Easter Lineup Revealed!

After an exciting Lent that saw the most varied and exciting lineup in recent years, Union members will be interested to find out what Easter Term has in store for them.

The headline act is undoubtedly Lisa Kudrow, Emmy award-winning actress and comedienne – but you’ll recognise her best as the zany one from Friends. You can catch her speaking in May Week (when we’ll probably all be watching Friends repeats anyway). Fans’ favourite Bradley Whitford, of West Wing fame, will also make an appearance in mid-May.

Bradley Whitford, star of The West Wing

Tim Minchin (think Russell Brand but Australian) is hot property at the moment, having just co-written the new Matilda musical – which opened in Broadway this month. You might also have seen him as Atticus Fetch in the latest series of Californication. Let’s just hope something better doesn’t come up!

The Union will also be welcoming Armando Iannuci, the creative genius behind Alan Partridge, The Thick Of It, In The Loop and HBO’s Veep. Writer-director Iannuci is presently working on the new Alan Partridge movie.

On the sporting front, F1 triple world champion Sir Jackie Stewart – who played an instrumental role in improving safety in Formula 1 after a succession of tragic deaths in the 1960s – will be talking to Union members next month. Scot stalwart David Moyes will be making an appearance in the same week. Having been with Everton for over a decade now, Moyes is something of a rarity in the football manager world these days.

Sir Jackie Stewart – the “Flying Scott”

The Union has invited world famous political philosophers Peter Singer and Michael Sandel to share their insights, which will hopefully help to put some of that exam term stress into perspective.

There certainly is a lot on offer this term. However, some may bemoan the fact that Neil Gaiman, author of Stardust and with his second episode of Doctor Who set to air later this year, will return to the Union just a few months after his appearance at Watersprite last term.

Lily Cole is making a return to her alma mater as she prepares to unveil her new “socially networked gift economy website & app”, Impossible, which will launch exclusively to Cambridge students.

Ex-Cantab Lily Cole is sure to set pulses racing

The Union’s love affair with Made in Chelsea is as strong as ever, and Francis Boulle will be talking about the death of creativity in television. He should know.

With regards to this term’s debate motions, Fenster remarked that they are  “less politics heavy than they have often been in the past”, an opinion which is perhaps not reflected in the term card. Topics for debate include Iran’s nuclear aspirations, the welfare state and a debate simply entitled ‘The Israel Palestine Question’ in which Fenster himself will be speaking.

Let’s hope Boulle is as interesting in real life as he is on TV

The dearth of female speakers compared to previous years is also noticeable – something that the president himself acknowledges: “The low number of female individual speakers disappoints me after we made a concerted push to address this balance,” Fenster writes. “We aim to examine this issue, amongst others, during our forum on the meaning of feminism today.”

The Union have also invited four MPs to take part in their debates, all Conservative, compared to just one labour counsellor – although the head of the Green Party will also make an appearance.

Union President Joel Fenster

Having said that, this term’s line-up does see an interesting variety of speakers descending on Cambridge. President Joel Fenster declared: “I am pleased that we are able to welcome speakers of such a high calibre, and from such a diverse range of backgrounds.

“I know that there will be someone who will appeal to every member, whether they are interested in entertainment, philosophy, or sports.”