I consider myself so lucky to be surrounded by some of the best brains in the world living close to Cambridge. As well as those from the past, who left an outstanding legacy, like former Cambridge scholar Charles Darwin.

I wonder if he realised as a student enjoying Cambridge life to the full, hunting, collecting natural history specimens – especially beetles – and, with a group of like minds, forming the “Glutton Club”, a dining club devoted to eating “birds and beasts which were before unknown to human palate”, that his fame would live on two centuries later.

Some of the brilliant brains of today have joined forces to mark Darwin’s remarkable achievements by staging an amazing festival next year to commemorate the bicentenary of Darwin’s birth. More than 100 speakers have been booked, including Sir Richard Attenborough and Richard Dawkins. An extensive programme of events has already been planned.

I was invited to join a group of academics and business people last night to discuss promoting the festival, planned for July 5-10 July 2009, and how we could help boost sponsorship.

I am a big fan of the impressive Darwin Collection at the Natural History Museum, and have joined their behind the scenes tour.  So I am naturally thrilled to have the opportunity to learn even more about Dawrin.

He was a prolific letter writer, he wrote 15,000 – only half of which have been published. Who knows what wonders the remainder will reveal once they have been transcribed. How many people today have written anything close to that number?

High ranking speakers last night included Lord Rees of Ludow, President of the Royal Society and also Master of Trinity College, and Professor of Cosmology and Astrophysics at Cambridge. He is also the Astronomer Royal, a very distinguished man and a very gifted speaker. He spoke warmly, enthusiastically and amusingly about Darwin, explaining the reasons why he believed was a much better fellow than Newton, who he described as "vain and vindictive". I could have listened to him speak all evening.

I’m giving you plenty of notice to book the Darwin 2009 Festival in your diary. I’ve already pencilled in the opening reception on July 5 at the stunning Cambridge University Botanic Gardens. I’m thinking these events might be of special interest to Maalie and Quasar 9. I would hate you to miss out on such an extraordinary week.

Full credit must go to Prof John Parker, Director of the Botanic Gardens who started gathering together his brain busting team to plan the festival back in 2001.