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Cowes-Born Oscar Winner Jeremy Irons To Open Isle Of Wight Literary Festival

Oscar-winner Jeremy Irons is to open the Isle of Wight Digital Literary Festival next month (October).

The actor, born in Cowes on the Isle of Wight, will read Lewis Carroll’s nonsense poem The Hunting of the Snark (An Agony in Eight Fits).

The Red Funnel Isle of Wight Digital Literary Festival gets underway on Friday October 9 at 7pm. 

Maggie Ankers, chair of the Red Funnel Isle of Wight Literary Festival, said: 

“We can think of no better person to open our digital literary festival than the much respected actor Jeremy Irons.

“Jeremy’s connection to the Island and those of Carroll’s poem are a great start to a literary weekend that offers something for everyone.”

The acting legend has a rich and much-lauded career in theatre, film and television. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor in 1990 for his performance as Claus von Bulow in Reversal of Fortune.  

Jeremy Irons was also awarded Best Supporting Actor Golden Globe and Emmy for his role in the television miniseries Elizabeth I (2005) alongside Helen Mirren. He went on to play Pope Alexander in the Showtime historical series The Borgias (2011), and portrayed Henry IV in the BBC Two series The Hollow Crown opposite Thor-actor Tom Hiddleston. 

He may also be best known for his role as Charles Ryder in the cult TV series Brideshead Revisited (1981). Most recently he starred alongside Regina King in the HBO series WATCHMEN, the revamp led by Damon Lindelof.

The Hunting of the Snark has been chosen by Mr Irons for its Island connection.

The book is dedicated to Gertrude Chataway and opens with a poem that uses her name as a double acrostic. Carroll met the nine-year-old Gertrude on the beach in Sandown in 1875.

How do I view the free digital literary festival?

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