
Established in 2006, the Huddersfield Literature Festival (HLF) takes place annually in March in venues across the town.
The Festival welcomes around 150 performers and audiences of 4,000+ each year. We host approximately 50 events every year, in around 20 venues across the town. Our approval rating ranges from 98% – 100% every year (where audiences surveyed rate the events they attended as Excellent or Good). The Festival operates as a not-for-profit limited company, supported by grants, ticket sales and sponsorship.
Alongside major names, HLF offers a diverse range of innovative and creative events, including workshops and performance opportunities for emerging talent and the wider public.
HLF aims to celebrate the written word by bringing big name authors to Huddersfield and supporting local talent,to promote Huddersfield as a cultural centre to rival others, not only in West Yorkshire but UK-wide, to bring people and revenue into the town centre for multi-venue events and encourage spending in the town centre (shops, bars, restaurants) and to provide access to events for those who might not normally attend because of financial or social issues or for reasons such as disability.
Inclusivity and accessibility is at the heart of everything we do. Several events are free or low cost and we actively reach out to and welcome approaches from local communities and organisations. The Festival fully and unequivocally supports the Black Lives Matter movement. We also support calls by the Black Writers’ Guild to address deep-seated inequalities in the publishing and wider book world, as reported in The Guardian in June 2020.