Manchester City of Literature’s Festival of Libraries, the county-wide celebration of Greater Manchester’s 133 libraries, returns between Wednesday 10th – Sunday 14th June 2026.

The award-winning festival, which is supported by Arts Council England, features a vibrant programme that highlights the library network’s full offer, across wellbeing, culture and creativity, digital and information, and, of course, reading.

This festival allows citizens to celebrate the important community and cultural roles of libraries across Greater Manchester. It encourages children, young people, migrant communities and vulnerable groups to use the diverse library service offer creatively. Partner libraries around the city host performances, exhibitions, concerts, art installations, workshops, writing classes, and family friendly activities. Writers, artists, illustrators and musicians are commissioned to respond to the vital role libraries play to the people of Manchester.

Previous guests at Festival of Libraries include Dame Maggie Aderin-Pocock, Poet Laureate Simon Armitage, actors Maxine Peake and Christopher Eccleston, musicians Jordan Stephens and Guy Garvey and drag performer Cheddar Gorgeous. Festival of Libraries has hosted events in collaboration with other UNESCO City of Literature cities including Quebec City (Canada), Tartu (Estonia) and Nanjing (China) – celebrating the exchange of ideas, arts, and cultures.

The Festival of Libraries programme takes place across all ten boroughs of Greater Manchester in internationally renowned institutions from the county’s rich tapestry of heritage libraries. This includes Central Library, with its impressive status as the busiest public library in the country, in addition to Chetham’s Library, The Portico Library, the John Rylands Research Institute and Library and Manchester Poetry Library. Greater Manchester’s vital local libraries will also host a range of events within their communities, reflecting Manchester’s status as a UNESCO City of Literature.

Almost all of the events at Festival of Libraries are free to attend, or operate a ‘Pay What You Can’ ticket policy. Festival of Libraries won Best Event at the Manchester Culture Awards 2024 and was named the second Most Inclusive Literature Festival by Inclusive Books For Children in 2025.