Skip to main content
All Posts By

Evelina Ferrar

Literary Evening with Katja Perat in Oxford

By Events, First page, News No Comments

The British-Slovene Society co-organises a literary evening with the Slovene poet Katja Perat on Friday 28th February 2014 at 7 p.m. at Evelina and Marcus Ferrar’s House, 7 Capel Close, Summertown, Oxford OX2 7LA

The evening will be in Slovene and English. Free entry.

RSVP: matej.klemen@nottingham.ac.uk

Katja Perat, photo by Tihomir Pintar

Katja Perat, photo by Tihomir Pintar

Katja Perat, born 1988, is a Slovene poet and literary critic. Her first collection of poetry, Najboljši so padli (The Best Have Fallen) was warmly received by readers and critically acclaimed, receiving several awards including for the best debut of 2011. Perat’s poems are sharp, ironic and to the point.

 

Pust Carnival Celebration with Slovene Doughnuts in London

By Events, First page, News No Comments

Come and celebrate a pust in Camden Centre in London on 8th March – the traditional Slovene carnival chasing the winter away. Five kurents (masked figures) and a devil will come over to join the chase. With live music by Zoran Predin, No Name Blues Band and DJ Spook with international repertoire of music, best costume awards, Slovenian food and drink. Everybody gets a proper Slovene doughnut!

Come wearing a costume – at midnight the best mask/costume will be awarded with a weekend package for two in Spa and Hotel Primus in Ptuj – price provided by the Slovenian Tourist Board and Sava Hotel.

Members of the British-Slovene Society will receive a free coupon for a drink.

Tickets available from the following websites:

https://www.seetickets.com/Event/first-slovenian-carnival-pust-in-london/camden-centre/767653

or

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/carnival-pust-fasching-slovenian-way-tickets-10506365823

banner pust 333.pdf-1

 

Lisa won Gorenje’s washing machine

By Events, First page, News No Comments

The British-Slovene Society’s annual Prešeren dinner in London on 8 February was livelier than ever. Over 110 people participated, many of them students and young professionals. Shirlie Roden and Zoran Predin created a lovely atmosphere with their singing, and Prešeren’s poems were recited with great passion and drama.

DSC07133

The Slovene actress Barbara Predin, who flew in specially for the occasion, gave a magical recitation of  Prešeren’s The Water Man.

With the sale of raffle tickets, we collected £343 for the Barka charity we support. The first prize, a washing machine donated by Gorenje, went to Lisa (left, below). She was very happy. For more pictures see Gallery.

DSC07167

Barka, the charity we support

By Barka, First page, News No Comments

The British Slovene Society has been supporting Barka since 1997. It is a charity run by L’Arche, the Canadian parent charity which operates internationally, and was the first charity of its kind to set up in Slovenia in the village of Zbilje, close to Medvode, about 20 kms north of Ljubljana.

barka

By coincidence, David Lloyd, our Chairman, lived in Zbilje when he was  Ambassador to Slovenia and came to know Skupnost Barka well as neighbours and friends. It was the then Society Chairman, Keith Miles, who approached David in search of a ‘good cause’ in Slovenia to donate money collected by the British-Slovene Society, as a result of which the connection was forged. Shirlie Roden, one of our Trustees, and a long-standing lover of Slovenia, has brought her music to the community on a number of occasions.

Historically, Društvo Barka, under the tireless stewardship of Manca and Klemen Kastelic, has lived a hand-to-mouth existence. Staff who come from all over Europe are voluntary and devoted to their work. Only relatively recently has the State made some modest funding available and some money has come from the EU. Barka now has two residential villas  and a magnificent workshop/studio/chapel complex built and donated by a German benefactor. Its 25 or so residents, some who board and some who attend daily, are fully integrated into the Zbilje community and much loved by them.

We invite anyone wishing to donate to Barka to contact the British-Slovene Society Treasurer, Gorazd Kert on treasurer@britishslovenesociety.org.

If you wish to learn more about Barka in Slovene, see https://www.barka-drustvo.si.

Here is their blog where they report on their events: https://skupnostbarka.blogspot.com/.

20 years of British-Slovene Society – Prešeren Dinner on 8 February 2014 with Zoran Predin

By Events, First page, News No Comments

We kindly invite you to our Annual Dinner at which we honour the great Slovene poet FRANCE  PREŠEREN on Saturday 8th February 2014 at HOTEL RUSSELL, Russell Square, London WC1B 5BE (Nearest stations Russell Square, Holborn, Euston). Drinks from 6.30 pm, dinner at 7.20 pm.

Zoran-Predin

We are delighted that Shirlie Roden and the Slovenia’s leading singer and song writer Zoran Predin and his actress wife Barbara Predin will be performing for us.

M E N U     

 Starter

Chicken liver parfait, red onion jam, sourdough bread

Vegetarian alternative

Main Course

Braised pork shank, creamed potato and wholegrain mustard sauce

Vegetarian alternative

Dessert

Fruit mess

Potica

***

Tea/coffee and Chocolate Mints

***

Half a bottle of wine per person (courtesy of the Slovenian Embassy)

Price (including welcome drink):  £37 for members, £45 for non-members, £25 for fulltime students. Free for members over 80 (a donation would be welcomed).

