Talk with Great British Sewing Bee host Patrick Grant on craftsmanship, creativity and clothing, exploring the relationship with fashion and sustainability.
Patrick Grant is coming to St George's Bristol on Tuesday 17 November, for a talk he's calling Hand Made Man. Most of us know him as the host of The Great British Sewing Bee, and that's where he starts: he takes you behind the scenes of the show's workroom, through Savile Row, and into the wider world of craft and creativity.
It's not just a trip down memory lane, though. He draws on stories from his time on television to talk about the triumphs and the last-minute disasters that come with making things that last. From there, he turns to how our relationship with clothing has gone wrong: around 100 billion garments are produced every year, a third of them never worn, and the equivalent of a bin lorry full of clothes is burned or buried every single second. His argument is that the problem isn't nostalgia, but that price has become the only measure of value.
It's a talk that sits at the intersection of the practical and the political — the craft of making something by hand set against the scale of the global garment industry. If you've ever wondered why we've stopped valuing how things are made, or if you've spent your own time sewing and making, this is right up your street.
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It's in the main hall at St George's, Great George Street, BS1 5RR, starting at 7.30pm. Tickets were from £29 and are now sold out, so you'll have to keep an eye out for returns. If you do manage to snag one, there's a bit of a bonus: you can pre-order food and drink from the Café Bar and collect it from 90 minutes before the event, so you're sorted for the night without having to rush. The show is suitable for ages 14 and over.
