Kevin Spacey to deliver MacTaggart lecture at Edinburgh International Television Festival
It has been revealed today that actor Kevin Spacey will deliver the annual MacTaggart lecture at the 2013 Guardian’s Edinburgh International Television Festival.
The lecture, which has previously been delivered by names such as Elisabeth Murdoch, Eric Schmidt and Mark Thompson, will be hosted by Spacey in the year in which he executive produced and starred in the Netflix original drama series House of Cards, which was co-produced by his production company Trigger Street.
He said: “As a newcomer to the TV industry I am honoured to be invited to give the MacTaggart Lecture. Clearly this has been an exciting period for me personally but also I believe this is a time of huge opportunity, innovation and creativity for all of us who live to tell stories and engage audiences. I’m excited to share my thoughts and meet players from across the media industry. I’m also an Edinburgh TV Festival virgin so have no idea what I am letting myself in for!”
Elaine Bedell, executive festival chair, added: "I'm thrilled that Kevin Spacey has agreed to deliver this year's MacTaggart - it confirms the Edinburgh International Television Festival as the industry's most important event of the year. Kevin Spacey has been at the centre of cultural life both here in the UK and in the States for many years - and now with House of Cards, he has shown that he is also at the forefront of new ways of delivering television content to audiences. I've no doubt that his speech in Edinburgh will be as blistering, honest, and entertaining as any of his extraordinary performances on screen and stage.”
The festival will take place from Thursday 22 to Saturday 24 August.