Memorial Evening returns in 2027 with Susie Dent as guest speaker

23 October 2026

The Len Pick Memorial Evening returns on Wednesday, 27th January 2027, with Susie Dent MBE announced as the guest speaker.

The Len Pick Trust is also pleased to announce that, for the first time, the event will be held at The Len Pick Hall at Bourne Grammar School. The school’s hall has recently undergone a major refurbishment project thanks to a grant from the Trust, and the Memorial Evening will be fantastic occasion to showcase the facility.

Susie Dent is a writer and broadcaster on language. In 2022 she celebrated 30 years as a co-presenter and the resident word expert on C4’s Countdown, and also appears on the show’s comedy sister 8 out of 10 Cats does Countdown. Susie comments regularly on TV and radio on words in the news. She has contributed to discussions on Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour, Word of Mouth, Saturday Live, More or Less, Today, and on Radio 5 Live’s Breakfast and Drive programmes. She has made guest appearances on many TV programmes including BBC Breakfast, Newsnight, This Morning, Test the Nation, Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, Not Going Out, and The One Show. Most recently she has been co-hosting alongside Alan Carr on C4’s hit show Secret Genius.

Susie answers notes and queries about words and phrases in weekly columns in the Radio Times, The Week Junior, the I newspaper, and Why Now. She has written for the Independent on Sunday, the Telegraph, and the Times, and is the author of several books, including her latest novel, Death Writ Large, releasing in August 2026.

She is a spokesperson for Oxford University Press, and has been a judge on the Costa Book Awards and on the Academy Excellence Awards. Susie regularly delivers key-note speeches to both small companies and major corporations on language and communication.

Susie lives in Oxford where she has developed a passion for cycling – Lycra or not, she is never without her little black book for jotting down any new words picked up in the wild.

The Len Pick Memorial Evening is an annual event, held to remember Len Pick’s life and his continuing contribution to the town of Bourne through the work of the Len Pick Trust. In January 2026, The Reverend Kate Bottley was the event’s guest speaker, and previous guest speakers have included Amar Latif, Amanda Owen, Adam Henson, Mandy Hickson and Bill Turnbull.

Tickets go on sale on Monday, 9th November 2026 at 9am, and will be available online at www.lenpicktrust.org.uk.