As we were advised to stay at home in 2020, many of us may be rethinking what we think we know about those in permanent confinement in our prison systems. With lockdown conditions in prisons effectively ending opportunities for prisoners to take part in rehabilitation activities and progress in their sentences, how do we feel about the conditions in prisons now that we’ve experienced some of the issues that arise when our lives are restricted? How can creativity and writing help us to understand these experiences, or support those dealing with the difficulty of uncertainty within uncertainty. Featuring Ryan Gatiss, Bejan Matur, Ashleigh Nugent, Billy Moore and chaired by Erwin James, join us for an insightful and important discussion on writing, locked-in and locked-down.
Ryan Gattis is the author of Safe, Kung Fu, and All Involved: A Novel of the 1992 L.A. Riots, which won the American Library Association’s Alex Award and the Lire Award for Noir of the Year in France. He lives and writes in Los Angeles, where he is a member of street art crew UGLARworks, and a Prison Writing Mentor for PEN America. His latest novel, The System, is a breakneck journey through every phase of the American criminal justice system.
Born in the ancient Hittite city of Maraş, Bejan Matur is a pioneering figure in contemporary poetry. Translated into 36 languages, and granted numerous awards she has published 11 books. Her music accompanied poetry was presented to a wide audience at prestigious stages like Royal Opera House, King Place London, Ubud (Bali) and the Princeton University. In 2012, her book How Abraham Abandoned Me (Arc, 2012) became the ‘Recommended Translation for Spring 2012’ by the Poetry Book Society founded by T.S. Eliot. Bejan Matur is a graduate of the Ankara University Faculty of Law, and currently lives between London and Istanbul.
Ashleigh Nugent is a writer, performer, and Creative Director at RiseUp CiC, which empowers prisoners to change through an understanding of their own thoughts, feelings and actions. His latest work, winner of the 2013 Commonword Memoir Competition, LOCKS, is a novel based on the time he spent his 17th birthday in a Jamaican detention centre. The one man show based on the novel, has received rave audience reviews following showings in theatres and prisons throughout the UK. For the past 22 years Ashleigh has used rap, poetry, and literature to help the most vulnerable to develop positive mindsets.
Billy Moore was born in Liverpool in 1973. He had a difficult upbringing and struggled with addiction in 2005, wanting to make a fresh start he relocated to Thailand and entered a period of sobriety. However, he eventually relapsed and was arrested and sent to Klong Prem prison, the infamous ‘Bangkok Hilton’. Billy witnessed acts of extreme violence and eventually found purpose through Muay Thai tournaments. Here he found a wall of human community. His success led to his release, and he wrote about his experiences in A Prayer Before Dawn which was adapted for the screen and premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. Since then Billy has survived cancer and gone on to become a powerful advocate of boxing and anti-knife crime initiatives. He trains young boxers and regularly appears in the national media.
Erwin James has been a Guardian columnist and contributor since 1998. Currently he is Editor in Chief of Inside Time, the national newspaper for people in prison. He became a writer in prison where he served 20 years of a mandatory life sentence. He has been a consultant for Ian Duncan Smith MP on prisoner rehabilitation and a Commissioner on the panel of the Westminster Commission on Miscarriages of Justice alongside Lord Edward Garnier and Baroness Vivien Stern. Erwin is the author of three books: A Life Inside – A Prisoners Notebook, (Atlantic, 2003), The Home Stretch – From Prison to Parole, (Atlantic, 2005) and Redeemable – a Memoir of Darkness and Hope (Bloomsbury, Feb 2016). He has been a Trustee of the Prison Reform Trust and the Koestler Trust and is now a patron of the charities: Create, Human Writes, and the Prison Phoenix Trust. He is a Fellow of the RSA and an Honorary Master of the Open University.
You can purchase copies of some of our Writer’s works from our local independent bookstore, News From Nowhere through the links below:
Ashleigh Nugent – LOCKS
Erwin James – Redeemable
Bejan Matur – How Abraham Abandoned Me
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Proudly supported by The Institute of Creative Enterprise at Edge Hill University’s MA in International Creative Enterprise.
*Some exclusions apply – see Festival Programme for more information.
Date:Thursday 20th May
Time: 7:30pm
Price: £10/£5
One Hour Theatre Company presents: Bartleby: A Tale of Wall Street is the first completed recording in an ongoing original audio drama project premiering at WoWFest; a unique artistic collaboration between playwright, Tom Hall, former Head of Drama at LJMU, actor David Llewellyn, composer and sound designer Andy Frizell and director and dramaturg Victor Merriman.
