London Literature Festival 2007: What's On This Week

Southbank Centre hosts
the first London Literature Festival

29 June – 12 July 2007, Southbank Centre

Wednesday 4 July
• Sean Borodale, Tobias Hill & Iain Sinclair
7.00 pm Level 5 Function Room, Royal Festival Hall £7

Celebrating the reopening of the Poetry Library, three poets pay tribute to London as muse. Sean Borodale's topographical poem Notes for an Atlas 'rings with sadness, haphazardness and utterly modern beauty' (Robert MacFarlane). Tobias Hill's Nocturne in Chrome & Sunset Yellow is an acutely observed hymn to the city. Iain Sinclair, one of London's great writers, reads poems on the city from his recent collection The Firewall. This event coincides with the Saison Poetry Library exhibition of books on the theme of London.

Thursday 5 July
• London SLAM Champions
6.30 pm Front Room, Queen Elizabeth Hall Admission Free

In this showcase of the Rise Slam Champions, MC Joelle Taylor introduces you to some of the most innovative rhyming and rapping young stars of London's spoken-word scene.

Thursday 5 July
• Linton Kwesi Johnson and Friends
7.30 pm Queen Elizabeth Hall, £9

For one night only renowned reggae poet Linton Kwesi Johnson has invited an all-star line-up of some of most musical and socially conscious poets from across the globe: Amina Baraka and Amira Baraka (US), founders of the Black Arts Movement in Harlem; Jayne Cortez (US); Kendel Hippolyte (St Lucia) and Lesego Rampolokeng (South Africa).

Saturday 7 July
• Plant a Poem with Malika Booker
11.00 am Level 5 Function Room, Royal Festival Hall
Suitable for children ages seven and over £4 Children, Accompanying adults free

Plant a poem as part of the Sheds, Beds and Breads installation in Southbank Centre Square. Poet and performer Malika Booker reads her garden poems, and leads a poetry writing workshop before leading everyone out to plant flower seeds and mark them with their specially crafted poem.

Sunday 8 July
• Nii Ayikwei Parkes
12.30 pm Level 5 Function Room, Royal Festival Hall £6 Adults, £4 Children

Part human, part spider, combining wisdom with cunning, Ananse the Spider Trickster is one of the most important figures in West African storytelling. These classic moral tales and proverbs are retold with flair and imagination by Nii Ayikwei Parkes.