Jeremy Isaacs on the
Royal Opera House
at Edinburgh International Book Festival
18th August 2000

Tiffany Jenkins

Jeremy Isaacs was director of programmes at Thames Television and founding chief executive at Channel 4, before becoming general director of the Royal Opera House.

He read from Never Mind the Moon, his revelations and experiences of running London's Royal Opera House. Isaacs was great when he spoke about opera and the ballet - showing his vibrant passion for these arts. His was rare amongst present day discussions of culture, in that it really talked about the arts - instead of the usual platitudes of social inclusion and access. Isaacs was a little evasive when pushed on the politicisation of culture by the cultural elites, but he dismissed the elite's obsession with performance indicators and social factors as tosh. Isaacs has a touching faith in the ability of artistic works to fight against these utilitarian times - I am less optimistic.