Bristol City Council & BANES Council: Joint News Release 14/06/2013

culled from http://www.yardstick.org.uk

Bristol and Bath host the best of Black Writers’ Festival

An impressive array of international writing talent comes to the

Bristol and Bath area this month in a festival which celebrates

literature from around the world.

A dozen of the best writers and performance poets from across the

African Diaspora will be taking part in the Yardstick Festival in

Bristol and Bath libraries from June 27 to 30.

Prestigious authors at the festival will include Lorna Goodison, Tanya

Shirley, Geoffrey Philp (all Jamaican), Lemn Sissay (British Ethiopian),

Warsan Shire (Somali), Mukoma Wa Ngugi (Kenyan), Nick Makoha (Ugandan),

Leeto Thale (South African) and Jamala Safari (Congolese).

Also taking part will be Emman Egya Sule (Nigerian), Nii Ayikwei Parkes

(Ghana), Dean Atta (British Jamaican) and Chioma Okereke (Nigerian)

Lorna Goodison, Jamaica 50 Cultural Medal of Honour recipient and

festival patron, will headline the opening event at Bath Central Library

on Thursday, June 27, followed with Yardstick’s Griot

Globetrotters group performance in Bristol on Friday, June 28 and Bath

on Saturday, June 29. Lemn Sissay at Bristol Central Library will

headline the final day on Sunday, June 30. The closing event is a VIP

After-show late evening party with poet Dean Atta

The festival will also include a series of thought-provoking panel

discussions. These will include Rural v Urban, chaired by Chino Odimba

(Bristol, June 28), Lost in Translation, chaired by Dee Jarrett-Macauley

(Bath, June 29), and Black Publishing chaired by Richard Jones (Bristol,

June 30).

There will also be two writing workshops on Friday, June 28. Warsan

Shire and Chioma Okereke will be at City Academy, Redfield.  Geoffrey

Philp and Jamala Safari will work with students at North Bristol Post-16

Centre, Cotham. The centre is providing up to 16 volunteers for the

festival.

Councillor David Dixon, Bath and North East Somerset Council’s

Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, said: “For the second year running,

Bath & North East Somerset Council is proud to welcome inspirational

writers and enthusiastic audiences to Bath Central Library for the

Yardstick Festival. We’re also presenting a ‘sound portrait’ by

Karen Wallis, on Sunday, June 30 at 2pm – a free event at the library

which offers a fascinating insight into Fairfield House; the place where

Haile Selassie lived during his exile from Ethiopia, and which is now

used by Bath minority and ethnic groups.”

Councillor Gus Hoyt, Assistant Mayor with responsibility for

Neighbourhoods, Environment and Council Housing, for Bristol City

Council, said: “This is a thrilling line-up of talent and I’m very

pleased that Bristol will be co-hosting this event with Bath.

“It’s also a brilliant opportunity to celebrate and explore the work

of authors, poets and performers from across the African diaspora.”

Richard Dowden, Director of The Royal African Society, said: “We are

thrilled to be working with Yardstick Festival this year to bring some

of the best African authors and literature to Bristol and London, and we

look forward to an enduring partnership”

Emma D’Costa (Commonwealth Writers) said: ”Commonwealth Writers is

delighted to partner with Yardstick to celebrate the writers E.E. Sule

from Nigeria and Jamala Safari from South Africa. The festival is a

great opportunity for them to engage with other writers across the

African Diaspora in an inspiring programme of events. This year, both

writers were recognised by the Commonwealth Book Prize and Yardstick is

an important platform for them to reach out to a wider audience.”

Photographers are invited to attend:

1. The Yardstick launch reception at the Guildhall, Bath, at 6pm on

Thursday, June 27, attended by the Chair of BANES

2. A writing workshop by Warsan Shire who will be joined by Nigerian

poet and novelist Chioma Okereke at the City Academy Bristol at 11am on

Friday, June 28

3. A Lord Mayor’s reception held at Bristol Mansion House at 3.30pm

on Friday 28th June, where the Lord Mayor will be hosting Yardstick

authors in the festival for afternoon tea

For further information about the Yardstick festival please contact

Asif Khan, Library Community Engagement Coordinator, on 0117 9037 218,

or email asif.khan@bristol.gov.uk

Ends

Note to the Editor:

Yardstick is an initiative, supported by Arts Council England, for

developing Black writers and audiences through spoken word performances,

discussion panels and creative writing workshops.

Yardstick seeks to create and promote a platform for African Diaspora

literature and cultural themes, in public venues and spaces, such as

libraries.

Bristol Central Library and Bath Central Library will host this

year’s festival. This year Yardstick is partnering with Africa

Writes and Commonwealth Writers Prize.

1. Yardstick’s full programme and ticket information can be found at

http://www.yardstick.org.uk

2. Yardstick festival patrons are Jamaican poet Lorna Goodison and

Barbadian Alissandra Cummins, chair of UNESCO’s Executive board. The

festival partnership involves Bristol Libraries, Bath & North East

Somerset Library Service, Plymouth Library Service and City Chameleon

Ltd – who supported the programming.

3. Yardstick 2013 was awarded  £44,500 from Arts Council England’s

Grants for the arts.

4. Africa Writes is the UK’s largest festival of African Literature,

with performances, discussions and workshops taking place at the British

Library and Rich Mix in London. This year the festival runs from July 5

to 7 and includes a book fair, where you can buy and get signed copies

of books by participating authors, and a market with stalls selling

delicious African food, jewellery, clothes and more.

Africa Writes is programmed and produced by the Royal African Society.

We are co-sponsors with Africa Writes of Mukoma Wa Ngugi’s visit to the

UK to participate in both of our festivals.

Ffi http://www.royalafricansociety.org/africawrites2013

5. Commonwealth Writers inspires writers, storytellers and a range of

cultural practitioners to work for social change. It builds communities

of less heard and emerging voices to influence, directly and indirectly,

the decision-making processes which affect their lives. In line with

this vision, the Commonwealth Book Prize and Short Story Prize unearth

talented writers to take part in online residencies and on-the-ground

activities – as well as inspiring others through their work. Two of

Yardstick’s participants, Jamala Safari and E. E. Sule, were on the 2013

Book Prize (Africa Region) short-list – from which E.E. Sule was the

eventual category winner.

Ffi http://www.commonwealthwriters.org

6. The programme is designed with the support of Bertel Martin,

Director at City Chameleon, a Bristol-based publishing company