Tuesday 23 July 2019 Contact: Naomi French naomi.french@southbankcentre.co.uk / 020 7921 0678 Press images HERE Event listings HERE

Southbank Centre’s thirteenth London Literature Festival opens with Poetry International and explores contemporary retellings of fairy tales: 17 - 27 October 2019 Featuring Adonis, Brett Anderson, Raymond Antrobus, Dean Atta, Laura Bates, Jay Bernard, Fatima Bhutto, Jeffrey Boakye, Malika Booker, Jung Chang, Chen Chen, Eoin Colfer, Anthony Daniels, Juno Dawson, Elizabeth Day, Imtiaz Dharker, Louise Doughty, Bernardine Evaristo, Neil Gaiman, Nikki Giovanni, Ayelet Gundar-Goshen, Kiran Millwood Hargrave, Hawad, Linda Boström Knausgård, Kerry Hudson, Daisy Johnson, Ilya Kaminsky, Roula Khalaf, Muhammad Khan, Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, Khaled Mattawa, Armistead Maupin, Heather Morris, Valzhyna Mort, Novelist, Louise O’Neill, Philippe Sands, Elif Shafak, Nikesh Shukla, Lemn Sissay, Patricia Smith, Chimene Suleyman, Rebecca Tamás, Sharlene Teo, Ellah Wakatama Allfrey and more

Lemn Sissay © Hamish Brown, Elizabeth Day © Jenny Smith, Sharlene Teo © fatiimaa, Brett Anderson © Brett Anderson

Southbank Centre’s acclaimed London Literature Festival is back for a thirteenth year offering audiences a packed eleven day programme of exclusive appearances, live readings, newly commissioned performances, talks, debates, poetry, visual displays, workshops, award ceremonies, book launches, family events, music, free activity and more. London Literature Festival once again opens with Poetry International, Southbank Centre’s longest running festival, founded by former poet laureate Ted Hughes in 1967. Taking place across the opening five days (17 - 21 October) and inspired by Hughes’ idea that “poetry is a language in which we can all hope to meet”, Poetry International brings together an array of exciting poets from all over the world to share their work and this year explore the theme

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“poetry as disruption”. From the transformational nature of translation, digital and interdisciplinary poetry to endangered, d/Deaf and performance poetry, poets and spoken word artists discuss and share this dynamic and democratic artform. Running throughout London Literature Festival is Once Upon Our Times, a series of events exploring contemporary retellings of folk and fairy tales from around the world. From Harry Potter and Game of Thrones to The Handmaid’s Tale and Angela Carter’s The Bloody Chamber, celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, folk and fairy tales have a profound influence on contemporary culture. The festival explores and celebrates the global and democratic nature of this storytelling tradition, which often deals with timeless themes, through live readings, discussion, new commissions, children’s events and site design. In a new initiative for this year’s festival Southbank Centre is proud to present the first ever London Literature Festival Writers’ Day in partnership with Creative Future which incorporates a wealth of free short talks, 1:1 Agent Advice sessions, a writers’ exhibition space and networking opportunities aimed at writers from under-represented backgrounds. Alongside this, the festival sees more masterclasses and workshops than ever before. London Literature Festival coincides with Half Term week and once again features a packed programme of literary events and performances for all the family, including a range of daily free events, exploring fairy tales and folklore from different cultures. The week culminates in Young Adult Literature Day, back by popular demand for a fifth year, seeing the best writers of YA fiction present new work. Further highlights include:

● A series of in-conversation events with award-winning writers including Heather Morris, Jung Chang, Fatima Bhutto, Ayelet Gundar-Goshen, Armistead Maupin in conversation with Neil Gaiman, Bernadine Evaristo in conversation with Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi and Elif Shafak in conversation with Louise Doughty

● London exclusive appearances from iconic artists including Star Wars™ actor Anthony Daniels and Suede frontman Brett Anderson who launch new memoirs

