Headingley LitFest

Monday, 29 January 2018

Amit Dhand Girl Zero PREVIEW LITFEST 2018

A message from Amit Dhand. Don't miss the event on 15 March!

GIRL ZERO TOUR!

Thrilled to share with you all the cover for the paperback of Girl Zero which is out on February 22nd!

Come and meet me on tour!

DATES:

1. Saturday March 3rd, 2pm at Bradford City Library, BD1 1SD

2. Friday 9th March, 2pm at Community Hub Central, Hartlepool, TS26 9DE.

3. Thursday 15th March, Headingley Literature Festival, 7:15pm, New Headingley Club.

4. Monday 26th March, YorkLiterature Festival, 7pm, Waterstones, York, YO1 9QL

5. Wednesday 18th April, GooleLibrary, 6:30pm, DN14 5DS

6. Monday 23rd April, Halewood Library, Knowsley, 11am, L26 9UH

7. Thursday 26th April, Hemsworth Library, Wakefield, WF9 4JY, 2pm.

8. Thursday 26th April, Central Library, Halifax, HX1 1QG, 7pm.

9. Tuesday May 1st, Cullercoats Library, North Shields, NE30 3JY, 7:30pm.

10. Friday 4th May, GosforthLibrary, Newcastle, NE3 3HD, 2pm.

11. Wednesday 6th June, Workington Library, CA14 2ND, 6:30pm.

12. Friday 21st July, Harrogatecrime festival, 12pm.

As ever, if you have enjoyed any books, please do consider leaving the author a review. It does keep us in the chair, creating the next book!

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Friday, 26 January 2018

The Maud Allan Libel Trial - PREVIEW LITFEST 2018

The Trials of Salomé: The Maud Allan Libel Case

7.30pm Wednesday 7 March in the historic Leeds Library, Commercial Street.

In the early part of 1918, one might have thought that the British government and the British press had more important matters to consider than whether a Tory MP had maligned the character of a Canadian dancer. The outcome of the war remained in doubt - libel was surely unimportant measured against the scale of the war effort.

But when Noel Pemberton-Billing published an excoriating review of Maud Allan’s performance as Salomé, under the heading ‘The Cult of the Clitoris’, which implied that Allan, then appearing in her Vision of Salomé, was a lesbian associate of German wartime conspirators, she sued Billing for libel.

This very minor story became a sensation, implicating the government at the highest levels. In this public talk, Professor Ruth Robbins (Leeds Beckett) retells the story, and traces its implications

Free. Donations welcome. Reserve your seat with ticket from: http://bit.ly/litfestmaudallan

Thursday, 18 January 2018

PREVIEW LITFEST 2018 - Poet Ralph Dartford at Hyde Park Book Club

Tuesday 6 March
Hyde Park Book Club 7.30pm FREE

Recovery Songs by Ralph Dartford

Directed by Samuel James Humphrey

A brand new spoken word story about addiction, the causes of addiction, and the recovery from its destructive forces.

Written and performed by A Firm of Poets founder, Ralph Dartford, from his own true experience of addiction, falling down and getting back up again. An unflinching, sometimes funny confessional that might change your mind about everything you thought you knew about addiction.

Funded by the Arts Council of England

Audience reviews for Recovery Songs

‘Recovery Songs is moving, compelling and brave. I was gripped by Ralph Dartford’s performance.’ - IMove Arts

‘I remember awkwardly laughing at the beginning of Recovery Songs', expecting Ralph to jump into comedy through his first piece. Immediately, I realised my mistake. An honest take on his experiences with addiction, it made me sit up and listen. Ralph was captivating and straightforward, stepping from darkness, to hope, to troubled relationships, to love effortlessly. I have no idea how long he performed for, but I couldn't stop listening.’ - Up Yours, Leeds

‘I loved it! Ralph is an excellent and honest storyteller. Go and see him yourself, and make your own judgement.’ Dominic Monaco - Audience member.

Ralph Dartford Biography

Ralph Dartford studied poetry at Birkbeck College, London under the tutelage of Michael Donaghy. His work has appeared in the Guardian, Pulp Faction, Stirring (US), WordLife and London Territories amongst many other publications. His first volume of poetry, ‘Cigarettes, Beer and Love’ received wide acclaim, and his second, ‘Dirty Needle Rain’ will hopefully see the light of day in 2019.

Ralph Dartford

ralph.dartford@icloud.com

Latest Project. New Town Utopia: A film about Basildon

www.newtownutopia.com

LITERARY HEADINGLEY

Headingley is just the place for it! Don't expect a big circus with marquees, though: we're not at that stage yet. We're all volunteers as well.

Our venues include the HEART Centre on Bennett Road, the New Headingley Club on St Michael's Road, friendly cafés, historic local cinemas, Headingley Library, people's houses and the historic Leeds Library in Commercial Street, city centre.

Headingley's Literary Links

Headingley has strong connections with many writers:

Arthur Ransome was born in Headingley, J R R Tolkien lived at 5 Holly Bank and also at 2 Darnley Road, West Park when he was reader in English Language at the University of Leeds 1920 - 25, Alan Bennett lived over a butcher's shop opposite the Three Horseshoes, now Royale Dry Cleaners.

Lucy Newlyn has published poetry about her early life in Headingley, George Orwell stayed at 21 Estcourt Avenue with his sister Marjorie and her husband Humphrey 'Humpy' Dakin (with whom he visited the Brontë Parsonage Museum in Haworth), T S Eliot used to visit his mother-in-law in Weetwood Lane, William Fryer Harvey was brought up in Spring Bank, Trevor Griffiths lived just off Victoria Road on Winstanley Terrace, Jon Silkin's first office of STAND magazine was his flat at 144 Otley Road, Sir Geoffrey Hill lived in Shire Oak Road, Peter Redgrove lived in Headingley between 1962 and 1965 when he was Gregory Fellow of Poetry at the University of Leeds, and playwright Kay Mellor still lives near The Hollies in Far Headingley.

Wilson Barrett, the charismatic first manager of the Grand Theatre, Leeds (a prolific playwright as well), lived in Beech Grove Terrace, Woodhouse in the 1870s. His house was a meeting place for many writers, artists and visitors to Leeds - such as W. S. Gilbert, George Grossmith and Atkinson Grimshaw.

Headingley LitFest 2020 was the thirteenth. The fourteenth will take place from March 2021 and will be adapted to the rules of the Covid pandemic. We are now a proud part of the annual Leeds Lit Fest.