City of Stories: Bradford’s Autumn Literary Programme – Preview

BBC Contains Strong Language live – the verb Image Credit: CSL.

This autumn, as part of Bradford 2025, the city is launching a bold literary programme that shines a spotlight on local authors and stories rooted in Bradford. This literary season promises to be rich, diverse, and unmissable. From an exhibition inspired by the imaginary worlds of the Brontë sisters, to a new collection of short stories, and the UK’s biggest poetry and performance festival for new writing. 

‘Wandering Imaginations’: Reimagining the World of the Brontës

‘Wandering Imaginations’ is a new exhibition that brings together four original short stories inspired by the Brontës’ fictional world of Angria — a fantastical realm they imagined in childhood, mapped onto the coast of West Africa. Written by emerging writers Kristina Diprose and C.M Govender from Bradford, and Akorfa Dawson and Peggy Kere Osman from Ghana, these new stories reimagine Angria through the lenses of fantasy and science fiction. You can read our interview with Kristina and Claire about their creative process, the impact of cross-cultural collaboration, and how the integration of audio and visual storytelling shaped their narratives here. 

The stories will be exhibited at the iconic Brontë Parsonage Museum in Haworth from 24 September to 31 December 2025. Visitors can experience them as immersive audiobooks, accompanied by bespoke animations and illustrations created for Bradford 2025 by Yorkshire-based artist Fran Haslam and Ghanaian artist Karen Kutame. To mark the opening, a special launch event featuring all four writers will take place in Haworth as part of the annual Brontë Women’s Writing Festival.

Wandering Imaginations Bradford. Image Credit: Andrew Benge.

‘The Book of Bradford’: A Literary Portrait of the City

As part of its City of Culture celebrations, Bradford 2025 has partnered with Comma Press to publish ‘The Book of Bradford’ – a powerful new short story collection exploring the city’s past, present, and ever-evolving identity. Edited by journalist and author Saima Mir, the anthology brings together authors with deep ties to the district, including Ross Raisin, Sairish Hussain, Nick Ahad, and more. Together their stories offer a vivid literary portrait of Bradford’s diverse racial, cultural, ethnic, and socioeconomic landscape. Among them: a tale of a successful businessman haunted by a deep yearning for the past as he returns home; or a story of a single mother, growing estranged from her son as she protests delays to the city centre’s redevelopment. 

Book of Bradford cover. Image Credit: Comma Press.

Dubbed “a city in short fiction,” the collection is an ode to the spirit of Bradford 2025. It pays homage to the city’s literary heritage while celebrating its future, shining a light on local voices and lived experience. Themes of identity, belonging, migration, and connection run through the anthology, serving as a reminder of the city’s resilience, diverse identity, and its role as a modern, dynamic place shaped by youthful energy and a vibrant cultural landscape.

‘The Book of Bradford’ will launch on 20 September at Loading Bay, where audiences can hear from editor Saima Mir and contributors Ross Raisin, Sairish Hussain, and Nick Ahad as they discuss their work, inspirations, and relationships to the city. Exclusive pre-publication copies will be available on the night, with the book on general sale from 2 October via local vendors including Waterstones and Grove Bookshop in Ilkley, and through Comma Press’s website.

Ross Raisin. Image Credit: Stephen Garnett.

‘Contains Strong Language’: The Festival Comes to Bradford

To celebrate Bradford’s rich literary culture, the UK’s biggest poetry and performance festival for new writing, ‘Contains Strong Language,’ is coming to the city from 18–21 September 2025. This annual festival of poetry, performance, and spoken word will bring four exciting days of readings, live events, and creative activities to venues across Bradford. Headlining this year’s programme is acclaimed spoken-word artist and musician Antony Szmierek, who will perform a special intimate gig. Meanwhile, Simon Armitage will join Laurel Prize judges Kathleen Jamie, Daljit Nagra, and Caroline Lucas to announce the winner of this year’s prestigious nature and environmental poetry award. 

The programme includes a wide range of poetry readings, including Bradford Open Mic Night, BBC Introducing, and a series of poetry shorts featuring writers like Andrew McMillan, Kim Moore, and Testament. These shorts will explore powerful themes including the mind and body, poetry’s role in social action, and the blurred boundaries between lyrics, spoken word, and music. Throughout the festival, a range of BBC Radio 4 programmes will also be recorded or broadcast live from the city – including flagship arts show ‘Front Row’ and ‘Start the Week,’ the weekly discussion series that sets the cultural agenda every Monday. 

BBC Contains Strong Language live – the verb. Image Credit: CSL.

Together, these events form a vibrant and ambitious literary season that celebrates Bradford’s voices, honours its heritage, and embraces new and diverse perspectives.  Whether you’re discovering the reimagined worlds of the Brontës, exploring the city’s layered identity through fiction, or immersing yourself in powerful spoken word, this autumn’s programme invites everyone to experience Bradford as a City of Stories. 

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For more information or to book tickets for any of the above events visit Bradford 2025 at https://bradford2025.co.uk/.