Brisbane Writers Festival moves to Brisbane Powerhouse

28 NOV 2024

BRISBANE WRITERS FESTIVAL TO MOVE TO BRISBANE POWERHOUSE IN 2025
Record-breaking crowds drive need for larger home

Brisbane Writers Festival (BWF) will start an exciting new chapter next year with a move to the iconic Brisbane Powerhouse in New Farm to accommodate growing crowds.

The festival will take place from 9–12 October 2025.

After two years of record-breaking ticket sales and attendances, BWF Artistic Director Jackie Ryan said she was delighted the festival could now offer its writers and audiences the opportunity to enjoy the larger theatres, more intimate event spaces and expanded dining options offered by Brisbane Powerhouse.

Excitingly, the central Turbine Platform in Brisbane Powerhouse will be transformed into a giant bookshop operated by new partners Avid Reader & Riverbend Books, two of Brisbane’s most beloved independent bookstores.

“The visually stunning Brisbane Powerhouse is well established as one of the most popular and exciting event destinations in our city, which makes it the perfect new home for Brisbane Writers Festival as our audiences and our ambitions grow,” Dr Ryan said.

“In 2025 and beyond, festival fans can look forward to BWF’s page-turning program of stimulating live events and talks, featuring some of the most loved authors in Australia and internationally, in the diverse riverside spaces offered by Brisbane Powerhouse.

“I’m also excited by our move to October, as this will put BWF at the forefront of the pre-Christmas season, when so many new blockbuster books are released.”

Brisbane Powerhouse CEO/Artistic Director Kate Gould said she is thrilled to welcome Brisbane Writers Festival to the Powerhouse’s stellar line-up of cultural festivals and events in 2025.

“Brisbane Powerhouse has a devoted audience for writers and literature, making Brisbane Writers Festival the perfect partner for a venue-wide takeover,” she said.

“Together we will transform Brisbane Powerhouse, inside and out, to deliver an extraordinary literary celebration but still with the relaxed Brisbane vibe that defines this much-loved event.”

The BWF 2025 program will be announced mid-next year.