London Literature Festival at the Southbank Centre

London Literature Festival at the Southbank Centre, 23rd October June to 3rd November.

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The Southbank Centre is proud to present the London Literature Festival 2024, a celebration of the power of spoken and written word to bring audiences together and illuminate the issues of the present. An engine of creativity in the heart of London, the Southbank Centre offers an inclusive, democratic and expressive place to platform the very best in emerging talent and a stage for internationally-acclaimed writers to launch new works.
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From Wednesday 23 October – Sunday 3 November, the seventeenth edition of the London Literature Festival continues its long-standing commitment to remaining open and relevant to all with an unbeatable line-up of international and local voices. Following last year’s inaugural curatorship, this year London Literature Festival welcomes the award-winning London-born rapper Ghetts as co-curator of the festival’s opening weekend. Showcasing the vibrant and collaborative relationship between spoken word and music, the critically-acclaimed artist lends his razor-sharp lyricism, humour and wordplay to two nights of music and poetry at the Southbank Centre.
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Ted Hodgkinson, Head of Literature & Spoken Word at the Southbank Centre, says: “I’m thrilled that award-winning rapper and songwriter Ghetts will be headlining London Literature Festival this year with a series of specially curated events drawing us into his distinctive artistic sensibility and delving into the deep connections between the city’s music and spoken word scenes. From spotlighting the cultural communities on our doorstep, to an incredible array of world renowned voices, the festival celebrates the power of poetry, plurality and dialogue to spark new thinking. In these turbulent times, the Southbank Centre’s London Literature Festival provides an evermore vital space for democratic discussion and we’re proud to offer a fantastic programme to inspire and nourish the next generation of creators and storytellers.”
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Ghetts, co-curator of the London Literature Festival’s opening weekend, says: “It’s an honour to co-curate the opening weekend of London Literature Festival and to explore the links between poetry and music with a night of the best in London’s creative communities. As a writer and lyricist, literature sits at the heart of what I do, so I’m excited to bring together lovers of spoken and written word to celebrate the incredible power of contemporary literature at the Southbank Centre.”
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Amongst a stellar line-up, events include:
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Deborah Levy: Why the Novel Matters
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Thur 24 Oct, 7.45pm, Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall
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The Goldsmiths Prize celebrates fiction that breaks the mould, and in its annual lecture series leading authors their thoughts on the art of the novel. For her talk, Deborah Levy argues that the novel uniquely gives close attention to the ways we negotiate with reality, which is the core of all writing and living. In this personal manifesto on why the novel matters, she contends that it is the form that can most freely unmask the co-existence of immense power and vulnerability in its human protagonists.
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After her lecture, Levy takes part in a conversation with Tom Gatti, executive culture editor at The New Statesman.
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Somali Week: Trailblazing Women Poets
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Fri 25 Oct, 7.45pm, Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall
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‘Does anyone survive to question the essence of being Somali?’ Poet, playwright and filmmaker Yasmin Mohamed Kahin, and star of the Somali poetry diaspora Asha Lul Mohamud Yusuf, reflect on this question and more through poetry and writings, which they share alongside their English translators.
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Visiting the UK for the first time, Yasmin Mohamed Kahin is a breakthrough author whose work is rooted in the social issues of her birthplace, exploring migration, mental health, and the marginalisation of women and young people. This event premieres the first English translations of Kahin’s work by acclaimed writers Maxamed Xasan ‘Alto’ and Anna Selby.
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Asha Lul Mohamud Yusuf, who has lived in the UK for more than 25 years, is a poet known for her mastery of the prestigious gabay form, which is otherwise dominated by male writers.
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She reads alongside her longtime friend and poet-translator Clare Pollard from their collection The Sea-Migrations, named the Sunday Times Poetry Book Of The Year.
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Helen Charman & Marianne Brooker: Maternal Lines
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Sat 26 Oct, 3.30pm, Level 5 Function Room, Green Side, Royal Festival Hall
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Hear from two writers who are intimately concerned with the many ways our lives are political, and the radical possibility inherent in community.
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In Mother State, Helen Charman writes a new political history of motherhood in Britain and Northern Ireland, from Women’s Liberation to austerity, Margaret Thatcher to Kat Slater, following mothers’ fight for an alternative future.
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In Intervals, Marianne Brooker chronicles her own mother’s fight for a peaceful death on her own terms, in her own home. Connecting the most intimate spaces with the most political, the book explores choice, care and creativity under austerity.
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The People’s Favourite Poets
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Sat 26 Oct, 7pm, Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall
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Hosted by Sissay, ambassador for the library’s 70-Poet Challenge, this event brings new voices and established favourites together for an unmissable evening of performance.
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Creative Future Writers’ Awards Showcase
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Sat 26 Oct, 7.30pm, Weston Roof Pavilion, Level 6, Green Side, Royal Festival Hall
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The Creative Future Writers’ Award is a development programme for talented writers from a wealth of backgrounds. It includes the UK’s only national writing competition for all underrepresented writers, alongside workshops online and across the UK.
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This year’s competition invited entries from poets, short story and creative non-fiction writers on the theme of ‘Reveal.’ For the first time in the award’s eleven years, the number of prizewinners has been increased from twelve to fifteen.
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At this event, the winning writers read their work alongside the hosts in a showcase of new and emerging voices.
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Ghetts: Live
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Sat 26 Oct, 8pm, Royal Festival Hall
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Following UK dates at Glastonbury and Cloud X Festival, the award-winning rapper and songwriter performs on the legendary Royal Festival Hall stage as part of London Literature Festival 2024.
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Hear from an artist at the height of his powers, whose acclaimed latest album On Purpose, With Purpose came out earlier this year.
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Creative Future Writers’ Day
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Sun 27 Oct, 11am, Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall
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Whether you’re just starting out as a writer, or have been writing for years, this event is the perfect opportunity to gain inside insight from literary professionals that could help advance your writing career.The day includes short talks from Creative Future and other leading writing development agencies, followed by panel events with Q&As.
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The event also sees a literary fair take over the Queen Elizabeth Hall Foyer, with leading literary organisations and publishers exhibiting their work and welcoming chats with all attending.
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