PRESENTING WoWFEST: 25 YEARS OF RADICAL WRITING
Join our birthday celebrations as we welcome old friends and first-time guests for a fantastic festival throughout May 2025. Ft. John Cooper Clarke * Salena Godden * Joelle Taylor * Irvine Welsh * Frank Cottrell Boyce * The Singh Twins * Armando Iannucci * Michael Rosen * Jackie Kay * Jordan Stephens * Phil Scraton * Simon O’Brien * Mike Berners-Lee * Kit De Waal * Gary Younge * Brian Bilston * Henry Normal * Chris Nineham * Niheen Dasandi * Roger Hill * Yusuf Aliamal * Basma Ghalayini * Skinnyman * Anthony Anaxagorou * lisa luxx * Paddy Hillyard * John Finucane * Levi Tafari.
WoWFEST unleashes the power of storytelling with a month of top class events that offers something for everyone. We want you to help us celebrate 25 years of radical writing as we look forward to the next chapter of storytelling that challenges, inspires, and changes the world.
Huge thanks to all partners, artists, audiences, funders, sponsors & everyone from the WoW community that has supported us over the last 25 years.
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“As we mark our 25th anniversary, we reflect on the journey that has shaped Writing on the Wall since our first festival in June 2000. Founded on principles of social justice, we have always been a voice for change, a platform for truth, and a home for writers, artists, activists, and communities—from the Dingle to Dakota and beyond.
Through writing, art, music, and words, we have captured the struggles of our time, using creativity to inspire, engage, and empower. Balancing entertainment and activism, we have driven positive change—publishing over 500 writers in the past decade alone and paving the way for emerging talent through projects like Liverpool Young Writers and Pulp Idol.
WoW’s roots lie in the Liverpool Dockers’ Lockout, and the resilience of those who fought then is imprinted in our DNA. Against the backdrop of today’s global challenges—poverty, genocide, climate change, rising racism, and attacks on human rights—we believe writers and artists are vital voices for hope and change.
As we celebrate this milestone, we recognise the work still to be done. Together, we write, we fight, and we build a better world. We are proud to present our 25th anniversary festival—here’s to the next 25 years of Writing on the Wall.”
Madeline Heneghan and Mike Morris, Co-Directors of Writing on the Wall
