Raworths Salon North: November - The Crown Hotel

Get ready for a night of curiosity, creativity, and unexpected connections. Raworths Salon North brings the world’s most fascinating ideas in arts, science, and psychology into an intimate cabaret style setting right here in Harrogate.

We’re delighted to welcome Dr Daisy Dixon, a prize winning philosopher and Assistant Professor at Cardiff University, whose work explores the philosophy of art and the uneasy edge where aesthetics meets ethics. From immoral and dangerous art to oppressive monuments and aesthetic protest, she asks how art can challenge us, unsettle us, and sometimes even cause harm.

Joining her is Professor Ben Alderson-Day of Durham University, a leading voice in psychology and the science of perception. In his work, he explores one of the most intriguing human experiences: the unsettling sense of a presence when we are alone. From hallucinations and sleep paralysis to dementia and Parkinson’s, he examines how the brain generates the feeling that someone or something is there, and what that reveals about consciousness, imagination, and reality.

Completing the line up is Dr Campbell Price, who will take the Salon audience on a journey through ancient Egypt, from mummies and tombs to gods and golden treasures. He brings to life one of the world’s most fascinating civilisations, revealing its people, beliefs, and enduring legacy in vivid detail.

Each talk runs for 30 minutes including Q and A, with intervals to grab a drink, browse books from our incredible local bookseller Imagined Things, or simply soak up the buzzing atmosphere.

With a drink in hand and ideas in the air, it’s an evening to discover something unexpected, meet interesting people, and leave with your head buzzing long after the lights go down.

Hosted by producer and presenter Natasha Knight, Raworths Salon North is a celebration of bold thinking, brilliant storytelling, and the thrill of discovering ideas that stick with you.

Voted one of GQ magazine’s “Top 100 Things to Do in the World.”