Cambridge Festival - Decolonisation and Independence: an exhibition of 1960s books about African nations

A collection of vintage political and historical books on African independence and revolution is arranged in a grid, featuring bold covers, photographs, and graphic typography, including one with a black-and-white portrait of a man.

Date 20/03/2026 at 11.00 - 20/03/2026 at 14.00 Where Lee Library

Drop-in and browse a selection of books published in Africa in the 1960s, which belonged to William 'Bill' Kirkman MBE (1932-2022).

Overview

Bill Kirkman was Africa Correspondent and Commonwealth Staff Correspondent for The Times in the early 1960s. During this time, he was a frequent broadcaster with the BBC World Service and Africa Service. Bill's unique collection of books from that period, reflect the rapid de-colonisation of the continent.

Bill also was a Fellow of Wolfson College from 1968 to 2000, and Emeritus Fellow 2000-2022. The College is very grateful to Bill's widow, Anne, for this donation of over 100 books.

Availability

This exhibition is available for attendees to drop in between 11.00-14.00 on Friday 20 March.

Access

This event will take place in the Library which has step-free access and there is an accessible toilet located in our main building.

Contact

If you have any questions, please contact our events team - events@wolfson.cam.ac.uk

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