The Number 9 Bus to Utopia
David BramwellThis event has now finishedWhen David Bramwell’s partner left him for someone she described as ‘younger, but more mature’, he knew he had a thing or two to learn about life. Taking a year off, he journeyed through Europe and America seeking out extraordinary communities that could teach him how to be a more sharing, loving person.
His quest led him to ashrams, an anarchist haven in the heart of Copenhagen; Findhorn, a Scottish spiritual retreat favoured by Ruby Wax, a paradisal community in Californian dreamt up by Aldous Huxley, and an entire eco-city being built in the Arizona desert. Most impressive of all was Damanhur, a 1000-strong community in the Alps who, over 23 years, secretly built an underground temple the size of St Paul’s Cathedral, a village of tree houses and toured Europe with an orchestra of singing plants.
Along the way David’s quest raised issues that best many of us. Why is there so much unhappiness amongst those with wealth and relative freedom? Is getting what you want really utopia? Could alternative communities teach us a better way to be in both our relationships and our modern cities? Inspired by his adventures David returned home with a desire to change. Not just himself but also his neighbourhood and city.
Find out how he succeeded in this humorous and uplifting show, featuring photographic images, that asks some big questions, and finds the answers surprisingly simple.
David Bramwell is a Sony-Award winning broadcaster for BBC Radio 3 and 4. His monologues, The Number 9 Bus to Utopia, The Cult of Water and The Haunted Mosutache, have all been turned into BBC radio programmes and books. David has appeared on BBC Radio’s Saturday Live, The Museum of Curiosity and The Chris Evans Radio Show, but is genuinely at his happiest performing at the back of a pub.
Pub food is served until 6pm on Sundays - booking a table is advised.