● A special one-off dramatic live reading of contemporary retellings of tales from

around the world, including works by Salman Rushdie, Marlon James and Angela Carter and newly commissioned works by Daisy Johnson and Sharlene Teo, performed by actors and musicians

● More than 40 poets taking to the stage across Poetry International for live readings,

performance, discussion and masterclasses including Nikki Giovanni, Lemn Sissay, Helen Seymour, Jay Bernard, Adonis, Khaled Mattawa, Patricia Smith, Chen Chen, Raymond Antrobus, Illya Kaminsky and Lisa Kelly alongside the continuation of Out-Spoken’s year-long residency featuring Malika Booker, Zeina Hashem Beck, Imtiaz Dharker and more

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● Launch of Poems from the Edge of Extinction, featuring contributors to this groundbreaking anthology of poetry written in endangered languages from around the world, including Rohingya, Māori and Assyrian - resulting from the National Poetry Library’s Endangered Poetry Project

● The 28th annual Forward Prizes for Poetry Ceremony, showcasing the 15 poets shortlisted for the 2019 prize with winners announced live on stage

● Broadcaster and novelist Elizabeth Day presenting her latest book How To Fail inspired by her hugely popular podcast

● A broad range of family events and free activity coinciding with half term week

including a brand new take on an old Russian folktale Baba Yaga, a show based on Michael Morpurgo’s I Believe in Unicorns and a London exclusive appearance from the legendary creator of Artemis Fowl Eoin Colfer

● YA Lit Day featuring the best writers of Young Adult Fiction including Louise O’Neill,

Dean Atta, Kiran Millwood Hargrave, Muhammad Khan and Laura Bates

● A new semi-staged performance with music of East West Street, inspired by the international bestseller on Nuremberg and its coming sequel, The Ratline, featuring author Philippe Sands and actress Katja Riemann as narrators

● A series of panels with writers and experts exploring topical issues from new books including contributors to The Good Immigrant USA on identity, language and belonging, Our Women on the Ground on reporting from the Arab world and AlphaZero's Game Changer discussing their experiences with AI and DeepMind

● A new free National Poetry Library exhibition marking Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s

centenary featuring newly commissioned poems from a range of UK poets Southbank Centre’s Head of Literature and Spoken Word, Ted Hodgkinson, said “This year’s London Literature Festival draws inspiration from the democratic power of fairy and folktales to hold up a mirror to our society and bring communities around the world together through stories that unsettle and enchant us. We’re proud to present an international array of contemporary writers and poets breathing new life into these storytelling traditions, in tales that transcend cultures and speak directly to our present times. From Poetry International which delves into the disruptive possibilities of language and YA Lit Day celebrating bold responses to the thorny challenges facing the next generation, to our first ever Writers' Day, we’re excited to inspire audiences and aspiring writers to make their voices heard." Tickets go on sale to Southbank Centre Members on Wednesday 24 July and to the General Public on Thursday 25 July with the exception of Eoin Colfer, Bernardine Evaristo and Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi which go on sale at a later date: www.southbankcentre.co.uk

