Medway River Lit is the first literary festival for all of Medway in 25 years! Running since 2023, we are now programming our third year's festival to run in November 2025. It's produced by Medway-based literary organisation, Wordsmithery, in partnership with a range of local arts producers and organisations.
Medway River Lit is more than just a gathering of book lovers, it is a celebration of storytelling, creativity, and the vibrant cultural tapestry of the Medway Towns, with the aim of becoming a regular cornerstone for authors, poets and readers; transforming the region into a hub of literary exploration and inspiration. Our month of literary creativity contributes to wellbeing at a deep level.
It ought to be apparent to any arts organisation that a global climate emergency is a reality. Medway River Lit are making plans to address that locally in any way possible. We are small but we must do what we can. We will use our programme to model change and to tell stories that respond to the world we’re living in in this moment. We are working towards becoming a carbon neutral festival by 2020. This year our theme is 'Earth, Air, Fire and Water' and we'll be inviting authors whose work addresses this theme, as well as authors whose work doesn't.
We are known for programming a mix of internationally known writers: such as, Sir Ben Okri, Ben Aaronovitch, Caroline Bird, Cosey Fanni Tutti, Martin Figura, Helen Ivory, Patience Agbabi, JimBob, Megan Hunter, John McCullough, Theresa Lola; alongside local talents, such as Billy Childish, Bill Lewis, Maggie Harris, Sarah Hehir, Pauline Holmes, Michi Masumi and Maria McCarthy.
With seed funding from Medway Council to support core festival programming, we are now looking for additional funders to help expand what we can offer to our loyal audience.
"I thought Medway River Lit Festival thoughtful, thought-provoking, kindly in spirit and invaluable for the region" – Sir Ben Okri
“An ace gig - up there with the best experiences we’ve had on the tour” – Martin Figura
“A wonderfully creative event” – Adam Taylor
“Medway River Lit 24 was adorable and everything I love about the poetry community. Intimate, earnest, a celebration of sharing our vulnerabilities with lightness” – Lalah-Simone Springer
“I felt so relaxed and had a lovely time! You run an absolutely spiffing festival, I'm so glad for it, and hope to come again next year, either attending or participating or both!” – Zahra Barri
