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He's one of Britain’s most respected political journalists and a much-loved son of Macclesfield.
So when it was announced that Nick Robinson would be appearing at two Barnaby festival events, tickets sold out quickly.
But worry not, the Express this week gives you the chance to attend these fantastic debates for free.
We have two pairs of tickets to give away for both the Space for Debate with Nick Robinson event at the King Edward Street Chapel on Friday, June 17 and the In Conversation’ event at St Michael’s Church the following day when he will tackle the big issues with left-wing columnist Owen Jones.
It is the first time that Robinson and Jones will take to the stage together in what promises to be a witty and insightful discussion about influences, impartiality and political life – followed by a question and answer session.
Macclesfield-born Robinson was political editor of both ITV and the BBC and is now a presenter of BBC Radio 4’s flagship news programme Today.
He was a founder member of Macclesfield Young Conservatives and went on to chair the national organisation before becoming a journalist.
Owen Jones, who grew up in the neighbouring borough of Stockport and describes himself as a ‘fourth generation socialist’ whose parents were members of the Militant Tendency.
He is a columnist for the Guardian, author of Chavs: The Demonisation of the Working Class and appears regularly on BBC’s Newsnight and Question Time.
Nick Robinson has a deep personal connection to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme which he joined earlier this year.
He follows in the footsteps of his mentor, the late Brian Redhead, renowned for his regular on-air championing of Macclesfield. They became close after Robinson survived a car accident in which two of his friends, including Redhead’s son Will, died.
The audience at this event at St Michael’s Church, Macclesfield can expect feisty journalistic debate.
There is mutual respect, but in 2014 Jones dismissed the Government claim of ‘leftwing bias’ at the BBC and accused it of being ‘stacked full of right wingers’. Last year, Robinson – no stranger to controversy over his reporting – expressed concern about the tone of some BBC coverage of Jeremy Corbyn’s election to Labour Party leader.
At the Space event, Robinson will explore the contemporary debate around free speech.
Nick Robinson argues that the concept of a ‘safe space’ – creating a protective cocoon to avoid causing offence – is itself a threat to open and intellectual debate. Followed by a short question and answer session.
- To enter simply answer the following question:
Which group was Nick Robinson a founder member of?
a. Macclesfield Militant Tendency
b. Macclesfield Young Conservatives
c. Macclesfield Monster Raving Looney Party
We have two pairs of tickets for the Space event and two pairs of tickets for the In Conversation event to give away.
Send you entries to win tickets for the Space event to: Space for Debate with Nick Robinson, Macclesfield Express, Mitchell Henry House, Chadderton OL9 8EF.
Entries for the other competition should be sent to: In Conversation with Nick Robinson, Macclesfield Express, Mitchell Henry House, Chadderton OL98EF. All entries must be received by June 13 and must include your name address and a daytime telephone number.
Winners will be contacted before June 15.
Standard terms and conditions apply.
Visit http://www.macclesfield-express.co.uk/rules/ for more details.
