The programme of events at Charleston’s literary festival this year is varied and exciting, and the second event didn’t disappoint.

Legendary Jon Snow is a well-loved Channel 4 News reporter whose intelligent delivery and calm wit have made him popular across the country. Ahdaf Soueif is an Booker Prize finalist, an Egyptian novelist and an activist who bravely placed herself in the midst of the Egyptian revolution in 2011 to report for The Guardian. Her novel Cairo: Our City, Our Revolution tells her narrative of the disturbing and thrilling time she spent in the city as Hosni Mubarak's regime was overthrown.

Although born in Egypt, Soueif was educated in England and normally writes in English, though with a style that's said to be influenced by the Arabic lingual flow. She's a passionate writer and this was evident as she discussed her home country and how it is changing. Soueif comes from a family of activists and is devoted to promoting social change for the benefit of Egypt. The talk focused on Soueif’s novel and experiences, but Snow was also in the country at the time of the revolution and his anecdotes were entertaining and enlightening.

Although this talk was hosted by Charleston Festival, few of the topics discussed were literary. Instead, the speakers focused on the experience of living through the revolution in Egypt and the social, cultural, political and economic impact it has had on the country. At the end of the discussion the audience had the opportunity to ask questions and only one was about Soueif's writing, which is extremely unusual for a literary event.