Leeds International Festival of Ideas is back for 2024 – here’s everything you need to know

The Hoot Leeds is excited to be a media partner for Leeds International Festival of Ideas 2024.

1st May 2024

3 minute read

LIFI24 is going to be a big one.

Yorkshire’s biggest cultural festival is back with a bang. Taking over Leeds Playhouse for another year, Leeds International Festival of Ideas is bringing together four nights of worldwide speakers, performers and thought leaders to discuss some of the biggest questions of our time.

This year, conversations span from addiction, artificial intelligence, care, neurodiversity, and the impact of reality TV on our perception of reality amongst other exciting topics.⁠

Notable names scheduled to grace the festival stages include: Kate Adie, Stacey Dooley, Kate Garraway, Goldie, Paterson Joseph, Nile Rodgers, Rebecca Lucy Taylor aka Self Esteem, Tim Spector, Carol Vorderman, Matt Willis and many more.

What events can we look forward to at this year’s festival?

The panel chats this year are the strongest the festival has had. Get ready for an engaging lineup as Matt Willis from the pop-punk band Busted and Lauren Windle, an esteemed author and journalist and more as they tackle the topic of addiction.

Delve into the realm of AI with Georgie Barrat, host of Gadget Show, along with NHS Digital’s Dr. Nisha Sharma and the talented actor Paterson Joseph, who brings a sceptical yet insightful perspective.

Professor Tim Wilson (The Circle) joins forces with Rylan (X Factor, Big Brother) alongside Charlotte Armitage, an expert on the duty of care for production companies, to explore the impact of reality TV on our perception of reality.

Discover the diverse facets of neurodiversity with Ellie Middleton, an impassioned activist, Christine McGuiness, a model, and Tumi Sotire, founder of The Black Dyspraxic, in what promises to be a highlight of the discussion as they discuss “We’re all neurodiverse aren’t we?”.

And ponder the question of care with Kate Garraway as she leads a conversation with Goldie, a renowned music producer, and Lizzy Oma, an advocate for cohousing, about who steps in when basic human needs are left unmet due to illness, age, disability, or poverty.

Carol Vorderman / Grace Beverley / Kate Garraway /
Images: Supplied, Chapter 81

When is LIFI24?

Taking place from Wednesday 2 October – Saturday 5 October 2024, the full event timetable for 2024 is as follows:⁠

	Courtyard Theatre	Quarry Theatre
Wed 2 Oct
Wed 2 Oct	7pm – How do we talk about addiction?	7:30pm – The evolution of creativity with Nile Rodgers (hosted by BEKA)
Thu 3 Oct	12pm – How to break moulds and influence people with Grace Beverley
Thu 3 Oct	7pm – Could AI be humanity’s saviour?	7:30pm – Trust your gut with Tim Spector (hosted by Dr Amir Khan)
Fri 4 Oct	7pm – How is TV distorting our reality?	7:30pm – Does the media need to grow a pair? With Carol Vorderman and Self Esteem
Sat 5 Oct	2pm – We’re all neurodiverse aren’t we?
Sat 5 Oct	7pm – Who really cares?	7:30pm – This means war with Kate Adie (hosted by Stacey Dooley)

Martin Dickson, Festival Manager, says, “The power of LIFI to bring the people of Leeds together and have a courageous, open, and honest conversation about major issues affecting us all in society today is one of the unique elements that sets this festival apart. There’s nothing as bold, confident, or influential in the UK today as a people-focused festival.”

“LIFI aims to shout louder about the city, confidently and boldly projecting an innovative, creative, exciting place to be and amplifying that to the world; that is what makes it the ultimate place-marketing festival of its type, not only in Leeds but the UK. The heartbeat of the festival lies in the experiences and sentiments shared by the people who came to witness it. After last year’s sell-out, we are super proud of this year’s line-up and hope many people join the conversation!”