Rochdale Observer

Worldy women show plenty of WOW factor

- PREVIEW BY STEVE COOKE

●●FIRST EVER WOMEN OF THE WORLD [WOW] FESTIVAL IN MANCHESTER

WOW Manchester, will take place at the city’s landmark new cultural space Aviva Studios from 24-26 May with headline acts Jordan Stephens, Sandi Toksvig and Mel B.

The three headline evening events will take place across the weekend.

On Saturday evening, long-time friends and coconspira­tors Sandi Toksvig and Jude Kelly CBE will discuss their years of friendship, during which they have witnessed and been a part of huge global change and experience­d personal triumphs as well as devastatin­g setbacks.

Sandi and Jude will take an uplifting look at how their personal lives have affected the work that they do and the power and importance of female friendship.

On Sunday evening the musician, broadcaste­r and actor Jordan Stephens will take part in a rare in-conversati­on drawing on his own experience­s of finding fame as a teenager in Rizzle Kicks, navigating success, heartbreak, hedonism, addiction and what happens when it all comes crashing down.

Jordan and a special guest host will explore how his relationsh­ip with women, men and masculinit­y has changed and how he’s learnt to love himself again.

Mel B – Melanie Brown – will be joined by journalist and co-author Louise Gannon on the Friday evening to celebrate the launch of her critically acclaimed memoir, Brutally Honest, sharing an unfiltered discussion on Mel’s journey from being a Spice Girl and global icon, to Women’s Aid patron and champion for survivors of abuse.

New sessions and speakers have also been

announced as part of the daytime programme.

Featuring a different line-up each day, audiences will be provided with the opportunit­y to choose from a wide variety of events and discussion­s housed within a huge central marketplac­e as well as taking place throughout Aviva Studios’ many different spaces.

Household names, local activists and artists will present their big ideas to change the world, whilst inspiring thinkers,

activists and world-class speakers will hold frank and lively sessions on everything from the murky history of the fashion industry to urgent conversati­ons around women and conflict with accounts from first hand survivors.

Further speakers and sessions to be announced.

WOW Manchester 2024 24-26 May, Aviva Studios, Water Street, Manchester, M3 4JQ

»●Friday 24 May Brutally Honest – An Evening with Mel B 7:30pm, £25 full price; 50% concession­s; £10 Aviva tickets Aviva Studios BSL Interprete­d and Captioned

»●Saturday 25 May An evening with Sandi Toksvig 6pm, £25 full price; 50% concession­s; £10 Aviva tickets Aviva Studios BSL Interprete­d and Captioned

»●Visit: https:// thewowfoun­dation.com/ festival/wowmanches­terfestiva­l-2024

 ?? ?? ●●The WOW festival is coming to Manchester
●●The WOW festival is coming to Manchester

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