Former cabinet minister Ed Balls and Gavin & Stacey star Ruth Jones to headline University of Warwick festival

Former cabinet minister and Strictly Come Dancing contestant Ed Balls is set to headline a three-day festival at the University of Warwick to mark the close of Coventry's UK City of Culture.

Gavin & Stacey co-creator and best-selling author Ruth Jones, award-winning crime writer Mark Billingham, poet and playwright Lemn Sissay and Amazon adventurer, travel writer and film maker Pip Stewart will also appear at the free festival.

As advertised in our What's On section, Resonate 2022 will run from April 19 to 21 and include more than 70 free events including performances, talks, films, comedy, drop-in activities, games and a family day.

It will also feature the authors of two acclaimed debut books: novelist Annie Garthwaite who will be discussing the feminist reading of her War of the Roses historical drama Cecily; and award-winning poet and history teacher Jaspreet Kaur talking about her agenda-setting Brown Girl Like Me, part-memoir, part-empowering manifesto for South Asian women and girls.

University of Warwick graduate Ruth Jones will also be at the event (Image via Ray Burmiston)

Highlights of the Family Fun Day on Wednesday, April 20 are set to include a circus workshop by international festival favourites Flying Seagull and Fartology! by science communicator Stefan Gates - a noisy, smelly and naughty family science show exploring guts, gasses and the world's loudest fart machine.

A wide range of events and activities will range from James Campbell's stand-up comedy show for kids, to Celebrating Languages – which includes t-shirt and biscuit decorating, plus a taster lesson in Mandarin – and a climate change creative workshop.

Mark Billingham, best known for his Tom Thorne crime novels, will be running a free crime writing masterclass on April 19 at The Oculus 0.03 Lecture Theatre on campus from 5pm-6pm.

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Former Warwick graduate Ruth Jones will be discussing her life and work at Warwick Arts Centre on April 19 between 6pm and 7.30pm.

Whilst ex-politician Ed Balls, now a Professor of Political Economy at King's College London and a Research Fellow at the Harvard Kennedy School, will be talking about his autobiography Appetite, which is also part cook book, at The Oculus 1.05 Lecture Theatre, on April 21 from 7.30pm-8.30pm.

A Comedy Night on April 20 at Warwick Arts Centre from 9pm-11pm, features four of the best on the circuit – Ivo Graham, Fatiha El-Ghorri, Marlon Davies and Louise Young.

"As a culmination of Coventry's year as UK City of Culture, we wanted to put together an exciting, diverse and varied programme for local communities across Coventry and Warwickshire with some very special guest headliners," said Helen Wheatley, festival director of Resonate.

"Over three days we will be revisiting many of the projects, partners and connections which have been developed over a full 12 months of roadshows showcasing the best of research from University of Warwick's staff and students based in each of the university's faculties with a whole host of regional and national partners, collaborators, performers, artists and community groups.

"Resonate launched last May with a mix of live and virtual events as we were coming out of a national lockdown following the Covid-19 pandemic. It seemed only fitting to end with a wholly live line-up encompassing the arts, sciences and humanities; performances, talks and public conversations, exhibitions, film screenings, walking tours, activities and so much more."

For further details and free booking registration information visit the website here.

For more local events, follow this link to our What's On page!

(Header image by Chatham House via wikimedia commons)