James Pretlove will be reading from his memoir about the death and life of his mother, Seventy-Eight Thank Yous.
The reading will be followed by a Q and A session with James.
Focusing on the power of gratitude to transfigure the experience of grief and exploring whether every suicide really is what The Samaritans call, ‘the worst thing that could happen’, the intimate event will take place in the Universal Hall, with only 100 tickets available (it will not be livestreamed).
About Seventy-Eight Thank Yous
When Val Pretlove committed suicide in September 2018 at the age of 78, her youngest son James was taken by surprise by thoughts of gratitude. It wasn’t long before he started writing these down, and there was soon one for every year of her life. Each thank you recounts a story from a life which was extraordinary in its ordinariness. And framing them is an exploration of what happens when someone takes their own life. At every turn James Pretlove’s memoir, Seventy-Eight Thank Yous, questions whether every suicide really is what The Samaritans call, “the worst thing that could happen.” The upcoming afternoon of readings at the Universal Hall will be positive and life-affirming, focusing on the power of gratitude to transfigure the experience of grief .
About the Author James Pretlove
Writer James Pretlove was twice finalist in the Vogue talent contest in the 1990s. During a month’s work experience there, he realised he couldn’t take the world of high fashion quite that seriously and launched and edited the cult satirical fashion magazine BLOW. In 1997, at the age of 28, Pretlove survived a life-threatening stroke. An unforeseen consequence of the brain haemorrhage was becoming bi-polar and being detained under the Mental Health Act multiple times. In 2005, as part of his long road to recovery he helped set up and run London’s LGBT+ Scottish country dance club, The Gay Gordons. Discovering a passion for both the music and the dance, Pretlove’s connection with his Scottish heritage grew and in 2010, he moved to Scotland and joined the Findhorn Foundation Community. Here his time was spent cleaning toilets, talking to tomato plants and teaching Scottish country dancing.