When Diana Darke bought and restored a house in a mixed Sunni/Shi’a neighbourhood of the walled old city of Damascus she became deeply embedded in all levels of Syrian society. Forced to leave her home when the revolution began she has returned five times since.My House in Damascus is her account, which elegantly contrasts a real-estate dream with Syria’s ongoing violent reality and which the BBC’s Lyse Doucet describes as a love-letter to Syria. This promises to be a moving event and an insight into Syria behind the daily headlines. Chaired by Julia Rampen, The Staggers Editor, New Statesman.

With thanks to Baillie Gifford