Date: May 1, 2021
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The Sound Recordist is the latest poetry collection from Seán Street, a sequence of work based on a life’s work in radio and a fascinating insight into British broadcasting. Join Seán and poet and editor Hannah Stone to discuss sound, silence and the power of words in contemporary society.
Date: May 1, 2021
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La Violette Società, once a rough diamond now a gem of the Liverpool arts scene, lay on a special WoWFEST 21st anniversary night of their eclectic mix of poetry, storytelling and spoken word featuring Roy, Mark Jackson, Holly Watson and Lou Fitz. Hosted by Ciarán Hodgers.
Date: May 1, 2021
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Once British, Always British, two 30-minute audio dramas exploring migration to British port cities by Yemeni and Indian sailors in the 1920’s, inspired by real material from The National Archives and written by acclaimed playwrights Hassan Abdulrazzak and Satinder Chohan. A Tamasha Theatre production in association with The National Archives.
Date: May 4, 2021
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Award-winning international best-selling author of My Name Is Leon, discusses and reads from her latest short story collection Supporting Cast.
Date: May 4, 2021
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Join former Children’s Laureate Michael Rosen for this exclusive performance of his much-loved poetry for children and young people from across his career and award-winning books including Michael Rosen’s Big Book of Bad Things, The Hypnotiser, Quick Let’s Get Out Of Here and others.
Date: May 5, 2021
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Published to coincide with its 200th anniversary, Capitalism's Conscience brings together historians, journalists and activists in an appraisal of the Guardian's contribution to British politics, society and culture - and its distinctive brand of centrism. Join this discussion with Victoria Brittain, Ghada Karmi and Matt Kennard, chaired by Des Freedman.
Date: May 5, 2021
Start: 6:00pm
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Maxine Hong Kingston, internationally celebrated author of seminal works The Woman Warrior and China Men, discusses literature, political activism and her Chinese-American identity and her life as a writer, peace activist, teacher and mother, with Dr Lucienne Loh, Senior Lecturer in English literature at the University of Liverpool.
Date: May 5, 2021
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These stories, written by UK prisoners, cover everything from face masks to first loves, sinister assassins to returning war heroes. Starting with an opening line from crime-writer Ryan Gattis, prisoners across the UK were invited to write a 500-word short story for a competition ran by publisher Picador and national charity The Reading Agency.
Date: May 6, 2021
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Many Different Kinds of Love is former Children’s Laureate Michael Rosen’s account of his brush with death after catching the Corona Virus in March 2020. Combining stunning new prose poems, this is a moving, humorous and passionate testament to the dedication of NHS staff and the power of community.
Date: May 6, 2021
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Opening WoWFest’s 21st birthday festival programme, internationally renowned film director Ken Loach delivers an exclusive Rebel Rant titled “Change Has Got To Come”. From his creative work with people at the sharp end of austerity, explitative employment practices, how COVID-19 is impacting on those who are most economically vulnerable, and our right to protest against an unfair system coming under attack, Ken Loach will be speaking about what we can do as individuals and communities to bring about the change that has got to come.
Date: May 7, 2021
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Shuggie Bain is the stunning Booker Prize winning debut from Douglas Stuart. Young Shuggie is desperately trying to save his mother from alcoholism. This blistering and heartbreaking story explores the unsinkable love that only children can have for their damaged parents. Join Douglas in conversation with author of Lowborn, Kerry Hudson.
Date: May 8, 2021
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Indie publishers, a lifeline for many during Lockdown, have also suffered declines in overall sales. Join industry experts from independent Northern-based publishers: Lendall Press, Bluemoose Books, And Other Stories and Peepal Tree Press to discuss how they will fare as we begin to return to life post-pandemic.
Date: May 10, 2021
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How do you find hope and joy and prepare your children for a world that is racist, sexist and facing climate crisis? Brown Baby is a love letter to the author’s late mother and his two youngest daughters. From award-winning editor of The Good Immigrant Nikesh Shukla, chaired by Darren Chetty.
Date: May 11, 2021
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Lady Phyll, founder of UK Black Pride and Executive Director of Kaleidoscope Truth, joins WoWFest and Chloe Cousins, Rainbow Noir Strategic Lead, to discuss the impacts of the pandemic on Black queer communities and the vitally important activism and community work needed to combat entrenched racism, homophobia, transphobia and misogyny.
