Talks – Manchester & Salford Anarchist Bookfair 2026

Here’s the current programme of talks for Manchester & Salford Anarchist Bookfair 2026 taking place on 🎃Saturday 31st October🎃 at the People’s History Museum.

Please keep an eye on website and social media for any updates and changes.

Learning Zone

10:30 – 11:30 Network of Radical Libraries and Archives open meeting – NORLA
Find out about NORLA (Network of Radical libraries and Archives) and how to join the network. Tell us about your archive interests, pick up free stuff and donate books!

11:30 – 12:30 Founding Freedom: Charlotte Wilson – Mike Finn

12:30 – 1:30 Anarchists, Squats, Punks and Spaniards: the Forgotten History of Centro Iberico 1971-198 – Nick Soulsby
It’s hard to imagine a desolate London where an entire four-floor Victorian school stood empty, ready to provide sanctuary to radical organisers and radical music. Likewise, that it should owe its origins to a Spanish Civil War anarchist in exile who would also provide the spark for the Angry Brigade. This is the tangled tale of Centro Iberico, the U.K. ‘s only enduring anarchist centre of the late 70s-early 80s.

1:45 – 2:45 But: Life Isn’t Like That, Is It? – Boff Whalley
Tying in with a new collection of stories by Boff Whalley – musician, author, and a founding member of the anarcho-punk band Chumbawamba and Commoners Choir – this event is part reading, part gig and part conversation.
Boff will play songs from a lifetime of writing and making music, songs which chime with the book, and will draw from a personal history of creative activism as well as telling stories about real lives, real people, and real life. Stuttering, wayward, disjointed, funny, ridiculous, and pretty much unplanned.
With the release of ‘But’, Boff has toured countless bookshops, libraries and venues both the UK and USA.
‘But’ is published by PM Press.

3:00 – 4:00 Take Action in Palestine – International Solidarity Movement
In this workshop, attendees will hear first-hand accounts from members of the Palestinian-led International Solidarity Movement (ISM) (palsolidarity.org), who provide solidarity presence in Palestinian communities facing settler attacks and militarised violence in the Jordan Valley, Masafer Yatta, and communities across the occupied West Bank. As we speak, international comrades are answering the call from Palestinian civil society to support the olive harvest, which is under threat as a result of escalating settler pogroms and military aggression. Find out how you can join ISM’s work in Palestine or support it from the UK.

The Coal Store

10:30 – 11:30 The anarchist imagination: what can anarchist literature do? – Frankie Hines
What role can literary creativity play in anarchist movements today? How can literature be useful for different kinds of anarchist projects? What even is anarchist literature anyway, and what makes it unique?
Anarchists have always been interested in questions like these, from Emma Goldman’s writing on theatre to contemporary anarchist novelists and poets. But at the same time, anarchists have always been suspicious of literary representation and the ways it can disempower us. In this workshop, we’ll think about some of the ways that anarchists have used fiction, poetry and drama at different points in the past, then consider examples of anarchist literature and think about what functions they serve in our movements and spaces today. Rather than focusing on what works of literature represent or the worlds they envision, we’ll ask what anarchist texts do and what role they can play in direct action.
No previous knowledge is required: whether you’re a writer, reader or critic (or want to take apart those categories), this workshop will be a chance to share ideas and experiences and to learn from each other.

11:30 – 12:30 The Feminist Art of Walking – Morag Rose
The Feminist Art of Walking celebrates women who transform walking into powerful works of art and activism. It also draws on stories gathered from twenty years of wandering Manchester with psychogeographical collective The LRM (Loiterers Resistance Movement). The LRM manifesto states “the streets belong to everyone” and at the heart of The Feminist Art of Walking is the need to defend and expand accessible and equitable public spaces. This Feminism is intersectional, trans inclusive, and always learning. This walking is shaped by Crip theory and welcomes all bodies, paces and assistive technologies
Walk
Fancy putting theory into practices and taking it for a walk on the streets of Manchester? Join The LRM for their First Sunday wander at 2pm Sunday 1st November outside PHM. We’ll drift together exploring some of the themes, conversations and questions that emerged yesterday. The pace and direction are agreed collectively, and the walk will take place on public pavements and open spaces. Expect a curious, convivial wander that lasts around 90-120 minutes, we will finish somewhere for a drink and chat together afterwards. LRM events are free and open to everyone. Our only rules are take care of each other, yourself and the environment we walk in. And don’t be an arse. Please get in touch if you have any questions, invitations or specific access needs. Email mlrose@thelrm.org insta @moragloiters facebook “the loiterers resistance movement”

12:30 – 1:30 Anarchism: War, violence and scapegoating – Ruth Kinna
This talk with Ruth Kinna is about power, violence and government irresponsibility. The conversation will explore an argument developed with Simon Stevens that violence is not narrowly about performance, but about the embrace of an ethic that empowers transgressive action by encouraging those subject to law to direct its force against the very elites who claim to uphold it in the name of peace. For a taster, listen to the Anarchist Essay at https://anarchistessays.podbean.com/e/essay-114-ruth-kinna-simon-stevens-anarchism-war-violence-and-scapegoating/.

1:30 – 2:30 Kropotkin, Anarchism and Freedom – Iain McKay
This year marks the 140th anniversary of the founding of the long-lasting anarchist journal Freedom (1886-1927, 1945+). Peter Kropotkin, the world’s leading advocate of anarchism, played a key role in the journal, using its pages to enrich anarchist theory and practice. Join Iain McKay (An Anarchist FAQ) to discuss the continuing relevance of Kropotkin’s ideas and the legacy of Freedom for today’s struggles for freedom, equality and solidarity.

2:30 – 3:30 This is a message to Persons Unknown: The story of Poison Girls – Rich Cross
An extraordinary group of anarchist musicians and activists who worked alongside Crass but also followed their own autonomous creative path, Poison Girls were key players in the original British anarcho-punk insurgency of the 1970s and 1980s.
Author Rich Cross, whose new book This is a Message to Persons Unknown: The Story of Poison Girls, is encouraging a renewed recognition of the band’s impact, will be joined by Sue Cooper (aka Bella Donna), one of the original members of Poison Girls from their formative days in Brighton, to reflect on the significance on the group’s music, lyrics and artistry.
There’ll be a chance to see a digital display of Poison Girls’ visuals, hear the sounds of the band, and to ask questions about the turbulent and exciting times in which Poison Girls challenged ‘persons unknown’ to come out of hiding.

3:45 – 4:45 Freedom News

For more information on hosting a talk please email manchester@bookfair.org.uk

Follow the links below for details of talks at previous bookfairs