“Thank you so much for your letter.  It would be an honour to speak at your gala dinner on Friday 24^th July.”

Sir Anthony is a far-sighted director of education who pioneered the International Baccalaureate (IB) while headmaster of the leading English private school, Wellington College. He continues as the Founding Director of Wellington College Education. His most recent books chronicle his ambitious walks to remember and honour those killed in the First and Second World War and both, The Path of Peace and The Path of Light offer glimpses of what it means to be civilised. He is also a biographer who has written a book about every modern British Prime Minister since Thatcher.

“The topic is fantastic! I could either focus on general definitions of civilization and offer critical comments on them, or focus around the notion of 'Western Civilization' and what it can mean for us and in the future.”

Varouxacis is author of The West: The History of an Idea and Professor of the History of Political Thought at Queen Mary College London.

“I would of course be completely delighted to speak at Scrutopia this year - always the highlight of the summer. I could contribute a talk on civilisation and continuity. In particular this would look at the role the past necessarily has in shaping the perceived identity of a civilisation. I have been working on the phenomenon of ruins as a feature of the western city and would use this as an illustration."

Mikolaj was a student of Roger Scruton’s and he is currently leading the MA in Philosophy offered by the University of Buckingham. He is a member of the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Warsaw and a fellow of Blackfriars Hall, University of Oxford. He has recently published The Meaning of Mourning: Perspectives on Death, Loss, and Grief.

“I can imagine combining the proposed topics into a single, consistent lecture. (Starting with Jan Sokol´s distinction between civilisation, culture, and religion; continuing with his "Ethics of Heritage" as a counterpart to Scruton's philosophy of culture. Subsequently, cite examples from great works (e.g., Homer) that would serve as examples of the cultivation of emotionality and thinking.”

Ján Hreško is a highly acclaimed scholar who works in Slovakia and the Czech Republic with an academic position in the Faculty of Arts in Košice, and as well as being a lecturer at Professional School of Journalism in Prague. He has also studied in the United Kingdom. He will give a first-hand introduction to the thinker, Jan Sokol, a colleague of Roger Scruton’s from the Underground University. He will combine this with a wide range of illustrated references to civilisation touchstones both past and present. In addition, Jan’s wife, Dr Lucia Hrešková, will participate in Scrutopia.

"I would be very happy to offer a presentation on Civilisation and will probably draw on Scruton’s ‘On Human Nature’ and the philosophical traditions behind the book. I always liked Hannah Arandt's statement 'every generation, Western civilisation is invaded by barbarians - we call them "children.""

Ralph was a former student of Roger’s and regularly lectures at Scrutopia offering a clear introduction to key philosophical ideas. He is

Senior Lecturer in Philosophy, University of Lincoln and his research are as follows:

Classical Statues Were not Painted Horribly / Works in Progress

What it's Like to be a Worm / Asimov Press 

When the Dying Wake / Psychology Today