 It is organised by Bristol Creative Projects (BCP – formerly the Bristol Cultural Development Partnership), Arts Council England, Bristol City Council, and GWE BusinessWest, a private sector organisation promoting economic development in the area, and also works closely with universities in the area and other agencies.The Director of the Festival is Andrew Kelly, who was appointed Director of the Bristol Cultural Development Partnership in 1993.The first festival, held 16–21 May 2005, included speakers Paul Ormerod, A. C. Grayling, Julia Neuberger, Joanna Bourke, John N. Gray, Colin Tudge, Marek Kohn, Jack Cohen, Ian Stewart, John Carey, John Mortimer, Francis Spufford, Deyan Sudjic, Nick Hornby, Julian Baggini, Claudia Hammond, Dick King-Smith, Roger McGough, Brian Patten, David Crystal, Ben Crystal, and Pat Kane Kane – formerly a musician in the band Hue and Cry – was appointed as the UK's first "thinker in residence", with a remit to be "a 'constructive heckler' – identifying broad themes that emerge from the discussions, making connections between realms of knowledge ... being a 'contrarian catalyst'".