Poet Laureate and Festival favourite Simon Armitage returns to Manchester Literature Festival to read from his two new collections, Dwell and New Cemetery.    In Dwell, inspired by the Lost Gardens of Heligan in Cornwall, Armitage brings to life the fragile homes of animals and insects, blurring the lines between human and creature, nature and artifice. […]

Join us for a captivating afternoon with two of Britain’s most original literary talents, Sarah Hall and Daisy Johnson, as they discuss their haunting new books exploring nature, myth, folklore and the female body.  In Helm, Sarah Hall (twice Booker Prize–nominated, winner of the BBC National Short Story Award) conjures a ferocious wind in the […]

MLF are sorry to announce that due to unavoidable personal reasons Jennie Godfrey is now unable to take part in this event. The event will however still be going ahead with Andrev Walden in conversation with Naomi Frisby. See debut authors Jennie Godfrey and Andrev Walden discuss their brilliant, best-selling novels, The List of Suspicious […]

Explore the work of two of Sweden’s most acclaimed contemporary writers, Lisa Ridzén and Agnes Lidbeck, as they discuss their powerful debut novels and the shared themes of care, memory and emotional resilience.   In When the Cranes Fly South (translated by Alice Menzies), international bestseller and Swedish Book of the Year winner Lisa Ridzén offers […]

Enjoy an evening with acclaimed writer and podcaster Alice Vincent as she discusses her new book Hark: How Women Listen - an intimate, lyrical exploration of what women listen to, what their worlds sound like, and how it feels to be expected to listen in a world of noise made by men.   Alice returns to […]

From Paul McCartney to Pierre Henry, Nils Frahm to John Cage, Radiohead to Polish Sonorism, Donna Summer to Stockhausen via 70s Kosmiche. In her fascinating new book, Everything We Do is Music, BBC Radio 3 broadcaster Elizabeth Alker explores how visionary classical composers helped shape the sound of modern pop and rock.   See Elizabeth uncover […]

‘One of Us is intelligent, darkly humorous and brilliantly written. It is a story for our time.’ Stanley Tucci Join award-winning author and broadcaster Elizabeth Day as she discusses her gripping new novel, One of Us. Set against a backdrop of politics and scandal, One of Us follows Martin, once the best friend of rising […]

Author Kimberly shares her journey writing Quiet Storm and how she found her voice. A powerful event about confidence, friendship and being yourself. For Year 7 students.  Presented by Manchester Literature Festival and supported by Library Live.  Free - book tickets by emailing miriam@manchesterliteraturefestival.co.uk

Sayaka Murata, the internationally acclaimed author of Convenience Store Woman and Earthlings, joins us to discuss her provocative and visionary new novel, Vanishing World. In a society where sex, love and parenting have been reimagined, Amane—born from a taboo act of love—struggles to conform. As an adult, she explores anime relationships and sanctioned extra-marital sex, […]