Author Nathalie Olah curated a series of talks exploring the figure of Dennis Potter and his legacy, with Holly Pester as the first guest.
In this conversation, the two authors explored their encounters with Potter’s work, tracing their connections to his writing and reading several of his major works through a contemporary feminist lens.
This event took place as part of Very High Frequency, an exhibition and public programme examining the legacies of television dramatist Dennis Potter. Frequently lauded as one of Britain’s most pioneering television dramatists, Potter’s Brechtian techniques brokered a meaningful and daring relationship between experimental theatre, modernist literature, and broadcast television.
Although celebrated for his creativity as both a screenwriter and critic, Potter’s work and personal life were not without controversy. Several of his screenplays were censored or accused of blasphemy, while his sometimes flawed depictions and idolisation of women were similarly scrutinised.
Supported by Kvadrat.
Lead Programme Supporters: The Ampersand Foundation, Shane Akeroyd and Sadie Coles HQ, London. Supported by a National Lottery Project Grant from Arts Council England and The Studio Voltaire Council. With additional support from Brian Boylan and Raven Row, London.
Studio Voltaire’s 2025-2026 exhibition programme is supported by Cockayne Grants for the Arts.
Nathalie Olah’s books include Bad Taste (Dialogue Books, 2023) an exploration of the intersection between consumerism, class, desire and power; Sarah Lucas: Happy Gas (Tate Publishing, 2023) and Steal as much as you can (Repeater Books, 2019). Her writing has been published widely in periodicals including ArtReview, The Guardian, Tribune, Jacobin and The Times Literary Supplement.
Holly Pester is a poet and writer. She has worked in sound art and performance, with original dramatic work on BBC Radio 4, and collaborations with Serpentine Galleries, Women’s Art Library, and Welcome Collection. Her poetry has been published extensively, appearing in Poetry Review, The White Review, Poetry London. Her fiction has been published in Granta and anthologised in Protest (Comma Press, 2018). Comic Timing, her Forward Prize-nominated first full collection of poetry, was published by Granta, 2021. Her first novel, The Lodgers, was published with Granta in February 2024.
Credit Dor Even Chen