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Further Programme Information POETRY INTERNATIONAL Poetry International brings together more than 40 poets from around the world to explore “poetry as disruption”. Artists and poets JR Carpenter, Iris Colomb and Nisha Ramayya explore new approaches to writing, visual art and digital technology in a live reading and Q&A hosted by National Poetry Librarian Chris McCabe (L5FR, 20 Oct); Author of Incendiary Art: Poems Patricia Smith, renowned Māori poet Vaughan Rapathana and American Chinese poet Chen Chen read from their recent works exploring present-day racism, immigrant experience and the agencies of English-language proliferation (L5FR, 20 Oct); Brazilian poet Adelaide Ivánova appears alongside poets and translators Rachel Long and Meena Kandasamy to delve into the disruptive and transformational nature of translation (L5FR, 19 Oct); Multi-award winning poets Raymond Antrobus, Ilya Kaminsky and Carcanet debutante Lisa Kelly perform their latest works reflecting on their personal experiences of d/Deafness as well as the wider political and historical context in which d/Deaf communities have been marginalised (PUR, 19 Oct); Heaux Noire who describe themselves as a platform for Black and Brown womxn, share their stories in an evening of poetry and music (PUR, 18 Oct); Kayd’s Somali Week Festival 2019 introduces the best of the new talent from their cohort of Share Your Talent artists who perform their latest work in an evening of live poetry (L5FR, 21 Oct); Voices from Prison showcases written and recorded works as part of Another me, an exhibition of fine art, music, and writing created in prisons, curated by musician Soweto Kinch, produced by Koestler Arts and exhibited at Royal Festival Hall (BR, 24 Oct) and My Name Is My Own confronts issues of power, rights and public political speech, responding to June Jordan’s ‘Poem About My Rights’ from 1983 through a visceral physical performance by black and brown women and non-binary people, conceived by choreographer Temitope Ajose-Cutting and director Jo Tyabji, featuring specially commissioned work from Jay Bernard and scored by composer and sound designer Mwen (CBR, 19 Oct). At the heart of the programme is the launch of Poems from the Edge of Extinction, a groundbreaking anthology of poetry from across the world written in languages which are in decline or in danger of dying out. Resulting from the National Poetry Library’s Endangered Poetry Project, which was launched in 2017 to collect and preserve poems in endangered languages, Southbank Centre celebrates the publication of this collection in a special launch event hosted by anthology editor and National Poetry Librarian Chris McCabe. The event features discussions and live readings from contributing poets and translators to the collection including James Byrne and Shehzar Doja who have collected poetry from the Rohingya camps, Amajagh poet Hawad, Assyrian-Iraqi poet Nineb Lamassu, Belarusian poet Valzhyna Mort, Navajo Nation poet Laureate Laura Tohe and New Zealand poet Vaughan Rapatahana who writes in te reo Māori and English (PUR, 19 Oct). Poetry International also celebrates the 28th annual Forward Prizes for Poetry, with readings from the 15 poets shortlisted for the UK's most coveted poetry awards and the announcement of the winners by jury chair Shahidha Bari and poet Andrew McMillan (QEH, 20 Oct) and the continuation of Out-Spoken’s year-long residency at Southbank

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Centre with a night of live poetry and music featuring celebrated poets Malika Booker, Zeina Hashem Beck and Imtiaz Dharker (PUR, 17 Oct). Multi-award winning US poet and activist Nikki Giovanni takes the stage to discuss the breadth of her work and activism (RFH, 21 Oct); former Southbank Centre poet in residence Lemn Sissay reflects on a childhood in institutional care systems, self-expression and the meaning of home as he launches his new memoir My Name is Why (QEH, 18 Oct); and to mark the 200th anniversary of Goethe’s West-East Divan, acclaimed Syrian poet Adonis and Libyan-US poet Khaled Mattawa explore the interconnectedness of poetry and cultural traditions, drawing on Goethe, Persian poet Hafiz and more (QEH, 20 Oct). To celebrate Beat poet, publisher, painter and activist Lawrence Ferlinghetti’s centenary, Southbank Centre’s National Poetry Library presents A 21st Century Ferlinghetti, a new free exhibition, reflecting on his life and work (NPL, 16 Oct - 17 Nov). National Poetry Library Open Day (NPL, 19 Oct) presents a range of free live readings throughout the day from poets and artists exploring the festival theme whilst additional events include a performance from rapper Novelist (CBR, 18 Oct) and poetry events for children. IN CONVERSATION EVENTS International and UK writers present new works of fiction. In London exclusive events globally bestselling author Heather Morris discusses her writing journey, from The Tattooist of Auschwitz to the brand new sequel Cilka’s Journey (RFH, 22 Oct) and in his first ever UK tour, much-loved author and LGBTQ+ activist Armistead Maupin recounts his favourite stories from his iconic 1970s series of novels Tales of the City that has recently been adapted by Netflix, in conversation with Neil Gaiman (QEH, 17 Oct). Award-winning Israeli novelist Ayelet Gundar-Goshen reflects on power in the age of #MeToo in her latest novel, Liar (L5FR, 18 Oct); world-renowned writers Louise Doughty and Elif Shafak share the stage to discuss their new respective novels, Platform Seven and 10 Minutes 38 Seconds in this Strange World (PUR, 22 Oct); and award-winning Anglo-Nigerian writer Bernardine Evaristo and Ugandan novelist and short story writer Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi are in conversation about their latest respective books, Girl, Woman Other and Manchester Happened (PUR, 20 Oct). The festival’s non-fiction programme sees Pakistani writer Fatima Bhutto discuss how mass culture from the East is taking on Hollywood as she presents her new book New Kings of the World: Dispatches from Bollywood, Dizi, and K-Pop (PUR, 21 Oct); in an event in partnership with Asia House Bagri Foundation Literature Festival, internationally bestselling author Jung Chang presents a major new group biography Big Sister, Little Sister, Red Sister, exploring ‘the best-known modern Chinese fairy tale’ - the story of three sisters from Shanghai, who for most of the 20th century were at the centre of power in China (QEH, 19 Oct); Suede frontman Brett Anderson, in conversation with journalist Miranda Sawyer, discusses his follow up memoir Afternoons with the Blinds Drawn reflecting on the heyday of Suede, the art of performance and persona and his relationship with addiction (QEH, 23 Oct); Star Wars™ actor Anthony Daniels reflects on his time playing one of the most famous droids in cinematic history, as he launches his memoir I am C-3PO: The Inside Story (QEH, 27 Oct);

