Sohemian Rhapsody - A Journey into the Lost World of Bohemian Soho

Event information

Join us for the hundredth- birthday party of our greatest local writers!

Few people have led such a strange life as the cult writer and Soho dandy Julian Maclaren-Ross (1912-64), whose work has attracted admirers as varied as Harold Pinter, Evelyn Waugh, Iain Sinclair, Graham Greene and Sarah Waters. Brought up on the French Riviera during the 1920s, his subsequent life encompassed fame and literary success as well as alcoholism, drug addiction, homelessness and a psychotic obsession with George Orwell's glamorous widow.

To commemorate the centenary of his birth, we'll be staging a recreation of one of his short, characteristically stylish 1950s radio plays, starring Callum Coates, founder of the popular Fitzrovia Radio Hour and stalwart of the Globe Theatre under Mark Rylance. We'll also be presenting rarely seen footage of Maclaren-Ross and his friends talking about the long lost world of Soho bohemia. There'll also be short readings from Maclaren-Ross's witty and atmospheric work, juxtaposed with a discussion between the writers Paul Willetts and Virginia Ironside.

As well as being Maclaren-Ross's biographer, Paul has edited several collections of the great man's work. His most recent book is Members Only, a widely praised biography of the Soho nightclub impresario, Paul Raymond, which has just been adapted into a movie, directed by Michael Winterbottom and starring Steve Coogan.

Renowned for her wise and witty journalism, Virginia has, over the last few years, produced an acclaimed memoir of her mother and a bestselling novel. In a further demonstration of her versatility, she's starring in The Virginia Monologues,a popular one-woman stand-up comedy show that attracted rave reviews at its Edinburgh Festival premiere.


Ticket price includes a complimentary glass of La Fontaine Absinthe

Limited number of tickets available, please book in advance at http://www.wegottickets.com/event/172823