In the 1980s, Tomáš Vrba was active in samizdat where, for a time, he co-operated with Václav Havel and his team. Alice Hyrmanová McElveen lived in exile in England and, among other things, translated prohibited Czech authors whose texts had been smuggled abroad. Their most recent translations include, respectively: Madeleine Albright’s memoir Prague Winter (as Pražská zima, 2018), and Sara Baume’s novel Spill Simmer Falter Wither (as Jasno lepo podstín zhyna, 2016).

The discussion on the role translators played in preserving cultural treasures and maintaining the continuity of national literatures was moderated by Ms Jana Fischerova from the Trinity College Dublin. The seminar was accompanied by a photographic exhibition about the Velvet Revolution.