Sir Stephen Fry, the distinguished British actor, writer, director, and well-known Philhellene, recently spoke at the Acropolis Museum in Athens on the occasion of the Greek launch of his latest book “Odyssey” as part of the event “In Conversation with Stephen Fry” held by the Ministry of Tourism and the Greek National Tourist Organisation.
Greek Cultural Tourism
The Greek Minister for Tourism, Olga Kefalogianni, opened the proceedings and was effusive in her praise of the famous writer and actor in his latest book on Homer’s Odyssey:
“This is not just a literary rendition of the Homeric epic, but a modern bridge that connects the past with the present, myth with reality… The Odyssey is a story of search, endurance and return. And we could not find a more fitting metaphor for the Parthenon Sculptures. They have been away from their homeland for two centuries, but their journey of return has not stopped.”
The Minister of Tourism also underlined the timeless importance of Greek culture and its decisive role in shaping the world’s cultural heritage, as with its unsurpassed works of art, philosophy, democracy and mythology it constitutes a “constant beacon of inspiration and knowledge”.
As she pointed out:
“Greece is not just a tourist destination but a place where the past and the present coexist harmoniously. Our cultural heritage is the core of the Greek identity and makes our country unique on the global tourist map.”
Turning to the issue of the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles, Ms Kefalogianni pointed out that the Acropolis Museum is the living symbol of this strategy, offering a comprehensive experience to visitors and strengthening the demand for the return of the iconic sculptures from the British Museum.
She concluded by praising Fry’s passionate intervention:
“The return of the Parthenon Sculptures does not only concern Greece. It is a global issue of cultural justice. Your voice, Sir Stephen, has contributed decisively to strengthening this effort.”
A greeting was also delivered by the general director of the Acropolis Museum, Professor Nikolaos Stampolidis, who provided an overview of how the modern claim of the Parthenon Sculptures began, from 1982 to the present day.
He highlighted important recent developments, such as the permanent return of the Fagan fragment from Palermo in June 2022 and the return of three Parthenon fragments from the Vatican Museum in March 2023. Also significant was the admission by the representative of Turkey at the UNESCO intergovernmental conference in May 2024, that no firman (or Sultan’s permission) for the removal of the sculptures by Lord Elgin’s men at the turn of the nineteenth century has ever been found in the Ottoman archives, which is not only exceptional in itself but undermines arguments that Elgin acted lawfully in the forced removal of the sculptural fragments from the Acropolis.
Professor Stampolidis also emphasised the symbolic significance of the Parthenon frieze, not just as an artwork but as a representation of the ideals of Athenian democracy and humanistic values, adding to the calls for the reunification of the sculptures as a just cause.
A Personal Odyssey
The stage was then set for Sir Stephen Fry to reiterate his position on the return of the Parthenon Sculptures to Greece.
The well-known Philhellene started by expressing by expressing his love for Britain, the “country of Shakespeare, Dickens and the Beatles”, but also his shame for the ongoing injustice:
“We all understand that the Sculptures belong here and must return to Greece. And we should do this so that we can be proud of something. We have the opportunity to return these priceless Sculptures to the place where they belong, to this wonderful Museum, to their homeland. And then there will be a smile of global scope. And then the journey will be complete. Many of us in Britain believe that this should be done.”
He added, in a reference to ongoing negotiations between the Greek Government and the British Museum:
“The wheel of fortune has turned. Greece’s time has come and I think that the current political leadership would not oppose the return of the Sculptures.”
Sir Stephen acknowledged that any final agreement would need to be grounded in the language of collaboration and cultural partnership, as opposed to using the word “loan” which would be offensive to Greeks because it would presuppose an acknowledgment of the museum’s purported legal ownership of the sculptures.
He is also a member of the private initiative “Parthenon Project”, a global movement advocating for the restitution of the sculptures which has been actively promoting a mutually beneficial “win-win” solution through reciprocal exchanges. Fry is a close personal friend of the initiative’s founder, businessman Yannis Lefas, who was also present at the event together with other members of his family.
The British Museum will benefit from exhibitions of Greek antiquities. According to Fry, the British Museum will also have the opportunity with special technology to recreate the Parthenon experience with exact copies of the sculpture together with the real colours that the sculptures had in antiquity.
As for the argument about the risk of emptying the British Museum if the Parthenon Sculptures are returned, Sir Stephen appealed to the logic which the ancient Greeks such as Aristotle gave the world, declaring that the so-called cultural slippery slope argument is a fallacy:
“There is no risk of emptying such an important museum, like the British Museum, with thousands of exhibits. There is no logic in this, it is a matter of deciding what and why they will be returned.”
The Legacy of Christopher Hitchens
Sir Stephen Fry also declared that in addition to his lifelong love for Greek culture, it was his great friendship with the acclaimed journalist and author Christopher Hitchens, a staunch supporter of the reunification of the Parthenon Marbles and a good friend of the late Melina Mercouri, who inspired him to write a book in support of the case for reunification.
Hitchens in “The Lovely Stones”, a piece he wrote for Vanity Fair in 2009 on visiting the newly completed Acropolis Museum in Athens, recalled that the great classicist A. W. Lawrence once remarked that the Parthenon is “the one building in the world which may be assessed as absolutely right.”
Hitchens was overwhelmed by what he saw, observing that the new museum “creates a natural thirst to see the actual re-assembly completed” so that “one day, surely, there will be an agreement to do the right thing by the world’s most ‘right’ structure”.
Shortly before Hitchens died in 2011, he called Stephen Fry and asked him to continue in his footsteps:
‘Steven, I know you believe in the repatriation of the Sculptures, I want this to be my legacy and for you to continue it when I die. I want you to continue it.'”
Fry immediately said yes and as he explained to his audience:
“Putting aside that it is natural justice, my love for Greece as a reader and lover of the mythology, history, philosophy and literature of your country, there is also my personal friendship with Christopher that encourages me and fills me with the passion to do it.”
In December 2011, shortly after Hitchens’ death, Stephen Fry actually published what he termed a “modest proposal” for the return of the sculptures from the British Museum to redress a great wrong and to express solidarity with, affection for, and belief in Greece and the ideals it gave us.
Describing it also as a remarkable opportunity to appease the “dead spirit of the great Christopher Hitchens”, Fry reminded his audience that Hitchens’ own self-professed philhellenism stemmed as much from the great gift Greek civilisation had given him and has given all of us, that is, the confidence to doubt, to reason and openly to question; to know how little we know; to be curious about ourselves.
Fry concluded: “It’s time we lost our marbles”
The Hitchens legacy, carried on so nobly by Sir Stephen Fry, and supported by the Parthenon Project and many other activists around the world, is now hopefully close to being honoured.
George Vardas is the Arts and Culture Editor and is also the co-Vice President of the Australian Parthenon Association which is active in the campaign for the reunification of the Parthenon Sculptures. Images are courtesy of the Greek National Tourist Organisation and Nikos Raizis (CNN).