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The Southbank Centre has announced music superstar and founder of the Service95 Book Club, Dua Lipa, as the curator of its 2026 London Literature Festival (Wednesday 21 October - Sunday 1 November).
Lipa will curate a series of events in the opening weekend (Saturday 24 & Sunday 25 October) as well as events across the whole festival with her book club. She says, “Reading has anchored me through every chapter of my life - from being the new kid at school in a new country to finding quiet refuge on tour. Curating the Southbank Centre’s London Literature Festival is a dream come true. I’m thrilled to indulge one of my greatest obsessions: books and the brilliant minds behind them. I can’t wait to dive into the imaginations of some of my favourite authors in one of London’s most iconic cultural spaces.”
Lipa launched the Service95 Book Club in 2023 - which is now also a culture platform - and each month she selects a book she loves and sits down with the author for the club's accompanying podcast. As a passionate advocate for reading, she also speaks up for marginalised readers who face barriers to books, including those affected by book bans or incarceration.
Presented as part of the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary year, and taking place during the National Year of Reading, this year marks the nineteenth edition of the London Literature Festival, the longest running literature and spoken word festival in the capital.
Mark Ball, Artistic Director of the Southbank Centre, says: “The Southbank Centre was borne out of the 1951 Festival of Britain - a moment that galvanised the nation using art, music, science and design to imagine a brighter future. 75 years later our anniversary programme is capturing that optimistic spirit of ‘51 by inviting global creative talent to help us celebrate the unifying power of arts and culture and to conjure up visions of the future.
“Dua Lipa is a global cultural force with millions of fans around the world, and her passion for the written and spoken word has inspired a new generation of readers. We’re absolutely thrilled that Dua will take the reins of our flagship London Literature Festival, applying her incredible creative talent, her advocacy and her reach to connect audiences to our finest writers.”
The Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary programme will also include You Are Here – a spectacular takeover of the site created, directed and designed by Danny Boyle, Paulette Randall, Gareth Pugh and Carson McColl (3 May)- as well as Harry Styles’ Meltdown (11 - 21 June), Goalhanger: The Rest Is Fest (4- 6 September) and Anish Kapoor returning to the Hayward Gallery (16 June - 18 October).
The onsite activity is joined by a national programme of art, literature and music – aiming to reach 1 million people in over 40 towns and cities across all four nations of the UK.
Dua’s curatorship of the London Literature Festival will include events that feature a mix of Dua’s favourite writers – both established and emerging – along with an array of free programming. The Festival takes place from Wednesday 21 October - Sunday 1 November, with the full line-up and dates for ticket releases announced in Summer 2026.
A survey by the National Literacy Trust last year in 2025 found that just one in three children aged eight to 18 read in their spare time (33 per cetn) – a 36 per cent decrease from 2005. The survey indicated a particularly steep drop over the last year among primary school children, and that reading continues to be less popular among boys than girls. The London Literature Festival will feature events designed to engage young people with books and storytelling, including creative collaborations from the world of gaming and special workshops, and a programme of free events.
For more information about the Southbank Centre’s 75th anniversary celebrations, visit the 75th Anniversary page here.
