A Mischievous Mixture of Words, Music and Performance with Unbound

This year’s Unbound line-up will have audiences imagining in innovative ways, bringing together a host of literary voices playing with storytelling, music, illustration, poetry and performance in the Spiegeltent of Charlotte Square Gardens each night.

The free evening events will feature bestselling authors, groundbreaking spoken word artists, and multi-talented musicians from across the globe, with tales, tunes and a large dose of mischief.

The programme kicks off on Sunday 14 August with The Phoenix Rises, a night of drawing and performances with artists from Britain’s leading weekly comic, The Phoenix, including Adam Murphy and Laura Ellen Anderson.

Highlights include former Scots Makar Liz Lochhead and lauded indie pop band The Hazey Janes coming together on Tuesday 16 August with sensational sounds and sonnets, led by experimental jazz saxophonist Steve Kettley.

Thursday 18 August sees Unbound confronting the refugee crisis through poetry. Hosted by Book Festival Guest Selector Bidisha, writers, artists and poets come together to highlight the healing combination of language, verse and music.

Our Babble On spoken word strand created in partnership with poet Luke Wright, brings two special nights to the Spiegeltent: the electrifying, genre-defying EVP Sessions on Friday 19 August and the riotous infectious Tongue Fu and special guests on Saturday 20 August.

On Saturday 27 August, singer-songwriter and front man of indie folk band Idlewild, Roddy Woomble takes a break from US and UK music tours to celebrate his debut book; a playful mix of paintings, photographs and words that inspire his work.

The Unbound line-up also features the culmination of collaborations from around the world, with From Sutherland to Saskatoon on Monday 15 August uncovering the make-up and mix of modern, multilingual Canada, hosted by Charlene Diehl, the director of Winnipeg International Writers Festival; and journey From Lewis to Lahore on Sunday 21 August as creatives from Scotland and Pakistan showcase the results of a Highlight Arts collaboration which saw illustrators and storytellers from both countries travel to the Lahore Literary Festival – an adventure involving telling and translating stories, poetry, pictures and music.

An extra special Festival Finale takes place on Monday 29 August, as Unbound spills out into Charlotte Square Gardens from 7pm, with DJ and journalist Vic Galloway leading a unique night of stories, songs, festivities and fireworks. Edinburgh UNESCO City of Literature also celebrate ten years of Story Shop and the now 20 cities of literature with readings from previous Story Shoppers and international names of the future in locations around the Gardens.

For more information about these and all of the other Unbound nights, you can browse the full listings on our website or have a read of the Skinny supplement which contains event information and features on Unbound participants.

Unbound evenings are free and unticketed and take place every evening from 14-29 August from 9pm to 11pm in the Spiegeltent in Charlotte Square Gardens. (Please note: Unbound on Monday 29 August will run from 7pm to 11pm).