Capacity is restricted – by reservation only. If you wish to make up your own party, please nominate a host who will book the table in his/her name. Please advise if you have any dietary requirements. In order to avoid disappointment, please complete the attached application form and return it to the address below no later than Saturday, 1st February 2013 and make your payment. We cannot guarantee places for applications received after this date. You should assume that paid-for places have been reserved for you unless you hear from us to the contrary. No tickets will be issued.

A tombola will be held and the proceeds donated to Barka charity.

Please print out and fill in the Application form for Annual Dinner 8 February 2014, and return it either by post or email.

If you wish, you can pay through PayPal below.

Category
Name

Drago Jančar talks in London on 15 January

By First page, News No Comments

The Slovene author Drago Jančar will give a reading and take part in a panel discussion in London at 6.30 pm on Wednesday 15 January 2014.

Venue:  

Europe House
32 Smith Square
London SW1P 3EU

The event is on the occasion of publication by Dalkey Archive Press of the 5th anniversary collection of their anthology of Best European Fiction 2014. Short readings and discussion will be followed by a reception.

The event is open to the public, but it is essential to RVSP by 13 January to: neal@dalkeyarchive.com

Drago Jančar has penned the introduction to this year’s anthology. Other contributors taking part are Herkus Kuncius (Lithuania), Oskar Magnusson (Iceland), Susana Medina (Spain), Robert Minhinnick (Wales) and Tonu Onnepalu (Estonia), in conversation with  the journalist, Rosie Goldsmith, renowned in the UK for her work in the promotion of European literature.

The anthology includes literary work of Slovenian author Vesna Lemaić titled The Pool.

Barka’s Gift to the British-Slovene Society

By First page, News No Comments

Skupnost Barka, the Slovenian community of people with disturbed mental development, gave this picture to the British-Slovene Society in the UK in recognition of the support the Society has provided to the charity over the years.

Slo bozicnica foto Janez Strah 07

David Lloyd, president of the BSS, brought the picture to the  Society’s annual Christmas Service at the Church of St Andrew-in-the-Wardrobe in London on 13th December. He presented it to Reverend Guy Treweek to hang in the Church.

At this year’s Service, the congregation donated a record £287 pounds (and 5 euro), which will be sent to Barka with our best wishes.

British-Slovene Society celebrates Christmas

By First page No Comments

Slo bozicnica foto Janez Strah 02

Lessons, carols, a superb choir and fresh potica flown in from Kranjska Gora featured in the annual British-Slovene Society Christmas Service at St Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe Church in the City of London on 13th December.

Participants read the traditional lessons from the Bible telling the Christmas story in Slovene and English. A packed congregation – there was hardly a seat to spare – heartily sang favourite carols in both languages.

The Gallus choir again led way, their soaring tones inspiring the faithful to sing forth at full throat.

For the first time, children from British-Slovene families in the UK performed some of the readings.

Slo bozicnica foto Janez Strah 05

DSC07003

Afterwards, all stayed to toast each other with Slovene wine kindly offered by the Slovenian Embassy. Keith and Slava Miles, who organised the service, flew back 15 loaves of potica in their luggage from Slovenia. All were gone by the time people wended their way out into the London night.

Conducting the service was the Reverend Guy Treweek, who once more kindly made the Wren Church of St Andrew’s-by-the-Wardrobe available for one of the highlights of the British-Slovene season.

Photos by Janez Strah and Evelina Ferrar

St. Nicholas visited Barka again

By First page No Comments

Janez Strah is a photographer who learned about Skupnost Barka through the British-Slovene Society, which has been supporting the charity over a number of years. Every year he visits the group at the beginning of December and brings along St. Nicholas, an angel and presents for everybody. Barka is a community of people with special needs in Slovenia.

Barka Miklavz foto Janez Strah 02

Barka Miklavz foto Janez Strah 06

Here is a letter we received from Barka describing the evening with singing and distributing of gifts:

Na predvečer praznika svetega Miklavža smo v skupnosti Barka gostili samega Miklavža. Pripeljal se je v spremstvu angela pomočnika, mladih kitaristk in pevcev. Nestrpno smo v večernem mraku člani skupnosti v jedilnici čakali na starega moža. Prišel je počasi, se naslanjal na svojo palico in nas vse pozdravil. V rokah je nosil Zlato knjigo. Koliko lepih stvari je bilo zapisanih v njej. Da ima naša Irena zelo rada svojega nečaka Gregorja, da Kristina z veseljem pomaga pri kuhanju, da Tanja natančno in lepo šiva,.. Nekaj nas je od Miklavža dobilo tudi prijazen opomin ali spodbudo: Rok lahko malo več telovadi, Lucija naj pove, kaj ji je zares všeč,…

Miklavž nas je vse razveselil z darilci. Spomnil se je tudi naših kuharjev, prostovoljcev v obeh hišah in otrok. Med obdarovanjem smo večkrat zapeli in – ne boste verjeli – kitaro je v roke vzel in nanjo zabrenkal celo sveti Miklavž!

Rok je dobremu možu narisal sliko in se z njim fotografiral, vsi pa smo se pogostili s piškoti, sokom in mandarinami.

Upamo, da nas bo drugo leto sveti Miklavž spet obiskal, ker smo skupaj preživeli en lep večer.

Mateja Tomšič de Zarate

skupnost Barka