Sunday Lecture: Oh! Scientology! Church Of Fear

John Sweeney recounts his personal experiences and discoveries while investigating the Church of Scientology.; Why can disconnecting grannies from grandsons be good? Who is Lord Xenu? Which MP says ‘Scientology is not a cult?’ What kind of Church hires private eyes?; Tom Cruise and John Travolta say the Church of Scientology is a force for good. Others disagree. John Sweeney investigated the Church for more than half a decade. During that time he was intimidated spied on and followed and the results were spectacular: Sweeney lost his temper with the Church’s spokesman on camera and his infamous ‘exploding tomato’ clip was seen by millions around the world. Sweeney tells the full story of his experiences for the first time and paints a devastating picture of this strange organisation from former Scientologists who tell heartbreaking stories of families torn apart and lives ruined to its current followers who say it is the solution to many of mankind’s problems. This is the real story of the Church by the reporter who was brave enough to take it on.; John Sweeney is an award-winning journalist and author currently working as an investigative journalist for the BBC’s Panorama series. His Panorama investigation into Scientology “Scientology and Me” caused a stir after Sweeney lost his temper with Scientologists during the investigation and the footage was leaked online before the BBC programme aired.; 11.00 £3 on the door/free to members Free Tea & Coffee will be available.; Copies of John’s book The Church of Fear: Inside The Weird World of Scientology will be available for purchase at this lecture.