Books & Poetry

Life in cartoon motion: a map of the London Literature Festival

This week's London Literature Festival events

Three weeks after the Overture Weekend christened the reopening of the Royal Festival Hall, the London Literature Festival kicks off on June 29 with an eclectic programme of international and prize-winning authors, performers, poets, historians and artists on the original site of the 1951 Festival of Britain. The marriage of ‘literature’ and ‘festival’ has become a familiar part of the cultural lexicon over the last two decades, but the prevailing image is one of white tents taking over genteel villages and provincial towns. The modernist spirit and urban feel of the Southbank Centre is in sharp contrast to this. So why here, and why now? Feature continues

Live literature has long been at the heart of the Southbank Centre’s activities, ever since Allen Ginsberg dropped by for Poetry International in 1967. Literature, spoken-word events and talks happen year-round, covering all genres of writing. In the last three years, Bret Easton Ellis, Seamus Heaney, Ismail Kadare and Toni Morrison have all read here. The London Literature Festival was an instinctive venture for our reopening season, inspired by the vision of artistic director Jude Kelly, who wants literature to play an even stronger role in the Southbank Centre’s future.

The unbeatable setting and the vibrant artistic community will create unique literature events that only the Southbank Centre could stage. But before we get started on the roll-call of names, I’d vouch that this is the only literature festival where you can take part in the UK’s biggest ‘bookcrossing’, have your say on a roving soapbox, watch a live performance of Sean Borodale’s nocturnal London poetry directed by Mark Rylance, plant a poem in a garden shed, check out Martin Rowson’s giant cartoon and get lost – or perhaps find yourself – in a giant soapbox maze. Intrigued? You should be.

Like the centre itself, Linton Kwesi Johnson belongs to Lambeth but speaks to the world. His show, ‘Mi Revalueshanary Frens’ brings reggae poetry legends like Jayne Cortez and Amiri Baraka from across the globe. This unique bill will showcase poetic styles and a socially conscious message rarely seen on the London poetry scene. In a momentous year for WH Auden fans, we celebrate his astonishing range with verse, music, film and an all-star bill featuring John Mark Ainsley, Kwame Kwei-Armah and James Fenton, among others. And in a year of literature ‘firsts’, Southbank Centre on tour finds Roger McGough and Brian Patten launching their show ‘40 Love’, a celebration of the fortieth anniversary of ‘The Mersey Sound’ and Wole Soyinka gives the inaugural Southbank Centre Lecture on the theme of civilisation. There will also be exclusive London appearances from Pat Barker and Barbara Kingsolver. On our closing night, composer Heiner Goebbels, together with resident orchestras the London Sinfonietta and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, will bring to life the writings of Gertrude Stein, highlighting the diversity of the programme.

Two major themed series will run throughout the festival. ‘Metropolitan Lines’ will capture London’s shifting moods with writers like Blake Morrison, Iain Sinclair and Kate Grenville dissecting the city through fiction, poetry and memoir. ‘Saying the Unsayable’ is a bold and topical exploration of freedom of expression and offence, programmed in association with Index on Censorship. Rather than just dabbling in what’s becoming an increasingly pertinent issue for writers, we’ll explore the theme over a series of eight events, featuring everyone from the loudhailing Mark Thomas to Egyptian blogger Amr Gharbeia, from controversial novelist AM Homes to polymath Ian Buruma.

Throughout the London Literature Festival we also feature a wide range of readings and activities for children. Lauren Child, creator of ‘Charlie and Lola’ and Clarice Bean, presents her characters and actress Jessica Hynes (better known as Jessica Stevenson) brings them to life with readings from the books. Jacqueline Wilson, recently voted England’s favourite children’s author, will read and sign books for her eager fans. Activities will happen across our 21 acre site, with story walks for schools with Eric Maddern and Malika Booker’s Plant a Poem event, but the centrepiece is Operation Soapbox, a maze of over 1,000 soapboxes to be installed in the Festival Hall Ballroom from July 1. Children (and adults) can explore the winding routes of the maze and customise the soapboxes with their thoughts, ideas and opinions.

Participation is central to the festival, and our bookcrossing embodies this. Defined by the dictionary as ‘the practice of leaving a book in a public place to be picked up and read by others, who then do likewise’, we’ll be launching a thousand books in association with Penguin, from our riverside location. We hope the books – all on a London theme and ranging from Samuel Pepys’s diaries to Zadie Smith’s ‘White Teeth’ – will make their way across the world, or at least brighten up people’s daily commutes. And, if they’re not reading London classics to and from work, commuters might like to take their pick from the stalls of the Southbank Centre Book Market, which celebrates its twenty-fifth birthday this year. To mark the occasion we’ll be bringing London’s only outdoor bookmarket centre-stage, with a location right outside the Royal Festival Hall.

With so much new activity, it’s important to remember that the transformation of the Festival Hall is about restoring a much cherished public space. Reflecting this is the Poetry Library, located on Level 5 and a part of Southbank Centre since 1988. The library has been revamped and reopens on July 4. This space, recently acclaimed as one of the world’s great libraries by Radio 4, captures Southbank Centre’s spirit of building on tradition while continually looking forward. With such a distinguished history behind us, we look forward to launching our first London Literature Festival.

London Literature Festival June 29-July 12. For more information and to book tickets: 0871 663 2500 or www.southbankcentre.co.uk/literaturefestival