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and broadcaster and novelist Elizabeth Day presents her latest book How To Fail inspired by her hugely popular podcast with special guest to be announced (QEH, 22 Oct). LIVE READINGS AND PERFORMANCES Following hugely popular live readings of The Odyssey, The Golden Notebook and Things Fall Apart, Southbank Centre presents a one-off dramatic live reading of contemporary retellings of fairy and folk tales from around the world, forming the centrepiece of a series of events exploring this theme. A company of actors and musicians directed by Jack McNamara of New Perspectives perform works by acclaimed authors including a story from Angela Carter’s collection The Bloody Chamber celebrating its 40th anniversary this year, Salman Rushdie’s take on a classic tale from Arabian Nights, Marlon James’ visceral riff on African folklore and newly commissioned stories from Daisy Johnson and Sharlene Teo, drawn from English and Singaporean traditions (QEH, 27 Oct). Also exploring this theme is a spine-chilling fantasy performance-meets-film event which brings to life folklore and tales from Singapore as three actors interact with characters captured on film, featuring excerpts from Nuraliah Norasid's The Gatekeeper, Sharlene Teo's Ponti, Cyril Wong's Let Me Tell You Something About That Night, Thiam Chin's Fox Fire Girl and more (PUR, 25 Oct) Author and lawyer Philippe Sands leads a new semi-staged live performance with music of East West Street: A Song of Good & Evil inspired by his bestselling book on Nuremberg and podcast series The Ratline, on the history of genocide and crimes against humanity, featuring actress Katja Riemann with musicians Laurent Naouri and Guillaume de Chassy and directed by Nina Brazier (QEH, 21 Oct); Comedian and spoken word artist Helen Seymour in a London pre-tour show presents her equally funny and dark solo show that tackles dating, violent intrusive thoughts and what happens when the only representation of your body you can find…is in horror movies (BR, 26 Oct); and King Midas Sound perform their new record Solitude (PUR, 24 Oct). TALKS AND PANEL DISCUSSIONS Nikesh Shukla and Chimene Suleyman give insight into their experience of editing and contributing essays to the US and UK editions of the groundbreaking essay collections The Good Immigrant and share powerful personal stories of living between cultures and languages (QEH, 19 Oct); Board game champions Matthew Sadler, Natasha Regan and Fan Hui talk about their journeys of being the first in their field to take on DeepMind’s AlphaZero, an Artificial Intelligence system that famously beat the existing world-champion chess computer after just a few hours of training (PUR, 26 Oct); Journalists Roula Khalaf, Hind Hassan and Heba Shibani, contributors to a new collection Our Women on the Ground, discuss with collection editor Zahra Hankir their extraordinary careers as Arab and Middle Eastern female journalists reporting from the Arab world (L5FR, 26 Oct); and cultural commentators Jeffrey Boakye and Nels Abbey dissect, satirise and share their thoughts on the landscape of British experience, attitudes and roots (PUR, 26 Oct). Tying in with this year’s festival theme, acclaimed writers Sharlene Teo, Daisy Johnson and Rebecca Tamás are in conversation with writer and broadcaster Dr Octavia Bright on the contemporary relevance and democratic value of fairy tales and share what compels them to draw on fairy and folktales in their fiction and poetry (PUR, 27 Oct); and acclaimed

