Uprooting: Marchelle Farrell in conversation with Julia Samuel

What is home? It is a question that has troubled Marchelle Farrell for her entire life. Years ago, like so many of the Black diaspora, she left behind the pristine beaches and emerald hills of Trinidad. Now she moves again for the verdant, peaceful surroundings of the English countryside.

These relocations at first appear as opportunity. But when placed within the context of a worldwide pandemic, and ongoing racial protests, the trauma and upheaval of colonialism that have inexorably led her to this house and garden begin to be unearthed. Is this really home? And can she ever feel truly grounded here?

A psychiatrist and specialist in talking therapies, Marchelle attempts to unpack this complex and emotional question while she tends to her new garden. Through her care for the unusual – and often unlikely – flora and fauna that is contained within it, she discovers that her two apparently conflicting identities are far more intertwined than she had previously realised.

Uprooting: From the Caribbean to the Countryside – Finding Home in an English Country Garden is Marchelle’s attempt to answer these question and was selected as the winning manuscript in the 2021 Nan Shepherd Prize – a prize for underrepresented voices in nature writing. Marchelle lives in nearby Wellow.

Marchelle will be in conversation with psychotherapist, bestselling author Julia Samuel – who built a brand new following over lockdown with her fantastic series of online interviews with some of today’s leading thinkers in health, psychology, therapy and wellbeing. Julia lives in nearby Mells.

ESSENTIAL INFO:

• There will be a Q&A and book signing after the event. Copies of the book will be available to buy on the night.

• There is parking at the venue itself and free on-street parking opposite. There are several public car parks within short walking distance of the venue.

• There is level access at the venue.