The Philippine Embassy hosted the launch of the Noli Me Tangere audiobook in London last October 21 as part of the week-long celebration of the Philippine-British Friendship Day, which was on October 20.
Produced and launched by Guerrero Publishing, the audiobook of Dr. Jose Rizal’s Noli has been made available using modern audio technology. Mr. David Guerrero, the publisher of the Noli audiobook, introduced this pioneering project in London to allow a wider audience to know more about the Philippine national hero and the importance of his novel.
The English language Noli audiobook is a product of collaboration between Guerrero Publishing and British actor Richard E. Grant who narrated the popular novel. The new audio record is based on the translation by Leon Ma. Guerrero, who served as the first Philippine Ambassador to the United Kingdom.
In his speech, Ambassador Enrique A. Manalo congratulated the publisher on the success of the audiobook.
“I hope that this project will inspire more initiatives to enhance Philippine-British cooperation in various fields”, remarked Ambassador Manalo.
He also noted the strong bilateral cooperation between the Philippines and United Kingdom in fostering a more robust political, economic and cultural relationship. He underlined various manifestations, including the growing cultural and people-to-people exchanges between Filipino and British communities and the British Government’s support for Philippine efforts to resolve the South China Sea maritime dispute through peaceful means and the rule of law, among others.
The Philippine-British Friendship Day is celebrated on the 20th of October by virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 381. Formal diplomatic relations were established between the Philippines and the UK on 4 July 1946.