London Philosophy Collective

Red Schuhart is a stalker, one of those young rebels who are compelled, in spite of extreme danger, to venture illegally into the Zone to collect the mysterious artifacts that the alien visitors left scattered around. His life is dominated by the place and the thriving black market in the alien products. But when he and his friend Kirill go into the Zone together to pick up a “full empty,” something goes wrong. And the news he gets from his girlfriend upon his return makes it inevitable that he’ll keep going back to the Zone, again and again, until he finds the answer to all his problems.

Available from all good libraries and book shops.

You don't have to have read it to join us - but it'll probably help.

Philosophy in the Park is a philosophical discussion group. Open to all. No previous philosophical experience necessary.

We will meet at the Baroness Burdett Coutts Drinking Fountain in Victoria Park (East Park). It is marked down as "13" on the official maps found in the park.

Here's how it works:

• At the start of each hour vote on which questions to discuss. You can vote for more than one question if you'd like. The questions with the most votes are the questions we discuss.
• We then break up into groups and each group does a different question. The question is just a starting point and it's cool if you go on tangents and up end talking about different things. You're welcome to join in and participate or if you'd prefer you're welcome to sit back and enjoy the conversation.

After an hour we all come back together, take a quick break and then repeat all over again. So in 3 hours we go around 3 times.

The aim is to have fun, meet new people, generate interesting and thought-provoking conversations, have your horizons expanded, challenge your preconceptions and who knows - you might even learn something?

In order to make the conversations as fun, interesting and productive for everyone as possible please follow these simple guidelines:

1. Keep it Philosophical
   (No Science, no History, no Evolutionary Psychology, no contestable facts, personal anecdotes etc).
2. Think for Yourself
   (No phones, no looking up definitions, no name dropping Philosophers / books you've read).
3. Tangents are Cool
   (Don't worry too much if the subject drifts and you don't answer the question).
4. Keep it Succinct
   (Like this).
5. Be Excellent to Each Other
   (But of course).

Philosophy is about conceptual analysis. It's thinking about thinking. It's not about empiricism or the real world. It's about abstractions, concepts and ideas.

To terms of the right attitude: It's not about debating and trying to win - it's about listening to people and working collaboratively to increase our collective understanding.

No homework or prior knowledge or reading is necessary - simply come and enjoy the discussions.

After the event finishes most people stay. A bunch of us will go to the local supermarket for drinks and snacks. You are very welcome to join us.

If you would like to submit a question please join the Whatsapp group. Question submissions take place on the Thursday before the meeting.

We hope to see you there.

Nice one.

...

The Substance is a 2024 body horror film written and directed by Coralie Fargeat. It follows a fading celebrity, Elisabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore), who, after being fired by her producer (Dennis Quaid) due to her age, uses a black market drug that creates a younger version of herself (Margaret Qualley) with unexpected side effects. The film is noted for its satirical elements and grotesque, hyperrealistic imagery. The Substance premiered on May 19, 2024, at the 77th Cannes Film Festival main competition, where Fargeat won Best Screenplay. Originally set to be distributed theatrically by Universal Pictures, it was released theatrically in the United Kingdom and the United States by Mubi on September 20, 2024, and in France by Metropolitan Filmexport on November 6, 2024. It is Mubi's highest-grossing film, grossing $77–82 million at the box office against an $18 million production budget. It received positive reviews and won Best Makeup and Hairstyling at the 97th Academy Awards, along with numerous other accolades. Moore's performance won her a Golden Globe Award, Critics' Choice Award, and Screen Actors Guild Award, and a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress.

The All Out of Bubblegum Film Club is like a book club for films. Make sure you watch the film before you attend and then come and join in with the conversation. Please note we will not be showing the film at the meeting.

The Skin I Live In (Spanish: La piel que habito) is a 2011 Spanish psychological thriller film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar, starring Antonio Banderas, Elena Anaya, Marisa Paredes, Jan Cornet and Roberto Álamo. It is based on Thierry Jonquet's 1984 novel Mygale, first published in French and then in English under the title Tarantula. Almodóvar has described the film as "a horror story without screams or frights". The film was the first collaboration in 21 years between Almodóvar and Banderas since Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! (1990). It premiered in May 2011 in competition at the 64th Cannes Film Festival, and won Best Film Not in the English Language at the 65th BAFTA Awards. It was also nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film and 16 Goya Awards.

The All Out of Bubblegum Film Club is like a book club for films. Make sure you watch the film before you attend and then come and join in with the conversation. Please note we will not be showing the film at the meeting.