The North London Literary Festival

North London Literary Festival
Student organisers, Middlesex University
Date(s)	16 March 2017
Ends	1 day event
Frequency	Annually
Venue	Hendon Campus, College Building
Location(s)	Middlesex University
Country	London
Years active	1996-present
Inaugurated	1996
Founder	Sue Gee
Most recent	13 March 2018
Previous event	23–24 March 2015
Area	Hendon, London
Leader	Chris Callow Jr.
Sponsor	Middlesex University
Website	northlondonlitfest.com

The North London Literary Festival was an annual event held at Middlesex University and the surrounding areas of North London. The event was student-led in order for them to gain key experience, and the festival was free to access for students and the public. It ran from 2013 to 2015, as a three-day event.

History

Running annually since 1996, ^[1] the festival aims to celebrate literary works through pop-up readings by students around North London, as well as guest speakers and workshops at the Hendon campus of Middlesex University. ^[2] The event was founded by novelist Sue Gee, but was student-led in order for them to gain key experience, and the festival was free to access for students and the public. ^[3]

The festival is not associated with the North London Book Fest, which was established at Alexandra Palace in 2024. ^[4]

Speakers

Previous speakers include Justin Cartwright, Philip Hensher, A. L. Kennedy, Linton Kwesi Johnson, Andrea Levy, Andrew Motion, Jan Pieńkowski, David Puttnam and Fay Weldon. ^[1]

Notable speakers include: David Nicholls, author of One Day and Galaxy Book of the Year winner, ^[5] in 2014, and Dame Professor Carol Ann Duffy in 2015. In 2013, the festival secured a reading from horror novelist, James Herbert. ^[6] Noted as a ‘rare appearance’, ^[7] Herbert was set to discuss his latest work but unexpectedly died before the event. ^[8]

The main three-day event is held in late March or early April each year. Aside from a number of notable speakers, the festival typically included fiction and screen writing workshops, book signings and competitions. ^{[1] [2]}

References

1. "North London Literary Festival". Culture24.org. Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
2. Reynolds, Laura. "North London Literary Festival Brings Free Events To Hendon". Londonist. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
3. "The North London Literary Festival is a student-run festival supervised this year by Lecturer Sarah Wardle that takes place on 23rd, 24th and 25th of March 2015". The North London Literary Festival. Archived from the original on 28 June 2017. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
4. "Launch of New North London Book Festival". School Library Association. 19 February 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
5. "Galaxy National Book Award for Book of the Year (2011)". Goodreads.com. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
6. "North London Literary Festival 2013". Middlesex University. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
7. Knott, George. "British master of horror James Herbert makes a rare appearance at the North London Literary Festival in Hendon". Ealing Times. Retrieved 21 April 2015.
8. "North London Literary Festival: A Tribute to James Herbert". Time Out. 21 March 2013. Retrieved 21 April 2025.