Join WoWFest for a lockdown literary extravaganza

Liverpool’s annual WoWFest is taking place online this month in a special lockdown literary festival.

Irvine Welsh, Noam Chomsky, Lyn Gardner, Brian Reade, A L Kennedy and Levi Tafari are some of the big names signed up to take part in WowFest: Lockdown! from May 7-31.

Trainspotting author Welsh will give a free keynote speech on Facebook at 6pm on Thursday, May 7, titled Creativity in a Time of Chaos. The event will be hosted by Peter Hooton.

Costa award winner A L Kennedy will also take to Facebook on Sunday, May 10, with a new collection of short stories, We Are Attempting to Survive Our Time.

Thursday, May 14, will see Noam Chomsky’s keynote speech, Letter From America, exploring the current situation in the US and how, in crisis, the American Dream might be showing its true colours.

And on Sunday, May 31, Lockdown with Levi will bring together the Liverpool poet’s work in one rhythmic, vibes-filled performance.

The three-week online programme also features screenings of documentaries The Great NHS Heist and The Football Men, You Clap For Me Now: BAME experiences from the front line, Nikesh Shukla on his book The Boxer, Sharna Jackson’s young person’s whodunnit High-Rise Mystery, and Questioning the Status Quo: Francesca and Raoul Martinez in Conversation.

WoWFest: Lockdown! runs from May 7-31 online. For the full programme and details on how to access events visit the website HERE