Alexandra Palace Launches London’s Newest Literary Festival
North London Book Fest will go ahead this March across four days (21st-24th), with headliners including Natalie Haynes, Lemony Snicket, Erin Kelly, Michael Rosen, Leo Vardiashvili and Stuart Turton.
The ambitious new festival will connect readers with iconic authors and up-and-coming writers, creating a feast of readings, panel discussions, Q&As, workshops and book-signings for readers of all genres and ages.
Featuring deep dives for crime and thriller fans, talks by children’s authors, discussions on modern parenting, the environment, sexism, food culture and being Muslim in Britain, the four day event will present a rich tapestry of the UK’s thriving literary scene. The festival coincides with the finale of ‘Biblio-buzz’, the annual Alexandra Palace children’s book award, which will see 800 young people attend a ceremony in the Theatre on Friday, 22nd March. The North London Book Fest is a single-site festival, hosted in the Grade II Palace’s East Wing, with events taking place in the award-winning Theatre, Creativity Pavilion and Transmitter Hall.
“It’s a really stimulating and diverse programme, with so much on offer. We’ll be asking questions about AI and creativity, about parenting and about identity,” said Kate Ereira, co-director of the festival. “We’re launching eagerly-awaited new titles from bestselling novelists and showcasing some of the year’s most exciting debuts, such as Leo Vardiashvili who is in conversation with Cecile Pin.”
Mark Civil, festival co-director and head of creative learning at Alexandra Palace, added: “We’ve had a long-held ambition to bring a literary festival to Alexandra Palace, building on sold out events hosted here in recent years by the likes of Philip Pullman, Miriam Margolyes, Lucy Worsley, Bob Odenkirk, Quentin Tarantino and Jacqueline Wilson. We’ve also taken inspiration from the success of our Children’s Book Award to broaden our reach, welcoming authors and activities that will delight book lovers of all ages.”
