Glittering literati at Literary Leicester Festival 2016

The city's diverse celebration of the written and spoken word is returning next month with a prestigious line-up of speakers and contributors who have shaped the landscape of modern literature.

The University of Leicester is hosting the ninth annual Literary Leicester festival from Wednesday 16 November to Saturday 19 November at various venues across the city in what seems to be the perfect year to honour writers and their works.

This year's highlights include talks from renowned authors Dame Jacqueline Wilson, creator of Tracy Beaker; and Fay Weldon – playwright and winner of the esteemed Writers' Guild award. English television writer and playwright, Sally Wainwright, who won the 2009 Writer of the Year Award, also unfurls tales of her experiences and gives a talk about her latest project at Phoenix Square.

There will also be poetry readings, film screenings, workshops, Q&As, writing commission launches and the ‘Writing and Racism’ event in which a panel will discuss what writers can do to challenge contemporary racism after Brexit.

Bestselling American crime author Patricia Cornwell will give a free public lecture, In Conversation with Patricia Cornwell, as part of the University of Leicester’s Chancellor’s Distinguished Lecture Series and Literary Leicester 2016 on Monday 24 October 2016 at 7pm.