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History

Explore the expansive world of history with Bradford Literature Festival, from pivotal historical moments to overlooked stories of the past.   

BLF brings history to life through engaging talks, landmark tours, and panel discussions with leading historians and experts. 

Discover the events, ideas, and people that shaped the world we live in today. Through diverse cultural and geographical perspectives, uncover new insights into the past and explore how history continues to shape the present and influence the future. 

History

Tina Andrews, Miranda Kaufmann, Kate Evans
Queens and Rebels
Saturday, 4 July 2026 | 10:30 – 11:30
The Chamber, City Hall, BD1 1HY
Race & Identity, Feminism, Fiction, History
Radhika Howarth
Curry, Crown and Empire: An Illustrated Talk by Radhika Howarth
Saturday, 4 July 2026 | 12:30 – 13:30
Festival Hub, City Park, BD1 1HY
Food, History, Society & Citizenship
Dr Pragya Agarwal, Maxim Samson, Saeed Khan
Drawing Power: The Politics of Maps
Saturday, 4 July 2026 | 12:30 – 13:30
Norcroft Auditorium, University of Bradford, BD7 1DP
Art, Architecture & Design, Global Futures, History
Saeed Khan, Professor Paul Rogers, Dr Nafja Sabbah Al-Kuwari
Empire After Empire: Power, Decline and the World Order
Saturday, 4 July 2026 | 14:00 – 15:00
The Great Hall, University of Bradford, BD7 1DP
History
A Beginner’s Guide to Bradford: Walking Tour
Saturday, 4 July 2026 | 14:00 – 15:30
Festival Hub, City Park, BD1 1HY
Heritage Walks & Talks, History, Hockney, Yorkshire
Screening: Palestine ‘36 + Q&A
Saturday, 4 July 2026 | 15:00 – 17:15
Cubby Broccoli Cinema, The National Science and Media Museum, BD1 1NQ
Film, History, World Affairs & Politics
Saeed Khan
The Suez Crisis: Britain’s Imperial Reckoning
Saturday, 4 July 2026 | 17:30 – 18:30
Main Hall, St George’s Hall, BD1 1JT
History
Tim Willasey-Wilsey, Helen Fry
Nuremberg at 80: The People Who Made Justice Possible
Sunday, 5 July 2026 | 09:45 – 22:45
Banqueting Suite, City Hall, BD1 1HY
History, World Affairs & Politics
The Making of the Modern Middle East
Sunday, 5 July 2026 | 10:30 – 11:30
The Great Hall, University of Bradford, BD7 1DP
History
Shaykh Mustafa Briggs
America and the Stories it Forgot
Sunday, 5 July 2026 | 11:00 – 12:00
The Studio, The Alhambra Theatre, BD7 1AJ
History
The Cyrus Cylinder: Empire, Power and Memory
Sunday, 5 July 2026 | 12:30 – 13:30
The Studio, The Alhambra Theatre, BD7 1AJ
History
Beyond Sectarianism: Sunni, Shia and the Future
Sunday, 5 July 2026 | 13:30 – 14:30
Banqueting Suite, City Hall, BD1 1HY
Faith, Mysticism & Philosophy, History, World Affairs & Politics
Saeed Khan
Lunch Bite: Words That Travel the World
Monday, 6 July 2026 | 12:00 – 12:45
Festival Hub, City Park, BD1 1HY
Lunch Bites, Faith, Mysticism & Philosophy, Fairytales, Fantasy & Science Fiction, History
Dr Andrew McInnes
Beyond the Page: Mary Shelley 175 Years On
Monday, 6 July 2026 | 18:00 – 19:00
Festival Hub, City Park, BD1 1HY
Fiction, Feminism, History
Shopping Through Time: Bradford Then and Now
Tuesday, 7 July 2026 | 10:30 – 11:30
Festival Hub, City Park, BD1 1HY
Heritage Walks & Talks, History, Yorkshire
Anna Gibson
Imagining Unquiet Slumbers: Hauntology and Brontë Country
Tuesday, 7 July 2026 | 18:30 – 20:00
Brontë Birthplace, BD13 3HF
Brontë, Yorkshire, History
From Vision to Impact: 60 Years of the University of Bradford
Tuesday, 7 July 2026 | 19:30 – 20:30
Norcroft Lounge, University of Bradford, BD7 1DP
History
Lunch Bite: 100 Years of Fidel Castro
Wednesday, 8 July 2026 | 12:00 – 12:45
Festival Hub, City Park, BD1 1HY
Lunch Bites, History
The Poetry of Memory: Remembering Karbala
Friday, 10 July 2026 | 19:30 – 20:30
The Studio, The Alhambra Theatre, BD7 1AJ
Poetry, History
Dr Husam Zomlot
In Conversation with Husam Zomlot
Friday, 10 July 2026 | 19:30 – 20:30
Main Hall, St George’s Hall, BD1 1JT
World Affairs & Politics, History, Race & Identity
Chris Moffat
Lahore After Modernism: Architecture and its Histories in Pakistan
Saturday, 11 July 2026 | 11:00 – 12:00
The Chamber, City Hall, BD1 1HY
Art, Architecture & Design, History, World Affairs & Politics
Dr Rachel King
The Tudor Heart: Love, Power, and a Royal Discovery
Saturday, 11 July 2026 | 12:30 – 13:30
Banqueting Suite, City Hall, BD1 1HY
History, Art, Architecture & Design
Screening: Letters from Baghdad + Q&A
Saturday, 11 July 2026 | 13:30 – 15:15
Cubby Broccoli Cinema, The National Science and Media Museum, BD1 1NQ
World Affairs & Politics, Film, History
Andalusia Invisible with Rob Doyle
Saturday, 11 July 2026 | 15:15 – 16:15
Banqueting Suite, City Hall, BD1 1HY
History, Faith, Mysticism & Philosophy

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