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nordic authors Linda Boström Knausgård, Vigdis Hjorth and Mazen Maarouf discuss what compels them to capture family secrets and the often thin line between fiction and reality (L5FR, 26 Oct). FAMILY AND CHILDREN’S PROGRAMME Coinciding with half term week, London Literature Festival presents a broad range of family events including a brand new take on an old Russian folktale Baba Yaga coming direct from critically acclaimed seasons at the 2018 Edinburgh International Children’s Festival and 2019 Adelaide Festival (PUR, 22-23 Oct) and Olivier Award nominated Wizard Presents which brings best-selling children’s author Michael Morpurgo’s enchanting tale I Believe in Unicorns to life (QEH, 22-23 Oct). In a London exclusive, global bestselling author of Artemis Fowl Eoin Colfer introduces a blockbusting new spin-off series, The Fowl Twins (QEH, 25 Oct) and space scientist Dr Maggie Aderin-Porock offers an interactive tour through the solar system (PUR, 25 Oct). In addition, daily free activities on Royal Festival Hall’s Clore Ballroom explore fairy tales and folklore from different cultures through storytelling and music including a fairy tale trail. Participatory creative activities include story-inventing, dance workshops and craft sessions with mini residencies from ZooNation: The Kate Prince Company, African Activities and Patchlarks amongst others. YA LITERATURE DAY 2019 sees the fifth year running of a celebration of young adult fiction as part of the London Literature Festival programme. A series of panel discussions touch on the festival’s fairy tale themes as well as issues facing young people explored in YA fiction from bullying to Islamophobia to misogyny. Featured authors include Louise O’Neill with her contemporary, feminist retelling of the Little Mermaid, The Surface Breaks; Dean Atta whose debut YA novel The Black Flamingo looks at a young man coming to terms with his sexuality and developing his drag persona; Kiran Millwood Hargrave with her untold story of the brides of Dracula: The Deathless Girls; acclaimed writer Muhammad Khan, whose new novel Kick the Moon explores social issues on toxic masculinity and peer pressure; and founder of the Everyday Sexism Project and author of the powerful young adult novel The Burning Laura Bates (PUR, 26 Oct). WRITERS’ DAY, WORKSHOPS AND MASTERCLASSES Southbank Centre is excited to present the first ever London Literature Festival Writers’ Day, in partnership with Creative Future, presenting a whole day of bite sized free talks, 1:1 agent advice sessions, opportunities to network and an exhibition space with exhibitors ranging from The Poetry School and Society of Authors to Mslexia and Spread the Word. Creative Future works with under-represented artists and this day is aimed at showcasing initiatives that aim to support the next generation of writers. Hosted by Juno Dawson, speakers for the day include poet Dean Atta and winner of the 2018 SILeeds prize Shereen Tadros as well as an array of experts from organisations including The Good Literary Agency, gal-dem, Dialogue Books, Unbound and more.

