Date/Time
Thursday 30 November 2023
7:30 pm - 10:00 pm
Categories Talk
Book here now: £10 full price • £8 or £5 if you prefer – please pay what you can*
Richard Carlile was born in Ashburton on 8 or 9 December 1790, in a house recently identified in the centre of town.
The great historian E.P. Thompson called Carlile, perhaps unfairly, ‘The showman of Free thought’. He was certainly a ‘free thinker’, taking his ideas beyond the radical to the ultra radical. A man of courage and conviction, a man who could not abide injustice and privilege. His life was one long campaign for revolutionary changes, supported by a colourful, motley crew of fellow ultra radicals.
Part 1
A brief survey of the political and social scene that Richard lived through. What were the constraints imposed on him by the state?
Part 2
An overview of Richard’s life, from Ashburton to London:
Tin worker
Printer’s apprentice
Writer and publisher of seditious newspapers
Biographer of Thomas Paine
Prisoner
Figurehead for a potential revolution
Campaigner for birth control
Mystical Christian
Touring lecturer
Theatre owner
Part 3
An exploration of Richard’s radicalism and how he promoted his ideas:
Deism and his partnership with the extraordinary Rev. Robert Taylor
The Zetetic movement
The destruction of the Church
Spenceanism
Feminism
Egalitarianism
Pornography
followed by Q & A /Discussion on which of his views have resonance today.
* See Access, Tickets & Finding Us for more about why there are three ticket prices, plus other useful info about coming to events at Ashburton Arts Centre.