Leeds International Festival of Ideas: full list of speakers, how to attend and when will it be?

The Leeds International Festival of Ideas returns to Leeds this week.

The festival will feature a variety of speakers “to share new ideas and discuss the world of tomorrow”, according to the festival’s website.

The event will be held at the Howard Assembly Room and Howard Opera Centre in central Leeds and is back for the first since 2019.

If you’re planning on attending the festival, or just want to know what it’s all about, here’s everything you’ll need to know about Leeds International Festival of Ideas 2022.

When will the Leeds International Festival of Ideas take place?

The Leeds International Festival of Ideas 2022 is set to begin on September 22 and end on September 25.

The event will begin with Kevin McCloud’s “The (built) Environment” talk at 12pm on Thursday, September 22, and will end at 8:30pm on Sunday, with the “Does Sport Have a Social Duty?” talk.

What will be on during Leeds International Festival of Ideas?

Kevin McCloud, Yotam Ottolenghi, Aisling Bea, David Olusoga and Mary Beard are this year’s keynote speakers at Leeds International Festival of Ideas.

However, they aren’t the only ones - we’ve included a full list of speakers  at the festival this year below.

• Ayishat Akanbi
• Luke Ambler
• Kevin McCloud
• Dr. Al Baker 
• Yotam Ottolenghi
• Gary Bennett MBE
• Africa Brooke
• David Olusoga
• Pauline Castres
• Aisling Bea
• David Harewood MBE
• Leanne Elliot-Young
• Mary Beard
• Simon Jordan 
• Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson
• Bryony Gordon 
• Rosie Jones 
• Sarah Hughes
• Tayshan Hayden-Smith
• Sara-Elvira Kuhmunen 
• Lara Lewington
• Judy Ling Wong CBE
• Jamali Maddix
• Dr. Neil McDonnell 
• Geoff Norcott
• Yotam Ottolenghi 
• Dominique Palmer 
• Lee Pivnik 
• Gail Porter
• Ahmed Razek
• Sonia Sodha 
• Charlie Webster
• Stephanie Whitley
• Lauren Winfield-Hill
• Christopher Wylie 

A full list of times for when individual speakers can be found on the event’s website.

How can I get tickets for the festival?

There are no “festival pass” tickets - if you’d like to attend a speech, you’ll have to buy a ticket to see the individual speaker.

Tickets can be purchased through the event’s website - be wary though, as more popular speakers are likely to have their tickets sold out faster than others.

Some, such as Aisling Bea and David Olusoga, are already sold out.

Ticket prices vary between speakers - while most tickets cost £10, others, such as Mary Beard’s session, will cost £15.

You may be able to get a discount on tickets if you meet certain criteria. People under 30 and full-time students can join Opera North’s under 30s scheme to get £3 off their tickets.

People who are retired and over 65, as well as Leeds Card holders, can get a £1.50 discount. Meanwhile, anyone who meets the following criteria will be able to get £4 off their tickets:

• 18s and under
• People on Pension Credit 
• People on Disability Living Allowance 
• People with Leeds Card Extra 
• People on Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
• People on Attendance Allowance 
• People on Universal Credit