4 October 2022

On 30 September, current Abingdon Classicists, 20 OA Classicists and 3 former members of the Classics department, came together to hear a lecture by Dr Andrew Sillett of St Hilda’s, Oxford, and to enjoy supper together afterwards. Dr Sillett’s talk on how Cicero used humour to undermine Julius Caesar’s dictatorship was particularly well-received for his engaging descriptions of some of the more intellectual Classical authors like Quintillian and Macrobius, and for his great reveal of the funniest joke of the late Roman Republican period (by Cicero, who we learned was, in fact, a hilarious wit!). The ancient use of humour against a tyrant was brought into modern times, as Dr Sillett gave examples of comedy used currently in Russia and how this was posing a dilemma for Putin. Rarely has there been so much laughter during a lecture on the ancient world! The dinner afterwards provided OAs with the opportunity to catch-up both with each other and with staff, and to offer their pearls of wisdom to current Sixth Formers. It was also a chance to see four current or former Heads of Classics together (Munna Mitra, Jenny Fishpool, Chris Burnand and Hugh Price), with Mr Jenkins kindly on hand to take photos.

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