Black British Book Festival

Black British Book Festival
BBBF
StatusActive
GenreLiterature
FrequencyAnnually, in October
LocationEngland
Inaugurated2021 (2021)
Organized bySelina Brown
Websiteblackbritishbookfestival.com

The Black British Book Festival (BBBF) was launched in 2021 with a mission "to create a space where Black British authors were celebrated, not sidelined".[1] Held annually, the one-day BBBF has been described as Europe's largest Black literature event.[2][3] The festival's founder is Selina Brown, a British author of Jamaican heritage.[4] Since its launch the festival has reached over 100,000 people and expanded into a national movement spanning London, Manchester and Birmingham.[5]

History

Founder and CEO Selina Brown was inspired to start the Black British Book Festival (BBBF) after she successfully self-published her first two books – Before Breath (2015) and Nena: The Green Juice (2020) – following disappointing experiences when she had tried to interest existing publishers.[6][7] The BBBF was created to celebrate emerging Black British authors across all genres.[8]

Prior to founding the festival, Brown had worked at the BBC, MTV and Freud Communications, with experience spanning New York, Kenya and Gambia. She became Youth MP for Nottingham at the age of 16 and obtained two degrees and a Masters by the age of 21.[9]

First held in October 2021 in Birmingham, the BBBF drew 800 attendees in its inaugural year, attracting twice that number in the next year.[6] Notable speakers included David Olusoga, Lenny Henry, Jasmine Richards and T. L. Huchu, with headline sponsorship from Pan Macmillan, Penguin Random House and BookTrust.[6][10]

In 2023, the BBBF moved to London for a two-day event at the Southbank Centre, opening with Leigh-Anne Pinnock launching her memoir Believe. Further speakers included Clive Myrie, Oti Mabuse, Fats Timbo, Gary Younge, Candice Braithwaite, Dawn Butler and Joseph Coelho.[11][12] Headline sponsors that year included Pan Macmillan, Audible, Hachette, Simon & Schuster and Penguin.[13] Brown also curated a Black literature event with the artist George the Poet at the Glastonbury Festival that year.[14]

In 2024, the festival was held at the Barbican Centre, with speakers including Grammy Award-winning rapper Eve, who discussed her autobiography Who's That Girl?; Diane Abbott, the UK's first Black female Member of Parliament; presenter Charlene White; activists Mikaela Loach and Kwajo Tweneboa; and Paul Brunson.[15] Also appearing was poet Caleb Femi.[16]

In 2025, the festival returned to the Barbican Centre for its fifth edition on 19 October, now attracting over 5,500 attendees annually.[17][18] Headline speakers included Sir Lenny Henry and Marcus Ryder MBE in a conversation on reparations titled "The Big Payback"; June Sarpong OBE and Denise Lewis DBE in conversation on legacy and identity; Jordan Stephens on fame, fatherhood and mental health; American author and entrepreneur Tabitha Brown at her first UK appearance; and JB Gill of JLS.[19] A new community-led publishing model was also announced between the festival and four-year-long sponsors Pan Macmillan, including the Writers on the Rise mentorship programme, which connects emerging writers with Pan Macmillan editors to provide one-to-one guidance and industry support.[20][21][22]

In March 2026, founder Selina Brown was awarded the inaugural Queen's Reading Room Medal by Queen Camilla at a ceremony at Clarence House, becoming the first person to receive the honour and the first to be named the United Kingdom's National Reading Hero. The citation recognised her work in founding the Black British Book Festival and for bringing inclusive stories into primary schools in areas with low literacy rates.[23][24][25] Brown also spoke at the London Book Fair in March 2026 on a panel addressing equity of expression and the representation of marginalised voices in publishing.[26]

Collaborations

In 2023, the BBBF toured the UK, with some 60 authors going to seven cities, including events held in unconventional community spaces such as chicken shops, hairdressers, sportswear shops and shopping centres, with the aim of reaching communities historically underserved by the publishing industry.[6][27] The festival has also showcased the work of Black writers in partnership with major cultural and literary initiatives such as the Hay Festival,[28] the Cheltenham Literature Festival[29][30] and the Glastonbury Festival.[1][31] The BBBF has organised "takeovers" of Manchester Central Library, with 3,000 attendees at the March 2025 event, featuring authors including Kehinde Andrews, Joseph Coelho, Kit de Waal, Jeffrey Boakye and DJ Paulette.[32][33]

In 2023, the BBBF opened the Croydon Black Book Community Library, a dedicated space for Black literature in South London, where children and readers can discover books reflecting their experiences and heritage.[34][35] The festival has also worked with the Arts Council England, which featured Brown in a profile interview in 2024.[36]

In 2024–25, the BBBF was awarded one of five inaugural Beyond Literature Borders grants by the British Council and Speaking Volumes, an international literature development fund designed to support cross-cultural literary exchange between the UK and countries across the Global South.[37][38] The grant funded a Writers Programme delivered in partnership with the Jamaica Book Festival, consisting of a six-week digital fellowship for emerging Black writers of Jamaican heritage aged 18–35 from the UK and Jamaica, led by facilitator DD Armstrong with guest authors Ashley Hickson-Lovence and Earl Moxam.[39][40] The fellowship brought together 24 writers across two time zones to explore themes of identity, heritage, migration and belonging through creative nonfiction. It culminated in the Fi Wi Time anthology, published in June 2025, featuring work by Claramae Flemming, Muminah Koleoso, Kareen Brooks, Kenloy Smith, Careese Hutchinson, Keenan Falconer, Dr. Maxine Meju, Llyrio Boateng, Hannah Adereti, Kerece 'Lilanie' Williams, Shanese Oneida Whyte, and others, with forewords by DD Armstrong and Selina Brown.[41]

