Hosted by My Virtual Literary Festival, the Big Book Weekend was streamed globally from the 8th– 10th May. The panels, interviews and performances were taken from a variety of cancelled UK literary festivals, and this variety did not disappoint! There were appearances from Killing Eve author Luke Jennings, 2019 Booker Prize winner Bernardine Evaristo, comedian Robert Webb and many more. 

All of the events were pre-recorded to avoid technical glitches but many tuned in as soon as they were uploaded to chat about the panels. And, although virtual, this interactive festival attempted to recreate the atmosphere of your typical festival, with online features such as the theatre, box office, café and exhibition hall. 

Highlights from the festival include a wonderful conversation from Neil Gaiman and Sam Weller. Based on the centenary of the iconic Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451, the event involved a discussion into how Ray’s work had influenced both Neil and Sam. Charming biographical details were shared, including how Ray Bradbury was born on the 22nd August at 4:50 pm, only one minute away from 451. More than anything, however, the talk created a positive atmosphere and delivered a hopeful view for the post-pandemic future. To quote Neil Gaiman: 

             “Right now we’re in whatever – I don’t think there’s an English word for it, but we are in the place between the inhale and the exhale, between the exhale and the inhale. We are at that moment of stasis, of pause. We’re in the themata, the caesura, in which we’re not breathing. We’re not exhaling, we’re not inhaling; we’re just waiting to see what’s happening.”

Laura Lam and Temi Oh produced a captivating panel about their science fiction stories, with Nicole Brandon as their host. It included funny anecdotes such as not being a suitable spacewoman candidate because astronauts are forced to swallow their toothpaste while in space. This uplifting talk will definitely leave you feeling enlightened while also enticing you to read both of their sci-fi novels.

The Michael Morpurgo interview focused on his WW2 books in honour of the 75th anniversary of VE Day, but also included heart-warming tales that inspired him to write the famous WW1 stories War Horse and Private Peaceful. This interview is guaranteed to leave you with chills from the emotional tales of the past.

The founders of the event, Kit de Wall and Molly Flatt have put together an amazing festival, and it is definitely worth watching the brilliant line up that they have assembled. If you missed the festival, you can still catch all of the videos online at https://myvlf.com/ .

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