Prof Sir Geoff Palmer: The Books That Made Me

The Open University is delighted to be supporting this event with Prof Sir Geoff Palmer CD, at Aye Write, Glasgow's Book Festival.

Prof Sir Geoff Palmer OBE is an OU honorary graduate, Chancellor of Heriot-Watt University, and a human rights activist.

Sir Geoff discovered the barley abrasion process whilst a researcher at the Brewing Research Foundation from 1968 to 1977. In 1998 he became the fourth person, and the first European, to be honoured with the American Society of Brewing Chemists Award of Distinction, considered the 'Nobel prize of brewing'.

In 1989, Sir Geoff became the first black professor in Scotland, becoming a professor emeritus after he retired in 2005. He was knighted in the 2014 New Year Honours.

At this event Sir Geoff will be discussing his life, career and the books that have been the most important to him, with author Subrina Ward.

This is a digital-only event, as part of an online version of Aye Write festival's popular series 'The Books That Made Me'.

Tickets are £5.00 and can be booked via the Aye Write website. When you buy tickets you will be redirected to Aye Write's digital providers site on Vimeo to complete the transaction. The performance will be available to watch from 6 to 27 May 2022. It is included in the Aye Write 2022 festival pass, so if you have already purchased a pass, you will not need to purchase a ticket this event. 

You can read a blog written for the OU by Sir Geoff about Scotland’s links with Caribbean Slavery. There is also a video of Sir Geoff being interviewed in Edinburgh by fellow OU honorary graduate Prof Benjamin Zephaniah, on the OU’s free learning site, OpenLearn.