Free Thinking Festival - Help and FAQs
What is the Free Thinking festival?
What is 'Free Thought'?
What is 'My Free Thinking Space'?
What has Free Thinking to do with Radio 3?
How do I catch Free Thinking programmes on the radio or online?
How do I know what's on in the festival and who's contributing?
Can I download a Free Thinking podcast?
Is Free Thinking suitable for all age groups?
How do I book tickets?
How can I find more stuff like Free Thinking elsewhere on the BBC?
Add a comment or question for the FAQs
What is the Free Thinking festival?
Radio 3's Free Thinking Festival of Ideas is a chance to come face-to-face with some of today's leading thinkers, artists, scientists and writers at a live festival in Liverpool to explore ideas through interviews, talks, public debates, drama and live performance.
In 2008 the festival is in its third year and the live events take place over the weekend of 31 October to 2 November.
If you can't make it to Liverpool, many of the events will be recorded and broadcast on Radio 3.
All of these you can listen to on demand in the BBC iPlayer for 7 days after broadcast.
And most of the broadcasts will be available on the Free Thinking website in perpetuity as audio - and a selection as video. You can use the website to submit comment about any of the events and to start or join in discussions on BBC message boards.
What is 'Free Thought'?
Each day for 100 days until the end of the 2008 festival a leading figure from the arts, media, science or public life speaks their mind for two minutes on an issue that fires them up.
These Free thoughts are broadcast every day on Radio 3's Breakfast, repeated in Night Waves and on Radio Merseyside.
You can listen and add your comment to each one after broadcast at
Free Thoughts
What is 'My Free Thinking Space'?
A gallery of photos where anyone is welcome to share their photo of a place they do, or might wish to do, their thinking. Some of the Free Thought contributors have added theirs.
View the gallery.
Share your Free Thinking space photo.
What has Free Thinking to do with Radio 3?
Radio 3 has a long tradition of exploring ideas and understanding culture through its arts and ideas programmes and writing, literature and drama programmes and commissions.
If you enjoy Free Thinking you may be interested in these Radio 3 programmes:
Night Waves - Radio 3's flagship arts and ideas programme, nightly Mon - Thu
The Essay - Critically acclaimed late night series of cultural talks.
Sunday Feature - Features on the arts and other cultural subjects.
The Verb - an McMillan hosts a lively showcase of new writing, literature and performance.
The Wire - First time writers for radio push the boundaries of drama and narrative.
Drama on 3 - drama ranging from the experimental to the Classics.
Words and Music - A sequence of music, poetry and prose linked by a theme.
These programmes along with special features and archive are listed on Radio 3's Speech and Drama homepage.
Also, Radio 3's Breakfast music programme broadcasts Free Thought at 8.30 every morning until the end of the festival.
Breakfast
How do I catch Free Thinking programmes on the radio or online?
Many events will be broadcast on Radio 3.
Radio Merseyside's Roger Phillips hosts some debates at the festival and features aspects of the festival on Radio Merseyside.
Where we know when an event will be broadcast this information is given on the event's web page.
How do I know what's on in the festival and who's contributing?
Visit the events schedule for a list by day of all the events.
Each event in the list links through to a web page for that event with more detail, useful links and a place to read and submit comments.
The Contributors page will list all the Free Thought and Free Thinking festival contributors with a brief biog for each.
Can I download a Free Thinking podcast?
Radio 3's Arts and Ideas podcast will contain programme content from the Free Thinking festival.
It will likely be of interest to anyone interested in the festival.
There isn't a podcast exclusively for Free Thinking.
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Is Free Thinking suitable for all age groups?
Broadly, yes.
Adult issues could come up in any debate or discussion.
Event 18 is Tony Marchant's drama '24 weeks' with a specifically adult theme.
There is a wide variety of different sorts of events at the festival - from drama and debate to walks, workshops and interactive drama and speed dating.
Most events offer opportunities for participation and engagement that will have universal appeal.
Check out the schedule of events - everyone will find plenty to tickle their fancy.
Look on the home page too where fun, participation events have been highlighted.
One theme of the 2008 festival is 'The value of experience'. These events will be especially relevant to a cross section of generations:
Event 6 Tony Benn: Letters to my Grandchildren
Event 14 Debate: What is the Value of Experience?
Event 31 Free Thinking Manifesto: Bridging the Generation Gap
How do I book tickets?
Please visit the events schedule for booking information.
How can I find more stuff like Free Thinking elsewhere on the BBC?
In every Event page we've provided links where we can to content on the BBC that could tie in with the subject material of the event. Every event page is linked to from the Schedule of Events.
Sarah James Gloucester
Is it possible to acquire a text of a free thought? If so, how?
Your thoughts
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