).

Wednesday 17 September 2008

Centre for New Zealand Studies, Rm. 330, North Block, Senate House,Malet St., London WC16.30-8.00
Who Were New Zealand's Settlers?

Dr Jock Phillips (Ministry of Culture and Heritage, and General Editor of Te Ara - The Online Encyclopedia of New Zealand). Jock was previously New Zealand's Chief Historian. He is the author of A Man's Country? The Image of the Pakeha Male - A History (1987), Royal Summer: The Visit of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Phillip to New Zealand, 1953-54 (1993), co-author of The Sorrow and the Pride: New Zealand War Memorials (1990), Brief Encounter: American Forces and the New Zealand People, 1942-1945 (1992), and Settlers: New Zealand Immigrants From England, Ireland, and Scotland, 1800-1945 (2008). He is also co-editor of Going Public: The Changing Face of New Zealand History (2001).

Thursday 25 September 2008

Room B36, Birkbeck main building,
Malet St., London WC16.15-7.45
British Premiere of Early Days Yet
(2001, Shirley Horrocks)

This film is a compelling documentary on the life and poetry of Allen Curnow. It follows the writer, aged 89, as he provides insights to his work, reads from his poetry and journeys to the locations where some of his poems were based. Within a few months of the film's release Curnow passed away. This intimate portrait provides an extraordinary account of one of New Zealand's greatest writers. Read a review at <http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=339&objectid=220660>.

Tuesday 30 September 2008

Centre for New Zealand Studies, Rm. 330, North Block, Senate House,Malet St., London WC16.30-8pm

Special guest speaker Elizabeth Smither

In this session Elizabeth will read from and discuss parts of her poetry and fiction.

Poet, novelist, and a writer of short stories, Elizabeth was named the 2002 Te Mata Poet Laureate. Elizabeth's books include Here Come the Clouds (1975), You're Very Seductive William Carlos Williams (1978), The Sarah Train (1980), The Legend of Marcello Mastroianni's Wife (1981), Casanova's Ankle (1981), Shakespeare Virgins (1983), First Blood (1983), Professor Musgrove's Canary (1986), Gorilla/ Guerrilla (1986), Brother-love Sister-love (1986), Animaux (1988), A Pattern of Marching (1989, winner of the Poetry Section of the 1990 New Zealand Book Awards), Nights at the Embassy (1990), A Cortège of Daughters (1993), The Tudor Style: Poems New and Selected (1993), Mr Fish (1994), The Journal Box (1996), The Mathematics of Jane Austen (1997), The Lark Quartet (1999, winner of the Poetry Section of the 2000 Montana New Zealand Book Awards), Red Shoes (2003), The Sea Between Us (2003), Different Kinds of Pleasure (2006), and The Girl Who Proposed (2008).