Awards and recognition

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Carpenter, Caroline (12 March 2025). "Selina Brown: 'I want the Black British Book Festival to continue long after me'". The Bookseller. Retrieved 24 April 2025.
  2. ↑ Campbell, Josel (21 August 2024). "Are you ready for Europe's largest Black literature event?". The Voice.
  3. ↑ Ezaydi, Shahed (2024). "The Black British Book Festival returns for a fourth year at the Barbican Centre". Stylist.
  4. ↑ Clare (21 June 2023). "Q&A with Selina Brown". Writers & Artists. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  5. ↑ "Selina Brown Honoured as National Reading Hero at Inaugural Queen's Reading Room Medal". Black History Month. 26 March 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Brown, Lauren (26 May 2023). "The Black British Book Festival looks to broaden its reach—again". The Bookseller. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  7. ↑ Brown, Selina (24 October 2023). "'There was an apprehension that the book might be deemed "too Black"'". The Standard. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  8. ↑ "About". Black British Book Festival.
  9. ↑ "Selina Brown: 'How I created the Black British Book Festival'". The Big Issue. 31 October 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  10. ↑ "Festival celebrating black authors comes to Birmingham". BBC News. 1 June 2022. Retrieved 2 April 2025.
  11. ↑ "Pinnock, Mabuse and more confirmed for Black British Book Festival as event moves to London". The Bookseller. 30 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  12. ↑ "The Black British Book Festival". Time Out. 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  13. ↑ "Pinnock, Mabuse and more confirmed for Black British Book Festival". The Bookseller. 30 June 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  14. ↑ "Selina Brown: 'How I created the Black British Book Festival'". The Big Issue. 31 October 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  15. ↑ "Black British Book Festival 2024". Barbican Centre. 5 October 2024. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  16. ↑ "Black British Book Festival founder Selina Brown". The Blk Brit. 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  17. ↑ "The Black British Book Festival returns to London's Barbican". Pan Macmillan. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  18. ↑ "Fifth Black British Book Festival at the Barbican, London". The Guardian. 18 October 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  19. ↑ "Black British Book Festival 2025". Barbican Centre. 19 October 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  20. ↑ Efemini, Claudia (28 October 2025). "Black British book festival launches publisher". The Guardian. Retrieved 2 November 2025.
  21. ↑ "How the Black British Book Festival is amplifying Black voices". Pan Macmillan. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  22. ↑ "BBBF expands reach with new publisher partnership". The Voice. November 2025. pp. 28–9.
  23. ↑ "Selina Brown named UK's first National Reading Hero at inaugural Queen's Reading Room Medal ceremony". Brittle Paper. 1 April 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  24. ↑ "Author "still taking it in" after winning award from Queen Camilla". Royal News. 26 March 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  25. ↑ "The Queen's Reading Room crowns Selina Brown as National Reading Hero". The Bookseller. 26 March 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  26. ↑ "What's On for March 11 at the London Book Fair". Publishing Perspectives. 11 March 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  27. ↑ "Celebrating the Success of the Black British Book Festival's Nationwide Tour". Black British Book Festival. 30 November 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  28. ↑ Wood, Heloise (2 April 2024). "Black British Book Festival partners with Hay Festival". The Bookseller. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  29. ↑ "Highlighting BBBF's Engaging Takeover at Cheltenham Literature Festival". Black British Book Festival. 30 November 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  30. ↑ Gorman, Chloe (8 September 2023). "Cheltenham Literature Festival announces its free programme for 2023". SoGlos. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  31. ↑ "Black British Book Festival makes history at Glastonbury Festival". Black British Book Festival. 30 November 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  32. ↑ Campbell, Joel (January 2025). "Book the date, it's time for more BBBF". The Voice. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  33. ↑ "Record audience at Black British Book Festival". Manchester Libraries Blog. 2025. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
  34. ↑ "Community library showcasing Black writers opens in Croydon". SE Londoner. 14 December 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  35. ↑ "Guest Interview – Selina Brown". Storytime Magazine. May 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  36. ↑ "Five Questions With... Selina Brown, CEO of the Black British Book Festival". Arts Council England. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  37. ↑ "Black British Book Fest and Poetry Wales awarded inaugural Beyond Literature Borders grants". The Bookseller. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  38. ↑ "Beyond Literature Borders". British Council. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  39. ↑ "Beyond Literature Borders Grantees 2024–25". Speaking Volumes. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  40. ↑ "Fi Wi Time: A New Generation Speaks". Black British Book Festival. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  41. ↑ "Fiwi Time Anthology: Stories of Truth, Power and Identity from a New Generation". Everand. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  42. ↑ "Black British Book Festival founder Selina Brown". The Blk Brit. 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  43. ↑ "Black British Book Festival founder Selina Brown". The Blk Brit. 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  44. ↑ "Selina Brown named UK's first National Reading Hero". Brittle Paper. 1 April 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
  45. ↑ "The Queen's Reading Room crowns Selina Brown as National Reading Hero". The Bookseller. 26 March 2026. Retrieved 28 June 2026.
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