A festival favourite and one of Britain’s most engaging live performers, Jackie Kay brings warmth, wit and extraordinary humanity to every reading.

Join us for this special event as the acclaimed poet, novelist and former Scottish Makar performs a selection of poems from her landmark new collection, Selected Poems 1991 – 2026, spanning more than three decades of extraordinary work.

From the groundbreaking The Adoption Papers to the acclaimed May Day, Jackie’s poetry explores love and loss, childhood and family, activism and community, history and the present day, all bound together by the compassion, humour and emotional insight that define her work.

‘Jackie Kay is the people‘s poet because she puts language where it starts – in our mouths, and holds it where it belongs – in our hearts.’ Jeanette Winterson

Rich in compassion and the power of performance, this is a rare opportunity to experience one of our finest writers reading from a body of work that has moved and inspired generations. An uplifting and memorable final event to 2026 Festival.

Jackie Kay is an award-winning poet, novelist and writer of short stories whose works include Trumpet, Red Dust Road and the acclaimed poetry collections Fiere, Bantam and May Day. Scotland’s Makar (National Poet) from 2016 – 21, she is Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Salford and a Patron of Manchester Literature Festival.

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