Melbourne Writers Festival Has Unveiled Its First Big International Guests for 2022
'Parks and Recreation' star Jenny Slate, 'Succession' standout Brian Cox and 'Exit West' author Mohsin Hamid are all coming to MWF this spring.
Calling all Parks and Recreation, Succession, Pulp and Exit West fans of Melbourne — you now have an exciting September date with Melbourne Writers Festival. The city's annual literary fest won't reveal its full program until late July, ahead of its spring arrival; however, it has just announced quite the impressive first batch of international guests.
On the bill: Parks and Recreation, Obvious Child, I Want You Back and Everything Everywhere All At Once star, and Marcel the Shell with Shoes On author Jenny Slate; Logan Roy himself, aka Succession actor Brian Cox; Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker; and bestselling Moth Smoke, The Reluctant Fundamentalist and Exit West writer Mohsin Hamid. They'll each take part in sessions that survey their work and careers — which means they'll all have plenty to talk about.
Slate, Cox and Hamid are all physically heading to Melbourne, too, now that that's a possibility again. As for Cocker, he'll livestream in from the UK.
HBO
From Slate, expect to hear about her on-screen work, her bestselling book Little Weirds, and also the process of bring Marcel the Shell with Shoes On to the big screen.
Cox recently released a memoir called Putting the Rabbit in the Hat, so that's what his chat will cover — including deconstructing his phenomenal work on one of the best shows currently on TV.
Via live link, Cocker won't be singing Pulp's hits — but he will be discussing his music, as well as his book Good Pop, Bad Pop. It's a guide to the objects that mean the most to him, and the experiences as well, so expect plenty of behind-the-tunes insights.
Jillian Edelstein.
Hamid's session will focus on his latest work, The Last White Man, which has been attracting acclaim — as the Booker-shortlisted Exit West and The Reluctant Fundamentalist also did. His new tome is taken from his own experiences after September 11, as a "brown-skinned man with a Muslim surname".
If all of this sounds familiar, the same quartet have just been announced on Sydney Opera House's Antidote lineup, which is livestreaming its sessions — but Melburnians can now attend MWF's counterparts in-person.
Melbourne Writers Festival will run from Thursday, September 8–Sunday, September 11 at a variety of venues around Melbourne, with the full program announced on Wednesday, July 27. Tickets for the fest's first headline events are on sale from Tuesday, June 28.
Top image: Katie McCurdy.
