Scarborough's Indiana Jones - Prof Joann Fletcher - opens town's book festival

Scarborough Egyptologist Professor Joann Fletcher got Books by the Beach off to a fascination start.
Professor Joann FletcherProfessor Joann Fletcher
Professor Joann Fletcher

The professor gave her talk Scrolls in the Sand: the Egyptians Origins of Writing at Scarborough Library.

The archaeologist Professor Joann Fletcher is our very own Indiana Jones – substitute her trademark black outfits and red hair for whip and fedora – sharing her passion for and secrets of the ancient world to an enthralled audience.

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FULL Books by the Beach programme hereAny notion that the origins of writing would be as dry as the Egyptian sands Fletcher loves so much were quickly dispelled as – with slides of the Sea Life Centre and the Pyramids they resemble – she transported us to the shores of North Sea to the banks of the Nile.

This was a history lesson at its best – informing, down-to-earth, funny and totally absorbing as the professor conjured up every day life of the Pharaohs and their subjects.

Showing us examples carved in stone or written on papyrus – we covered medicine, maths, physics, curses, love stories and laundry lists.

Bradford-born Fletcher has lived in Scarborough for more than 20 years and has helped put us on the map with her TV programmes including the award-winning Mummifying Alan.

Her style is intelligent, engaging and inspiring.

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