BBC Contains Strong Language

BBC Contains Strong Language: All Events

Thu 18 Sep 2025
- 18 – 21 Sep 2025
  2025
  Bradford
  The UK’s biggest poetry and performance festival for new writing is coming to Bradford for the first time.
Wed 28 Aug 2024
- 28 – 31 Aug 2024
  2024
  Sydney, Australia
  Contains Strong Language heads to Sydney, Australia for the 2024 edition of the poetry and performance festival.
Thu 21 Sep 2023
- 21 – 24 Sep 2023
  2023
  Leeds
  Contains Strong Language went to Leeds for the 2023 edition of the spoken word festival.
Fri 9 Sep 2022
- 9 – 11 Sep 2022
  2022
  Birmingham
  The annual festival of poetry and spoken word took place in Birmingham, in September 2022.
Thu 23 Sep 2021
- 23 – 26 Sep 2021
  2021
  Coventry
  The celebration of spoken word heads to Coventry City of Culture in September 2021.
Fri 25 Sep 2020
- 25 – 27 Sep 2020
  2020
  Cumbria
  The UK’s biggest poetry and performance festival of new writing returned in September 2020. The festival took place in Cumbria, with live coverage on BBC Arts and on BBC Radio, and additional programmes on BBC iPlayer and BBC Sounds.
  Also part of
  BBC Arts
Fri 27 Sep 2019
- 27 – 29 Sep 2019
  2019
  Hull
  The three-day celebration of the spoken word in all its poetic forms returned to Hull in 2019.
Fri 28 Sep 2018
- 28 – 30 Sep 2018
  2018
  Hull
  The UK’s biggest poetry and performance festival of new writing returned to Hull for the 2018 edition.
Thu 28 Sep 2017
- 28 Sep – 1 Oct 2017
  2017
  Hull
  The first Contains Strong Language festival took place in Hull, UK City of Culture.