THIS WEEK - 2-8 NOVEMBER 2013
SATURDAY
Closed book
War Horse author Michael Morpurgo led the charge by 15 writers and academics against changes to GCSE exams in England. Their letter to The Sunday Times warned that many students may no longer study literature.
SUNDAY
Castaway classics
US-based education guru Sir Ken Robinson selected his favourite songs on BBC Radio 4‘s long-running programme Desert Island Discs. And what luxury would he take to console himself? A quad bike with a solar panel.
MONDAY
Fifty-one sleeps till Christmas
Time for a deep breath as schools in England reopened after their half-term break. There was barely time to compare pictures of dodgy Halloween costumes before attention turned to the Christmas holidays.
TUESDAY
Gunpowder, treason and plot
Hot on the heels of the Hindu festival Diwali came Bonfire Night, another excuse to let off fireworks and terrify your pets. At this event, Brits celebrate Guy Fawkes’ failed plot to blow up Parliament in 1605.
WEDNESDAY
Royal procession
The Prince of Wales and his lady wife, the Duchess of Cornwall, began their tour of India and Sri Lanka. A visit to the prestigious Doon School in northern India will be part of the itinerary for the royal pair.
THURSDAY
A woman’s work
Marie Curie, the first woman to win a Nobel prize, was born on this day in 1867. The Polish physicist and chemist is famed for her research into radioactivity, and established the Curie institutes in Paris and Warsaw.
FRIDAY
Stealing the show
The film of multi-award winning novel The Book Thief opens in the US. Australian Markus Zusak’s best-selling book tells the story of a girl’s relationship with her foster parents in Nazi Germany.
NEXT WEEK - 9-15 NOVEMBER 2013
SATURDAY
Bumper packs
It’s a busy day for Rugby Union fans with six matches, starting with Italy v Australia in Rome and ending with France v New Zealand in Paris. The fixtures are part of the autumn internationals series.
SUNDAY
Honouring the fallen
Remembrance Sunday in the UK commemorates service men and women who have lost their lives. The National Service of Remembrance will take place at the Cenotaph in Whitehall, London.
MONDAY
Common ground
During a special Last Post ceremony in Ypres, Belgium, soil from Flanders will be presented to London’s Guards Museum. It will be laid in a First World War memorial garden to mark next year’s centenary.
TUESDAY
Swap shop
The Fulbright Program, for those who want to carry out research in the US, will be just one of the exchange opportunities promoted during International Education Week, which begins in America today.
WEDNESDAY
Circling the red planet
The first spacecraft to orbit another planet swung around Mars on this day in 1971. But the US probe, Mariner 9, arrived during a giant dust storm and scientists had to wait a month for clear pictures of the surface.
THURSDAY
Going in for the skill
Fancy a go at nail art or radio presenting? Then why not visit the Skills Show in Birmingham, England, where you can try different jobs and watch experts compete to be the best in 60 different professions.
FRIDAY
Bring out the baked beans
It is the annual Children In Need charity television marathon in the UK, which last year raised #163;26.7 million through a combination of embarrassing celebrity stunts and tear-jerking films.
