07 March 2025
In association with Farshore, Read for Good were delighted to host a brilliant live online event for selected Readathon® schools with best-selling historical author Philippa Gregory on Friday 07 March 2025.
Over 1,500 pupils from 20 schools joined live for a fabulous event in honour of Philippa’s latest book Normal Women (Teen Edition) and International Women’s Day, celebrating sisterhood through an exploration of 900 years of English women’s history. Hosted by children’s author Emma Carroll, and joined by special guest author Geri Halliwell-Horner, the event opened up a fascinating conversation around ‘normal women’, including the origins of today’s gender inequalities and the importance of Sisterhood.
“The reason women aren’t in history is really clear. It’s not that women weren’t doing things, it’s that women were doing things but they weren’t recorded…there’s no working test to say this is a woman, this isn’t. And there’s no limit to what women can do. What is normal for a woman is normal for anybody. Extraordinary is normal for women, and so is completely banal and ordinary and quiet. It’s all normal.”
“The way you become a good writer is you learn your trade…it’s a craft…an apprenticeship…you read and read and read.”
Philippa Gregory
Aimed at Year 7 and up, an event recording has been sent out to over 300 selected schools and will be freely available for all to watch on our website from June 2025.
“It was excellent! Our year 9 girls were really engaged and thought the discussions interesting and relevant. Staff loved it too! Good to have something for the slightly older pupils on this occasion.”
Teacher, Talbot Heath School
“It was fantastic. Incredible to see Philippa Gregory and such a surprise to see Geri…also the girls loved the fact that you answered a question from our school.”
Head of Library & Research, Kings Norton Girls’ School
“This is fantastic news, thank you so much! Our pupils thoroughly enjoyed the event, and the surprise guest, and will love being able to use the book!”
LRC Manager, Healing Academy (book prize draw winner)
“Thank you for this. We are so excited to win this prize! Really looking forward to reading the book and we will be hosting further screenings of the talk for students.”
LRC & Events Coordinator, Tanbridge House School (book prize draw winner)
We are incredibly grateful to Farshore for their support in making this event happen and for organising the kind donation of a hardback copy of Normal Women (Teen Edition) for 10 lucky schools chosen at random from the schools who registered to watch the live event.
Thank you to all the schools who joined us for the event and for reading and raising this academic year, helping to bring the magic of books and stories to children in hospitals across the UK. If you haven’t already, sign up for your next Readathon now!
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