Rebecca Lucy Taylor a.k.a Self Esteem to curate at this year's Southbank Centre's London Literature Festival

09 July 2025 - Press release

The festival also features Adam Buxton, Alexis Wright, Bora Chung, Charlie Macksey, Chris Kraus, Claire-Louise Bennett, Frank Cottrell-Boyce, Funmi Fetto, Jackie Kay, Jimi Famurewa, Kelly Frost, Lisa Smith, Malala Yousafzai, Michael Rosen, Nikita Gill, Neoprene Genie, Nesrine Malik, Olga Ravn, Pankaj Mishra, Rachael Boast, Reese Witherspoon & Harlan Coben, Róisín Lanigan, Sayaka Murata, Sebastian Faulks, Simon Armitage, Zadie Smith and more to be announced

 

Highlights include: 

• Mercury Prize-nominated artist Rebecca Lucy Taylor, a.k.a Self Esteem, to curate a day of exclusive events (Sat 1 Nov). Rebecca will be joined by Dolly Alderton for the launch of her debut book, A Complicated Woman, followed by a night of music and poetry alongside multi-disciplinary artists Tom Rasmussen, Marged, Travis Alabanza, Seraphina Simone, Pam Ayres and more to be announced. Free events will take place across the Southbank Centre's site.
• International women writers come to the fore as the festival celebrates new works from Sayaka Murata, Chris Kraus, Alexis Wright, Bora Chung and Olga Ravn.
• Launching the best new fiction and non-fiction from key cultural voices including Sebastian Faulks, Jimi Famurewa, Zadie Smith, Adam Buxton, Malala Yousafzai, Claire-Louise Bennett and Reese Witherspoon & Harlan Coben.
• Families and children can enjoy free and ticketed events throughout the festival: including exclusive events with the children's laureate Frank Cottrell-Boyce and a run of Mog the Forgetful Cat. 
• Poetry dominates the festival on Saturday 25 October with new works from Poet Laureate Simon Armitage, Out-Spoken, Rachael Boast and the National Poetry Library open day.

 

Rebecca Lucy Taylor a.k.a Self Esteem, curator at the London Literature Festival, says: "I'm honoured to be curating at this year's London Literature Festival. I've never really believed there to be rigid lines between songwriting, art, poetry and prose. I've always longed to be free from genre and labels, not just in my own work, but also in the art I'm drawn to. I want it all because I am greedy, and I'm no longer going to apologise for that. I am so excited to explore this through my involvement with the London Literature Festival, alongside a host of multidisciplinary artists I admire and am inspired by."

Mark Ball, Artistic Director of the Southbank Centre, says: "The Southbank Centre is a place where culture makers come to congregate, collaborate and create their best work, and we're delighted that Rebecca Lucy Taylor, a.k.a Self Esteem will bring her extraordinary vision to the curation of events at this year's London Literature Festival. A key highlight in the capital's cultural calendar, the London Literature Festival promises something for everyone, bringing unbeatable cultural experiences to audiences with a line-up that spans writers at the forefront of international literature - such as Chris Kraus and Malala Yousafzai - through to events which offer a platform to those at the very start of their careers." 

Ted Hodgkinson, Head of Literature & Spoken Word at the Southbank Centre, says: "I'm thrilled to be collaborating with one of my favourite artists, Rebecca Lucy Taylor, a.k.a Self Esteem. Rebecca is a masterful chronicler of what it is to be a young woman today; with her unmistakably frank and funny lyricism, Rebecca's writing acts as a striking reminder of the galvanising power of great literature. Right across the festival programme we celebrate a range of extraordinary women writers and cultural figures, from Sayaka Murata and Zadie Smith, to Reese Witherspoon launching an exciting new collaboration with Harlan Coben. We're proud to continue our dedication to new and emerging talent, with our long-standing partnership with Creative Future's Writers' Day, the annual Debut London Literature and New Poets Collective showcases, supporting the next generation of writers and creators."

 

From Tuesday 21 October - Sunday 2 November, the Southbank Centre will present the eighteenth edition of the London Literature Festival - the capital's leading literary event. For more than 70 years, the Southbank Centre has operated as an engine of creativity in the heart of London; this year's festival encapsulates this ethos, with a programme that promises unforgettable experiences for everyone.  

 

SELF-ESTEEM'S CURATION 
At the heart of this year's programme, a specially-curated day of events from the Mercury Prize-nominated musician and songwriter Rebecca Lucy Taylor, a.k.a Self Esteem offers an exclusive opportunity to experience her inimitable prowess as a wordsmith. Marking the publication of her debut book, A Complicated Woman, Taylor will discuss her lyrics, songwriting and personal experience in conversation with Dolly Alderton. The day concludes with an evening of music and spoken word alongside a host of multi-disciplinary artists including musician Tom Rasmussen, Electronic artist Marged, performance artist Travis Alabanza and poet and comedian Pam Ayres. Free events will be scheduled to take place throughout the Clore Ballroom on the day (1 Nov). 

 

KEY CULTURAL VOICES
A stage for the best international writing, acclaimed authors will share new works including a UK exclusive event from the award-winning storytellers Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben, who mark the publication of their new thriller Gone Before Goodbye (24 Oct). In a London exclusive event, the activist and author Malala Yousafzai presents a story of friendship, love and remarkable courage in the form of her unforgettable new memoir Finding My Way (2 Nov). Convenience Store Woman author, Sayaka Murata will discuss her much-anticipated new book set in the new future (22 Oct), and I Love Dick author Chris Kraus (23 Oct) will share a new novel, a witty journey into a fractured America. Acclaimed British novelists share much-anticipated new works from Birdsong writer Sebastian Faulks (29 Oct) who celebrates the London exclusive launch of his latest book and Zadie Smith (2 Nov) discusses her new collection of essays on subjects ranging from Stormzy to global politics. 

 

EMERGING TALENT
A home for emerging talent, the festival gives early-career writers the floor as the festival continues its long-standing partnership with the Creative Future Writers' Award (25 Oct). The annual Debut London Literature panel (Sun 26 Oct) offers a chance to hear from the most exciting debut writers whose works paint vivid portraits of the city, including Funmi Fetto, Lisa Smith, Kelly Frost and Róisín Lanigan. The international contemporary writing magazine Wasafiri also hosts a two-part event as they celebrate the sixteenth edition of the Wasafiri New Writing Prize 2025 (30 Oct). 

POETRY
The National Poetry Library's annual Poetry Day takes over the festival on Saturday 25 October with a series of free events including live poetry readings from Rachael Boast, who offers a discussion of disability, deafness, neurodivergence and poetry, and an afternoon with Poet Laureate Simon Armitage. The Poet Laureate returns for an expanded version of the monthly Out-Spoken featuring readings from Simon Armitage, Michael Rosen, Jackie Kay and more special guests. 

 

Tickets for London Literature Festival go on sale to Southbank Centre Members on Wednesday 9 July and to the general public on Thursday 10 July.