Fatima Manji

We are delighted to announce an event with award-winning broadcaster Fatima Manji this Autumn in Edinburgh to celebrate the publication of Fatima’s new book Hidden Heritage. Throughout Britain’s galleries and museums, civic buildings and stately homes, relics can be found that point to a more complex national history than is commonly remembered. These objects, lost, concealed or simply overlooked, expose the diversity of pre-twentieth-century Britain and the misconceptions around modern immigration narratives.

Why was there a Turkish mosque adorning Britain’s most famous botanic garden in in the eighteenth century? And more importantly, why is it no longer there? How did one of the great symbols of an Indian king’s power, a pair of Persian-inscribed cannon, end up in rural Wales? And who is the Moroccan man that stole British hearts depicted in a long forgotten portrait hanging in a west London stately home?

Hidden Heritage powerfully re-contextualises the relationship between Britain and the people and societies of the Orient. In her journey across Britain exploring cultural landmarks, Fatima searches for a richer and more honest story of a nation struggling with identity and the legacy of empire.