Current and upcoming events
Comedy Fundraising Evening
The famous Joogleberry Playhouse is hosting a comedy fundraising evening, “Stand-up for ME” on Wednesday 25th June 2008, featuring comedy and cabaret from Ged Butcher, Sam Savage, Lee Hume, Sam Stone, Chris Jones, Robin Fry, Felicity Ventom, Paul Beckett and Trudie Styles, with MC Roisin Mirza. Doors open 7.30, show starts 8.00 pm, and entry is £6.
Landmark CFS/ME programme in Canada
Later this year, the University of Calgary hosts the first Alberta Interdisciplinary Research Symposium devoted to discussion of ME/CFS. The symposium takes place on 8th November 2008 in the Libin Lecture Theatre, University of Calgary, Canada, and includes keynote lectures by prominent researchers in the field Dr Nancy Klimas and Dr Alison Bested. These will be supported by a programme of oral and poster presentations, and the day will end with a large group discussion of the directions for further study of disabling fatigue.
The symposium is the third in a series of events in the University’s ME/CFS programme, which also includes educational days looking at the Diagnosis and Assessment of Patients with CFS/ME on 24th October, and the Clinical Management of CFS/ME on 7th November.
For more information, please visit www.cme.ucalgary.ca.
A Stiff-Necked Generation: A Victorian Morality by A Wyatt Tilby
A Wyatt Tilby (1880–1948) was a journalist and author of history and philosophy by profession. “A Stiff-Necked Generation”, written in 1920 during a period of convalescence from presumed TB, was not published during the author’s lifetime for fear of offending his family upon which it is based. Spanning three generations, the picture he paints is of a disharmonious family, blighted by sibling rivalries and philosophical differences. In particular, he contrasts his own passion for learning and experience with his uncle’s lust for money and power.
Set predominantly in Victorian London, moving through Holborn, Tooting, Wimbledon and Shoreditch, this beautifully written autobiographical novel offers a rare and authentic insight into a bygone age and the enduring nature of the human condition. Safe in the knowledge that all those referred to in the novel have long since departed, it was agreed by all the inheritors of the author’s estate that the time was now right for his only known work of fiction to be published.
The 200-page paperback, published by Four O’Clock Press is now available via the A Wyatt Tilby website or from Amazon for £5.94, and the press release can be read here (pdf 177 KB). It is published by Tilby’s great-grandson, Robert Saunders, through Bookforce.co.uk, and all the profits from the sale of this book will be donated to biomedical research into ME. Robert has been severely affected by ME for most of his adult life, since 1992. The supported charities will include ME Research UK and CFS Research Foundation.
The book was given a very positive review in February 2008 by Rosemary Goring, Literary Editor of The Herald, Scotland’s leading quality daily newspaper with which A Wyatt Tilby had a thirty-five year association as a reviewer, special correspondent and (from 1944) a leader-writer.
The State of Me
Due to be published by The Friday Project in July 2008, The State of Me is a work of fiction, based on the author’s own experience of ME. As the synopsis from The Friday Project website says, “It’s 1983 and 20-year-old university student Helen Fleet should be enjoying the best days of her life, but while all her friends go on to graduate and have careers in London, she is forced to return to her parents’ home, bedridden with vile symptoms that doctors can’t explain and often don’t believe. She is eventually diagnosed with ME, a cruel illness that she must learn to live with over the next decade. All of her relationships are tested — and changed — by her condition, but Helen’s story is so much more than an account of her suffering. Far from it. The State of Me not only explores the loneliness and chaos of one of the most misunderstood illnesses of our time, but also celebrates the importance of family, friendships, and sexual love. This is a stunning, eloquent and linguistically perfect debut novel.
” The book can be pre-ordered from Amazon.
Everyclick
Since starting up our Everyclick page last year, our supporters have raised over £2,300 for the charity just by searching the web. Everyclick donates half its revenues to charity, and is a very useful and simple fundraising tool. Just make the ME Research UK everyclick page your home page, and then use it whenever you search the web. It’s as simple as that!
Personalise your event with Justgiving
ME Research UK has teamed up with Justgiving.com so all our runners and events participants can raise money quickly and easily online with their own personalised webpages. This means that your friends and family will be able to sponsor your event from your own webpage online with a credit or debit card, and leave their own messages of support. There is also the facility to donate directly.
To set up your page visit the Justgiving ME Research UK entry portal, or call Justgiving on 0800 028 6183 for more details.
Greetings Cards and Notelets
Jane Hurst has produced photo greeting cards featuring photographs from respected wildlife and landscape photographers; i.e., friends, family and herself (most of whom suffer from ME). They are printed on quality card and make excellent birthday cards or thank you notes, and would also make ideal gifts in their own right. You can choose from two special packs of five assorted cards (pictured below). All proceeds from the sale of these cards will go to ME Research UK and the 25% ME Group.
If you would like to order, please contact Jane at 12 Malten Close, Poringland, Norwich NR14 7RW, or by e-mail: jane@lhurst99.freeserve.co.uk, stating your name and address, and enclosing a cheque made payable to ‘Paul Hurst’. Please also state whether you would like Pack 1 or Pack 2 (or both!) when ordering. Individual cards can also be purchased (£1 per card + postage at cost) by e-mailing Jane for further details. The cards cost £3.99 per pack (postage per pack 50p).
Greetings Cards pack 1
Greetings Cards pack 2