Date: May 11, 2021
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Constructing family history is not about making a family tree, searching for a long lost relative or establishing a DNA record, it’s a process of feeling, remembering, and constructing your family experience. Join local author Tony Wailey for this workshop on placing family into the context of the times people lived through.
Date: May 12, 2021
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Veteran broadcaster, Channel 4 News’ Jon Snow, joins WoWFest at a vital time for news journalism, under attack from left and right, written off as FAKE NEWS, Jon will discuss the role of the media in our lives, and the future of broadcast journalism for a better, more-informed society.
Date: May 12, 2021
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Taking stock of thirty-seven years of friendship, Everything But The Girl’s Tracey Thorn’s new book My Rock ‘n’ Roll Friend, teases out the details of connection and affection with Lindy Morrison, drummer for The Go-Betweens. A book that asks what people see, who does the looking and ultimately who writes women out of – and back into – history.
Date: May 12, 2021
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The work of poet and lecturer Matt Simpson is celebrated through readings by Dr Eleanor Rees, Dave Ward and poet Helen Mort from Matt and Helen’s poetry, and discussions on the role of locality within poetry. A partnership event between Liverpool Hope University and The Windows Project.
Date: May 13, 2021
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Booker Prize winner Ben Okri’s A Fire in My Head, is powerful new poetry collection, offering incisive insights into issues affecting society today - the refugee crisis, racism, Obama, the Grenfell Tower fire, and the Coronavirus pandemic. Join us for readings and discussion, chaired by acclaimed poet Anthony Anaxagorou.
Date: May 14, 2021
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Actress, by Booker-winning author Anne Enright, is the story of Irish theatre legend Katherine O’Dell, as written by her daughter Norah. This intensely moving, disturbing novel about a daughter’s search for truth brilliantly captures the glamour of post-war American and the shabbiness of 1970’s Dublin. Anne will read from Actress and be in discussion with Sarah Maclennan, Head of Creative Writing at Liverpool John Moore’s University.
Date: May 13, 2021
Start: 7:30pm
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In this powerful, uplifting plea for conscious optimism, Elif Shafak asks how we can stay sane in an age of division, where we feel overwhelmed by issues around us - injustice, suffering and an endless feeling of crisis. Join Booker Prize-nominated writer Elif Shafak for readings and discussion.
Date: May 15, 2021
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Is working class writing becoming a genre? How do working class writers break into a seemingly exclusive industry? Should working class writers only write about issues affecting the working class? We take a deep dive into these questions and hear from some exciting new works by working class writers working across a range of styles and forms and get a flavour of some of the most exciting working class writers bringing new work out this year. Featuring Rónán Hession, Rachel Genn, Matt Cook
Date: May 17, 2021
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Date: May 18, 2021
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In this exclusive keynote speech, with much to be hopeful for in the UK but much left to do to combat discrimination and violence continuing against LGBTQIA+ people globally, human rights activist Peter Tatchell offers his thoughts on the future of LGBTQIA+ human rights, hosted by the BBC’s LGBTQIA+ correspondent Ben Hunte.
Date: May 18, 2021
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This warm, friendly and inclusive workshop, facilitated by Clare Shaw is for anyone who has experienced sexual violence or abuse – you don’t have to be an experienced writer. A partnership with Clearlines Festival and the Royal Society of Literature – there will be chat, writing exercises and good online company.
Date: May 19, 2021
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Women experience hostility every day, far from minor annoyance or micro-aggressions, revealing a deeply ingrained sexism within society. Laura Bates, founder of Everyday Sexism, Sabeena Akhtar, Editor of Cut From The Same Cloth and Dr. Jessica Taylor, author of Why Women Are Blamed For Everything, discuss everyday sexism and why it is such a corrosive force in society
Date: May 19, 2021
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Join playwright and dramaturg Kevin Dyer for a free workshop exploring the themes of his new play The Table Tennis Years – a play about a father and son who don’t talk anymore, whose only means of communication is the game of ping pong they play after school every day.
Date: May 20, 2021
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In this exclusive keynote speech the chair of the People’s Covid Inquiry, Michael Mansfield QC, will explore the reasons why the UK has one of the world’s highest death rates relating, and how the underlying systemic problems within society and the government’s handling of the pandemic society has contributed the situation.
Date: May 20, 2021
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Have our views on confinement changed during the Lockdowns, and can creativity and writing help us understand the difficulties of those in prison, and support their rehabilitation and reintegration into society? Ryan Gattis, Bejan Matur, Ashleigh Nugent and Erwin James discuss the power of creative writing when locked-in or locked-down.