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Alongside a series of poetry masterclasses taking place across Poetry International, hosted by poets including Valzhyna Mort, the festival features an expanded series of ‘How to’ workshops on editing, publishing and finding a literary agent with leading experts in their fields including Emma Paterson, Ellah Wakatama Allfrey, Gena-mour Barrett and Kish Widaratna. AWARDS In addition to the Forward Prizes, Southbank Centre is delighted to play host to a number of other literary awards during the festival. Hosted by author Kerry Hudson and poet Anthony Anaxagorou, this year’s Creative Future Writers’ Award showcases the 12 shortlisted writers reflecting on what home means within the rich array of experiences in the UK today (L5FR, 25 Oct). Additionally Southbank Centre is delighted to present Spread the Word’s London Writers Awards showcase for the first time featuring the six winning London writers of the 2018 award. And Southbank Centre also welcomes back London’s award-winning LGBTQ+ literary salon, Polari, for a special festival edition curated and hosted by writer Paul Burston, featuring writer Tracey Thorn as well as the announcement of the 2019 Polari First Book Prize winner (22 Oct, L5FR). #ENDS# FULL EVENT LISTINGS HERE PRESS IMAGES HERE Tickets go on sale to Southbank Centre Members on Wednesday 24 July and to the General Public on Thursday 25 July with the exception of Eoin Colfer, Bernardine Evaristo and Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi which go on sale at a later date. For more information or to buy tickets please visit the Southbank Centre website HERE or call 020 3879 9555. For further press information and interview requests please contact: Naomi French, Press Manager (interim) naomi.french@southbankcentre.co.uk / 020 7921 0678 Sara Oberthaler, Press Officer (interim) sara.oberthaler@southbankcentre.co.uk / 020 7921 0992 Join the Conversation: @southbankcentre @litsouthbank @natpoetrylib #LondonLitFest #PoetryInternational

NOTES TO EDITORS About Southbank Centre Southbank Centre is the UK’s largest arts centre and one of the UK's top five visitor attractions, occupying a 17 acre site that sits in the midst of London’s most vibrant cultural quarter on the South Bank of the Thames. We exist to present great cultural experiences that bring people together and we achieve this by providing the space for artists to create and present their best work and by creating a

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place where as many people as possible can come together to experience bold, unusual and eye-opening work. We want to take people out of the everyday, every day. The site has an extraordinary creative and architectural history stretching back to the 1951 Festival of Britain. Southbank Centre is made up of the Royal Festival Hall, Queen Elizabeth Hall, Purcell Room and Hayward Gallery as well as being home to the National Poetry Library and the Arts Council Collection. It is also home to four Resident Orchestras (London Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, London Sinfonietta and Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment) and four Associate Orchestras (Aurora Orchestra, BBC Concert Orchestra, Chineke! Orchestra and National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain). Literature at Southbank Centre Southbank Centre has a lively and diverse literature programme which takes place throughout the year and includes its annual London Literature Festival and biennial Poetry International festival. Featuring talks, debates, workshops, performance, live reading and more, Southbank Centre’s literature programme has played host to some of the world’s greatest writers and thinkers including Margaret Atwood, Philip Pullman, John le Carré, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Professor Stephen Hawking, Richard Dawkins, Neil Gaiman, Naomi Klein, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Tom Hanks, Michelle Obama, Roxane Gay and Zadie Smith. Upcoming artists and writers appearing as part of the Autumn 2019 season include Louis Theroux, Lenny Henry, Malorie Blackman, Richard Ayoade, Sara Pascoe, Celeste Ng, Nadiya Hussain, Malcolm Gladwell, Philippa Perry and more. About Southbank Centre’s National Poetry Library Southbank Centre’s National Poetry Library is the largest public collection of modern poetry in the world and is housed at Southbank Centre in London. Founded by the Arts Council in 1953 and opened by poets T.S. Eliot and Herbert Read, the library contains over 200,000 items spanning from 1912 to the present day, extensive resources for poets, academics, schools and families. Hosting exhibitions and events, the library is free to use www.nationalpoetrylibrary.org.uk Southbank Centre Venues RFH - Royal Festival Hall QEH - Queen Elizabeth Hall PUR - Purcell Room SUN - Sunley Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall FOY - Foyle Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall L5FR - Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall CBR - The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall BR - Blue Room at Royal Festival Hall

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