FANZA announces new OzLit Festival at Foyles Charing Cross Road

A new festival celebrating Australian literature and ideas is coming to London this autumn. Produced by FANZA, OzLit Festival will take place at Foyles Charing Cross Road on Sunday 18 October 2026, creating a new platform for Australian writers, stories and conversations in the UK.

OzLit Festival will be produced on behalf of FANZA by Vivienne Wordley, a former FANZA trustee and now ambassador for the organisation, and Rina Gill, festival curator and founder of book PR and marketing company Tiger Team Creative. The pair were both members of the founding team behind the Australian and New Zealand Festival of Literature and the Arts in 2014.

‘It feels very special to be working together again to bring that spirit back to London with OzLit,’ said Gill. ‘Like a boomerang, we’re back with another festival celebrating Australian stories, writers and ideas. Not nationalism, but cultural patriotism, it’s a fine way of celebrating the stories that travel far beyond Australia. To be launching OzLit at Foyles Charing Cross Road, in the heart of London, is a wonderful new chapter.’

Australian High Commissioner to the UK Jay Weatherill said: ‘The Australian High Commission is proud to support OzLit, an important milestone event for elevating Australian authors in the UK. Australian storytelling is world-class and worth celebrating. We hope OzLit will foster new collaborations between Australian and UK literary talents, and shine a light on the exceptional quality of Australian writing.’

FANZA Co-Chair Alison Payne added: ‘FANZA promotes and celebrates the range and vitality of Australian and New Zealand creative arts in the UK, and we are delighted to be developing and producing OzLit at such an exciting moment for Australian writing. The buzz at our recent industry event at the High Commission made clear that there is real appetite for a new generation of Australian literary voices, stories and conversations in London and across the UK.’

The full OzLit Festival programme and ticket details will be announced shortly.