Date: May 20, 2021
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Join WoWFest’s digital open mic Word Play and share your work as part of Light Night. Hosted by multi award-winning poet Ciarán Hodgers, and featuring special guest performances from the community, connect with artists and audiences across Liverpool for WoWFest’s exciting 21st birthday festival programme. For more information see www.wowfest.uk
Date: May 21, 2021
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Queer Bodies are fodder for debates about bathrooms, borders, eating disorders and assault, and points of convergence for the future, the past and the present. Liverpool’s Queer Bodies Collective debut explosive and radical new work from Northern writers featuring an exclusive performance from multi award-winning poet Joelle Taylor’s hotly anticipated new collection C+NTO.
Date: May 22, 2021
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Courttia Newland and Alex Wheatle, writers on Small Axe, Internationally renowned director Steve McQueen’s ground-breaking series, which pulled back the curtain on some untold stories of Black British History, revealing contemporary black stories traditionally absent from mainstream media, discuss the importance of putting Black British stories in the mainstream.
Date: May 22, 2021
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The novelists of the future will be aiming to wow the judges at WoWFest21’s Pulp Idol Grand Final in the hope of being crowned Pulp Idol Winner 2021 and having their novel read by a professional literary agent. Guest judges include Kevin Duffy (Bluemoose Books), Genevieve Pegg (Harper North), Laura Williams (Greene & Heaton) and author Yvonne Battle-Felton.
Date: May 24, 2021
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Award-winning Iraqi writer Hassan Blasim and Sunday Times bestselling author Christy Lefteri, in conversation with Ted Hodgkinson, discuss their work and how Comma Press’ Refugee Tales anthologies transports you into the refugees experiences, and create spaces in which the stories of those who have been detained can be safely heard.
Date: May 25, 2021
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Critically acclaimed writer Walter Mosley returns with the next instalment of his infamous detective Easy Rawlin’s series, Blood Grove. Set against the social and political upheaval of the late 1960’s, this “dazzling” and “incomparable” return shows Moseley is still at the top of his game.
Date: May 25, 2021
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Date: May 26, 2021
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Jeff Young and Tony Wailey are pioneering new ways of life writing and memoirs, creating innovative approaches to writing history and personal testimony. Find out the different ways they approached their two life writing books, Ghost Town and Diary of the Smyth-Wailey’s and get tips on how you too can create an accessible entertaining approach to your life writing.
Date: May 26, 2021
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Joinedupwriting, an exuberant new collection from Roger McGough, one of Britain’s best-loved poets, ranges from forgotten friendships, the idiosyncrasies of family life, to the trauma of war and contemporary global politics. Joined by Bard of Barnsley, Ian McMillan and musician and comedian Luke Carver Goss. In partnership with St. George’s Hall Charitable Trust.
Date: May 26, 2021
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Mandrake Petals and Scattered Feathers, a unique, multi-media experience combining narrative, song and puppets with errie and atmospheric images, is a collection of dark folk-psych stories from author and poet, Dave Ward. Production by NBE with music from Amber Jones-Williams and Caine Jones-Williams.
Date: May 27, 2021
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Is fascism back on the agenda, or are the right-wing groups that stormed the US Capitol Hill just the dying embers of white supremacism? Join award-winning journalists and broadcasters Paul Mason and Gary Younge to discuss the how the far right have risen and how we can combat it.
Date: May 27, 2021
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Date: May 28, 2021
2pm
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The dazzling debut novel from spoken word poet Salena Godden has taken the world by storm. Wolf Willeford, a troubled young writer, is well acquainted with death, but until now hadn't met Death in person - a black, working-class woman who shape-shifts and does her work unseen. Salena will be reading from and discussing Mrs Death Misses Death with Jordan Stephens from the Rizzle Kicks.
Date: May 28, 2021
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Take a walk through Victorian Liverpool with this Walking Tour about the life of washhouse and public bath pioneer Catherine “Kitty” Wilkinson, led by John Maguire. Starting at St George’s Hall by the War memorial, this tour will last around 2 hours.
Date: May 29, 2021
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The tour begins at the Catholic Cathedral, Hope Street and will last around 2 hours. We will be following the UK Government's guidelines on social distancing. Please bring a face covering and we encourage you to bring your own hand sanitiser. We look forward to your cooperation to enable the tour to operate safely.
Date: April 30, 2021
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