Bradford Literature Festival returns as hybrid event with Moran, Wilson and Rosen

The Bradford Literature Festival will return from 25th June to 4th July with a mix of live and free online events including appearances from Caitlin Moran, A A Dhand, Jacqueline Wilson and Michael Rosen.

There will also be festival appearances from Abdal Hakim Murad, Rosen Alison Weir, Tez Ilyas, Linton Kwesi Johnson and former Great Britain rugby league captain Ellery Hanley. The festival will also have a focus on local authors includes Dhand, Anita Rani, Saima Mir, Aamnah Rahman and Jewish community leader Rudi Leavor, aged 95.

Altogether there will be more than 220 speakers in more than 100 sessions for the seventh edition of the festival, celebrating the written and spoken word and showcasing the intimate relationship between words and other art forms such as theatre, music and film. Half of the events will be held in person, using a limited number of venues in the city centre as well as a range of outdoor locations, with the rest of the programme free online.

Special events will also be created in partnership with the Royal Society for Literature, Simon and Schuster and the Women’s Prize for Fiction while a new project with the British Council, "From Keighley to Karachi", will see 10 female arts producers from the UK and Pakistan begin a cultural exchange. To mark five years since the murder of local MP Jo Cox, a panel discussion will reflect on her loss.

Tickets for live events are free to anyone on benefits or living in social housing, refugees and asylum seekers, or anyone caring for a disabled audience member. Tickets are also discounted for students and senior citizens.

Syima Aslam, director of the festival, which launched in 2014, said: “After an entirely digital edition in 2020, we’re incredibly excited to bring Bradford Literature Festival back into some of the physical spaces for which it was conceived. We owe a great deal of thanks to the Culture Recovery Fund, which has made this summer’s festival possible.

“The past year has caused a great deal of reflection about continuing to ensure our work is accessible, and for this edition of the festival half of our events will be free online. We are also increasing our efforts to ensure that those who are not engaged digitally do not miss out, with special community events including outdoor family activities in four of Bradford’s parks.”

Tickets go on sale from 1st June. Visit the festival website for further information.