Literature Events in Manchester and the North

Sarah-Clare Conlon, Literature Editor

Bookish goings-on are perfect for picking up presents for others and treats to get yourself through the cold, dark days ahead.

Some of our favourite reading series have some amazing autumnal line-ups: check out More Song in Bradford, Peter Barlow’s Cigarette in Manchester, Verbose in Salford and Poetry at the Dusty Miller in Mytholmroyd.

We also have some awesome one-offs to look forward to, from the Blue Diode readings on 9 November (combine with PBC#46 and treat yourself to a poetry all-dayer) to the Blah! Blah!! Blah!!! fundraising event on 23 November. Don’t forget your pocket money!

The Portico Library in Manchester plays host to Oliver James Lomax and Manchester Poetry Library is putting on the 16 Days Festival, with guests including Joelle Taylor, while Libraries in Leeds have Tracy Chevalier coming to town – also check out the Farsley Lit Fest programme.

Online, there’s a host of talks about Victorian writer Elizabeth Gaskell’s novel Wives and Daughters – and the Carcanet readings continue afoot.

And finally be sure to riffle through our Bookshops in Manchester Guide and pick up the new map from UNESCO Manchester City of Literature, and explore our literary places in LiverpoolLeeds, Sheffield and Cumbria.

Our top picks

Verbose at The King’s Arms

Verbose at The Kings Arms, Manchester, 18 November 2024, free entry - Find Out More

Award-winning Verbose is one of Manchester’s longest-running monthly spoken word and live literature events, featuring an open mic plus two guest performers – this month Helen Ivory and Martin Figura. Pop 18 November in your diary.

Photo by Dave Gutteridge

Carcanet online book launch: Collected Poems by Mimi Khalvati

Collected Poems by Mimi Khalvati: Carcanet Online Book Launch, online, 20 November 2024, from £2.00 - Book now

Just last year Mimi Khalvati received the King’s Gold Medal for Poetry, awarded for excellence in poetry, so it seems perfect timing that Manchester’s Carcanet Press launches her Collected Poems, online on 20 November.

Portrait of Mimi Khalvati with light grey hair
Mimi Khalvati. Courtesy Carcanet Press

Farsley Lit Fest at various venues

Farsley Lit Fest at Truman Books, Leeds, Until 22 November 2024, from £8.00 - Book now

The third edition of Farsley Literature Festival is full steam ahead until 22 November, organised in conjunction with Truman Books and The Old Woollen, and encompassing some of their friends from in and around Leeds suburb Farsley.

Kate Mosse
Kate Mosse. Image supplied by Leeds Inspired

Blah! Blah!! Blah!!! at Withington Public Hall Institute

Blah! Blah!! Blah!!! at Withington Public Hall Institute, Manchester, 23 November 2024, from £10.00 - Book now

Blah! Blah!! Blah!!! is a reading event that brings together loads of fantastic writers serving up wonderful words to raise funds to help Café Blah get set up in a new space. Poetry and prose for the people on 23 November!

Courtesy Cafe Blah

16 Days Festival: Joelle Taylor and others at Manchester Poetry Library

16 Days Of Activism Against Gender Based Violence at Manchester Poetry Library, Manchester, 25 November–10 December 2024, free entry - Find Out More

Brand new from Manchester Metropolitan University is a festival of poetry readings, panel discussions and creative workshops led by academics in the field to show how poems can inspire and change minds when it comes to social justice – all events in the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence programme running 25 November to 10 December are free, and everyone is welcome.

Joelle Taylor. Photo by Roman Manfredi
Joelle Taylor. Photo by Roman Manfredi

Oliver James Lomax at The Portico Library

Readings by Oliver Lomax with Barnaby Rule at The Portico Library, Manchester, 30 November 2024, from £10.00 - Book now

If you missed Oliver James Lomax at Word Central recently, then, fear not, as he’s appearing at The Portico Library on 30 November to read some of his latest poetry.

A photograph of a white man wearling glasses.
Oliver James Lomax. Courtesy The Portico Library

Wives and Daughters season at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House online

Wives and Daughters - Events Season at Elizabeth Gaskell's House, online, Until 30 November 2024, from £5.00 - Book now

The team at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House – just awarded official museum status – continues its deep dive into one of the famous 19th-century author’s texts: Wives and Daughters.

Elizabeth Gaskell's garden
Elizabeth Gaskell's House

More literature events

LiteratureManchester
Verbose at The King’s Arms

Award-winning Verbose is one of Manchester’s longest-running monthly spoken word and live literature events, featuring an open mic plus two guest performers – this month Helen Ivory and Martin Figura.

free entry
Kate Mosse
Until
LiteratureLeeds
Farsley Lit Fest at various venues

As part of the 2024 Farsley Literature Festival, join us in the shop as cosy crime writer Jonathan Hall chairs an evening of discussion with Tom Hindle and Rachel North. The panel will explore the lure of a glamorous location for thriller writers.

from £8.00
Timekeepers
Spotlight on

Light Festivals in the North

From enchanting lantern parades to epic LED installations, light festivals are a brilliant way celebrate the magic of the winter months.

Take me there

Literature Events in Manchester and the North

HOME Manchester
Manchester
Theatre
HOME Manchester

Offering a packed schedule of events and things to do, HOME Manchester is one of the city’s leading hubs for arts and culture.

Manchester
Park
Platt Fields Park

Platt Fields Park in Fallowfield is steeped in history, the land having been acquired by the Platt family in 1225.

Cumbria
Event venue
Penrith Old Fire Station

Main venue for Eden Arts, an artist-led organisation based in Eden in Cumbria creating projects around mass participation, local distinctiveness and digital engagement, from Picnic Cinema to The Winter Droving.

The Hepworth Wakefield
Wakefield
Gallery
The Hepworth Wakefield

Winner of the 2017 Art Fund Museum of the Year Award, The Hepworth in Wakefield is easily one of the leading cultural highlights of the North.

The MerseyMade building in Liverpool
Liverpool
Shop
MerseyMade

In the MerseyMade shop you’ll find bottled gin from the likes of Turncoat Gin, Anfield Gin, Albert Dock Gin and Three Graces Gin. Yep, Liverpool REALLY likes its gin.

Culture Guides

Theatre in Manchester and the North
Theatre in Manchester and the North

Alongside experimental performance, new writing and free arts festivals, we take a look at some of the Christmas shows happening in the North.