Leeds International Festival of Ideas: eclectic celebrity line-up descends on the city

The Leeds International Festival of Ideas has returned for its sixth year, presenting a star-studded programme made up of keynote talks and panel discussions addressing today’s biggest issues and topics.

Held at the Leeds Playhouse, the festival will welcome 39 speakers across 11 events.

The four-day festival began with entrepreneur Steven Bartlett delivering a talk on “A New Generation of Entrepreneurship”.

The Dragons’ Den star spoke about younger generations breaking new ground in the workplace, as Generation Z and Generation Alpha enter industries alongside a booming technological revolution. 

After dropping out of university, Barlett, at the age of 21, was a co-founder of the social media marketing agency Social Chain. He also presents the hit podcast ‘The Diary of a CEO’.

Meanwhile, a panel made of Davina McCall MBE, Dr. Christine Ekechi, Gabby Jahanshahi-Edlin, Ethan Kenny Jones and Lauren Mahon asked why women’s health is often not taken as seriously as it should be.

They discussed the inequality and underrepresentation of women in healthcare as well as inadequate treatment women receive for menopause, endometriosis and conditions related to infertility and gynaecological problems.

BAFTA Award nominee Christopher Eccleston is set to speak to the festival about his story as a working-class actor and the importance of breaking down barriers in the arts and cultural scene.

Sir Jon Cunliffe, the Deputy Governor of the Bank of England for Financial Stability, will join Tom Duff Gordon to discuss the Bank of England’s central bank digital currency and what this new digital pound means for the future of cryptocurrency and stablecoins.

With a crisis in confidence of politics, broadcaster Jon Sopel, activist Magid Magid, former MPs Amber Rudd and Tom Brake as well as the 18-year-old climate campaigner Scarlett Westbrook will ask who the political system benefits and what can be done to reform the political system.

The festival closes on 30 September. Tickets are available at Leeds International Festival of Ideas.