BBC World Service to broadcast live from this year’s festival

BBC events include Ian McKellen, Elif Shafak and Garry Kasparov

Elif ShafakOur of our greatest actors Sir Ian McKellen and the leading Turkish writer Elif Shafak are to feature in a series of BBC World Service events broadcast from this year's FT Weekend Oxford Literary Festival. McKellen will talk to the BBC's Anu Anand about his life and work in a live event, while Shafak, pictured right, will join a panel discussion on identity for a recording of the BBC World Service The Forum programme. Other live broadcasts from the festival will feature US writers Jessica Harris and Jewell Parker Rhodes on food, spirituality and female African-American identity, and former world chess champion Garry Kasparov and Ethiopian writer and historian Prince Asfa-Wossen Asserate in a discussion about world leaders. The BBC's Owen Bennett Jones will also host a recording of the BBC's Newshour Extra on the subject: should Britain be ashamed of its colonial past? All the BBC events are free to attend but places are limited and tickets must be booked through the festival box office. A pocket guide to the festival is available to pick up at Blackwell's Bookshop. You can download the digital version of the pocket guide and the main brochure from the website now.

Grand National winner joins line-up

Two-time Grand National winner Richard Dunwoody is to speak about his life as an adventurer following his retirement as a jump jockey. Dunwoody, who successfully trekked to the South Pole on a route that Shackleton failed to complete, is joined by travel writer and adventurer Jonny Bealby and foreign correspondent Christina Lamb for a discussion on exploring the danger zones. Tickets for this family event are available at a special price of £6. Dacia MarainiOther new events recently added to the festival line-up include two well-known Italian novelists, Dacia Maraini and Francesca Marciano. Maraini, pictured left, is one of Italy's most celebrated playwrights and novelists and talks about her life in writing. Marciano,who writes in English, talks about her new collection of short stories, The Other Language.

2023

2022

The Oxford Literary Festival sponsors, donors & partners

The Telegraph Festival media partner University of Oxford Netflix European Union Supported by the Delegation of the European Union to the UK Cultural Relations Platform Supporter of the festival's Voices of Europe programme BBC World Service International radio partner Owen Mumford Supporter of programme of science and medicine and annual science and innovation award Bodleian Libraries Festival cultural partner Oxford Martin School Festival ideas partner Oxford Mathematics Spanish Embassy The Spanish Embassy: supporters of the programme of Spanish literature and culture Cervantes Institute, London The Cervantes Institute, London Italian Embassy The Italian Embassy: supporter of the programme of Italian literature and culture The Dorchester Hotels Collection Festival London hotel partner International Literary Properties Festival literary heritage partner Blackwell’s Festival on-site and online bookseller The Randolph Hotel by Graduate Hotels Festival hotel Old Bank Hotel Five-star hotel partners of The Oxford Collection Old Parsonage Hotel Five-star hotel partners of The Oxford Collection Jim Mellon John Roberts Lady Hatch Patron donor for the programme of Irish literature and culture Tim and Marion Stevenson Martin and Elise Becket Smith Miles Young Masumi and Jonathan Dobson Pank Koria CEO of Project People Carole and John Allen David Isaac Mary and Cecil Quillen Supporters of the programme of American literature and culture Anna Hunter Rhys and Kerry Phillip Exeter College Exeter College: college home of the festival. Founded 1314 New College New College founded 1379 Worcester College Worcester College founded 1714 Lincoln College Lincoln College founded 1427 St Cross College St Cross College founded 1965 Trinity College Trinity College founded 1555 Magdalen College Magdalen College founded 1458 Critchleys Accountants to the festival Pasture to Plate Compassion in World Farming Human Ecology Project MACROVegan Symington Wines of the Douro Valley Princeton University Press Prestige publishing partner. Celebrating 25 years in Europe in 2024 European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Sponsor of the EBRD Literature Prize since 2018 ROOMS Georgia's leading lifestyle hotel brand since 2012. Supporters of the programme of Georgian literature and culture Jewish Book Week Partner of Oxford Literary Festival Foodbuy Thje Menu Partners Institute of Hospitality Goldmoney Properties Project People Oxford Brookes University Oxford International Centre for Publishing Confucius Institute Pusey House British Academy Festival academic partner Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies Oxford United Football Club Racalia Olive Oil Olive oil from Sicily BBC Radio Oxford Local radio partner Bear Ram Elk Festival Digital Strategy & Web Design Paul Bloomfield Ltd University of Oxford Alumni Office Alumni Office Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies Conference Oxford Felicity Bryan Associates CAV Oxford The Sheldonian Theatre Oxford University Images Oxford University Images Oxford University Department for Continuing Education Oxford Georgian Translation Project Supporter of the programme of Georgian literature and culture Force4Good Consultancy Corporate communications OX magazine Ox in a Box K T Bruce Photography K T Bruce Photography The Litmus Partnership Schoolreaders Windrush Group James Currey Society