Inaugural lecture of Sarfraz Manzoor, Chancellor (In person attendance)

Join the University of Bedfordshire for an insightful evening on Thursday 16 May 2024 as our Chancellor, Sarfraz Manzoor, presents his inaugural lecture.

It will be 50 years to the day from when Sarfraz Manzoor arrived in Luton’s Bury Park from Pakistan to when he steps up to give his first lecture at the University of Bedfordshire, where he was appointed Chancellor last summer.

At a free-to-attend lecture at the University’s Luton campus – open to the public, as well as staff and students – Sarfraz will talk about his life growing up in the town, illustrated by photos of him and the town. He’ll discuss why he had to leave Luton and why he’s now its biggest fan.

Sign up today by clicking the ‘Register’ button at the top of this page.

You can watch the event either:

· In person at our Luton Campus (Postgraduate Centre, ground floor)

· Online, via a livestream

Agenda:

17:30 – Arrival and registration, tea and coffee

18:00 - Event commences, including audience Q&A session

19:00 – Refreshments and opportunity for meet & greet with Sarfraz

What will the event be about?

Sarfraz – who was born in Pakistan and grew up in Luton – has seen critical acclaim for his writing which has often reflected on identity, belonging and the challenges and opportunities of multiculturalism. He gained international recognition when his memoir 'Greetings from Bury Park’, which described his childhood growing up in Luton in a British Pakistani family, was adapted into the 2019 feature film ‘Blinded by the Light’.

At his inaugural lecture, the Chancellor will share his bitter-sweet recollections of growing up in the town in the 1980s and detail why he’s back and championing Luton.

The town has a “resilience and a don’t-count-the-underdog-out spirit”, Sarfraz said in an interview with the Guardian in 2023. “When I was growing up, I was writing Luton off. Now I feel like it’s the next big thing.”

An exhibition in Wardown Park will also mark 50 years since the Chancellor arrived in Luton. In collaboration with the Culture Trust, ‘Luton in 50 Objects’ is a special exhibition that will show the development of Luton and includes several personal objects contributed by the Chancellor, including his mum’s Singer sewing machine.

He said: “I have been reflecting on the journey of my life and of my home town. It is this story, the story of Luton that I want to tell.”

Biography:

An acclaimed author, broadcaster and screenwriter, Sarfraz was appointed Chancellor of the University of Bedfordshire in 2023, and has seen critical acclaim for his writing which has often reflected on identity, belonging and the challenges and opportunities of multiculturalism.

Sarfraz gained international recognition when his memoir 'Greetings from Bury Park’, which described his childhood growing up in Luton in a British Pakistani family, was adapted into the popular 2019 feature film ‘Blinded by the Light’.

Sarfraz started his career as a broadcaster and journalist, before scripting and presenting documentaries for BBC television and radio. In his most recent book ‘They’, he aims to understand and bridge the antipathy and mistrust between Muslims and non-Muslims, telling us ‘we must leave our silos of certainty and get to know people who are different’.