Manchester Literature Festival: the programme
The tenth year of Manchester Literature Festival is its biggest yet, and covers everything from comic book art to psychogeography, postcapitalism to poetry
Manchester Literature Festival has published details of its biggest ever programme, marking the tenth anniversary of the annual event.
Its now familiar combination of big name writers and rising stars sees Margaret Atwood, Jeanette Winterson, Sarah Hall and Antony Horowitz rub shoulders with Granta Best of Young British Novelists awardee Ned Beauman, surreal short story writer Adam Marek and emerging fiction writers taking part in the annual Portico Prize.
The yearly Manchester Sermon fixture, which allows a speaker to reflect on an ethical issue of their choice and has previously been given by writers including Ali Smith, Audrey Niffenegger and Lionel Shriver, will this year be delivered by Turkish writer Elif Shafak. Other new commissions include Beauman, author of Boxer, Beetle and Glow, responding to artist Matthew Darbyshire's exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery, An Exhibition for Modern Living (which opens 25 Sep); Chocolat author Joanne Harris presenting her 'writer's manifesto' as part of the National Conversation discussion series, and a co-commission with Manchester Jazz Festival, An Ape's Progress, in which musicians Iain Ballamy, Matthew Sweeney, Dave McKean & The Pepper Street Orchestra will conduct a multimedia reinterpretation of Hogarth's A Rake's Progress.
Programme themes include Literature and Landscape, with Guardian writer and environmental activist George Monbiot joining The Wolf Border author Sarah Hall to discuss what we mean by the word 'wild'; Granta presenting What Have We Done?, a coming-together of writers to discuss the theme of its autumn issue, our destruction of the rural and urban environment; and writer and journalist Oliver Morton on the history, science and politics of climate change.
The World Literature strand welcomes, among others, Spain's Jesús Carrasco and Kirmen Uribe; The Book of Tokyo, a reading and discussion of contemporary literature from Japan, and an event presented by Amnesty International bringing together journalist and critic Bidisha with Iranian author Gulwali Passarlay discussing asylum and exile.
A sequence of events under the Literary Reputations banner considers the legacies of several great writers, most notably Saul Bellow, with the author of the recent, much-celebrated biography To Fame and Fortune 1915-1964, Zachary Leader, coming to the International Anthony Burgess Foundation to discuss the book and Bellow's life. Elsewhere, Manchester University professor and author Patricia Duncker, whose most recent novel Sophie and the Sibyl reimagines characters from George Eliot's fiction in 'a blurring of fiction, literary analysis and historical depiction', appears at the Portico Library to explore Eliot's life and work.
Poetry also gets a strong showing in a number of key events. Picador poetry editor Don Paterson reads from his new collection 40 Sonnets and plays his own music in an evening with Rommi Smith, who will be performing from her jazz and blues-inspired poems. The winner of the international, interfaith Manchester Cathedral Poetry Prize will be announced, with readings from the shortlisted poets and judge. The slam poetry competition Commonword reaches its climax in what is sure to be an exciting final, and lauded local press Carcanet showcases four writers from the latest edition of its New Poetries anthology.
The similarly-celebrated Manchester publishing house Comma is represented by David Constantine, who delivers a preview event at HOME on 3 Sep looking at the art of the short story. Frank O'Connor Award-winner Constantine's short story In Another Country provided the basis for Andrew Haigh's new film starring Tom Courtenay and Charlotte Rampling, 45 Years, which receives a screening later the same evening.
There's much more besides, from Paul Mason on his new talking-point book Postcapitalism, to comic book art workshops, the always popular walking tours, and, most interestingly, a collection of speakers from the Manchester Left Writers collective reading in accompaniment to screenings from the North West Film Archive.
We'll be covering the programme in depth over the coming weeks.
For the full programme, plus tickets and news, head to the Manchester Literature Festival website.
Manchester Literature Festival runs 12-25 October 2015