Celebrating 10 years in 2019, from 26th-29th September, Marlborough LitFest is delighted to announce this year’s Golding Speaker as Man Booker Prize-winning author, Ben Okri. Ben will be appearing on Friday, 27th September, talking about his recently published novel, The Freedom Artist.
Acclaimed essayist, playwright and poet, Okri has won many prizes over the years for his fiction, including being awarded the OBE in 2001. He has published eight novels, including the Booker Prize-winning book, The Famished Road (1991), the first in a trilogy, and his work has been translated into more than 20 languages.
The Freedom Artist has been named one of the Books of the Year 2019 in The Guardian, The Times, The Irish Times and Waterstones. It is an impassioned plea for freedom and justice, set in a world uncomfortably like our own.
Marlborough LitFest hosts its annual Golding Speaker to highlight the town’s connection with Nobel Laureate and Booker Prize winner, William Golding, at an event sponsored by the William Golding estate. Past Golding Speakers include Rose Tremain, Will Self, Lionel Shriver, Louis de Bernieres, Fay Weldon and Howard Jacobson.
Marlborough LitFest’s Kay Newman, said: “It is an honour to have such a prestigious and internationally acclaimed author as Ben Okri for this year’s Golding Speaker, especially in our 10th year.”
The 2019 programme is currently being planned and will bring a host of good writing to Marlborough from Thursday to Sunday, featuring new and young novelists, as well as established names, a range of topics, children’s authors, workshops and poetry events.
• The full programme will be available from late June; with tickets going on sale in early July.
For more information, visit www.marlboroughlitfest.org