People’s Friend are a genre-defying band fronted by activist and writer Jamie Kelsey Fry. Their live shows veer from tender, melodic moments to explosive, theatrical bursts, blending punk, psychedelia, classical and more into something entirely their own. A cult favourite at Camden Town’s Dublin Castle, their gigs are as politically charged as they are musically daring. Frontman Fry — a veteran of movements from Occupy to Extinction Rebellion — now leads One World Or None, a global platform for democratic renewal.

Hook Up Culture: Comedy Cabaret Run by Jazz Musicians

Hook Up Culture is a warm embrace of a night - celebrating love, desire, yearning, and the rarely-seen "successful swipe" on your dating app of choice. Part comedy and part cabaret, one thing is for certain at Hook Up Culture: between our effervescent hosts, top notch acts and mesmerising house band The Fuckaround Five you’ll be thoroughly entertained! London's flirtiest night out presents poetry, comedy and music on all topics related to romance: from regrettably dodgy dates to really exceptional first kisses, there's something for everyone. Come feel good with us!

Laila Woozeer (Host)

Laila Woozeer is an award-winning writer, musician and performer based in London. Laila’s book Not Quite White, a ”lyrical odyessy” magical realism memoir about being mixed race, was released 2022 (Simon and Schuster). Laila was a recipient of the C4CC Big Initiatives Award, the Playbill Best Original Score and was a nominee for the Atlantic Music Prize.

Kate Cheka

Kate Cheka is an award-winning comedian, writer and artist. Her debut hour received critical acclaim, a Soho Theatre run and was nominated for NextUp's Biggest Award in Comedy. Other accolades include winner of the Funny Women Awards 2023, regional finalist BBC New Comedy Awards 2022 and Chortle Best Newcomer nominee 2024.

John-Luke Roberts:

John-Luke Roberts is an artist, comedian and actor. He has written and performed 10 solo shows and won the Fringe Legend award at the Edinburgh Fringe 2024. His podcast Sound Heap won the BBC Audio Drama Award for best sketch comedy, and you should listen to it, honestly.

Rosie Holt:

Rosie Holt is best known for her alter-ego MP whose popular videos on social media have achieved more than 7 million views. She is the winner of the Chortle Social Media Award and a nominee for the BPG Emerging Creators Award. Her last show, That’s Politainment! toured around the UK - “tightly crafted and brutal political satire with Orwellian flourishes” -Evening Standard, 4 stars. Her first book, Why We Were Right; A catalogue of Conservative Successes ( "Hilarious and alarmingly close to the bone” - The New European) written as her MP alter-ego is available to buy in shops now.  She is the host of the Aria nominated podcast Noncensored, and has been seen/heard on The Russell Howard Hour (Sky Max), Friday Night with Niall Paterson (Sky News) BBC Radio 4’s The News Quiz, DM’s Are Open, POV, Please Use Other Door and Ashley Blaker 6.5 Children, among other credits. She has written for Prospect Magazine and The Byline Times.

Huge Davies

Combining his confident on stage presence, dark humour, surreal material and his one-of-kind customised keyboard, Huge has quickly risen to become one the most memorable and hilarious acts in the UK. Huge debuted his first show ‘The Carpark’ at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2019. A complete sell-out, it received multiple five-star reviews and an Edinburgh Award Nomination for Best Newcomer. The show was featured as Time Out’s No.1 comedy show to see, had three runs at the Soho Theatre following excessive demand and filmed as a special by LA based company 800 Pound Gorilla Media. His second show ‘Whodunnit’ and third ‘Album 4 My Ancestors (dead)’ were also fully sold out, received multiple five star reviews and is currently on a national tour.

Huge appears on television frequently, including his own Channel 4 sitcom ‘The Artists’ which he created, wrote and starred in. Other television appearances include 8 Out Out 10 Cats Does Countdown (Channel 4), Roast Battle (Comedy Central), Jools Holland at the Albert Hall (Sky Arts), Hypothetical (Dave), Jonathan Ross’ Comedy Club (ITV1), Live at the Comedy Store (Comedy Central), Harry Hill’s Clubnite (Channel 4), Comedians Giving Lectures (Dave) Comedy All Stars Supershow (ABC) & The Stand Up Sketch Show (ITV2). He is a regular guest on the BBC Radio 4’s The Now Show and has appeared on The Off Menu Podcast. Huge performs all over the UK and internationally, supporting Phil Wang and Joe Lycett on their national tours. He also co-hosts podcast Slime Country with Ed Night and Sunil Patel. 

The Fuckaround Five

The Hook Up Culture house band are an ever-evolving entity of some of the most talented, interesting and frankly, hottest, musicians around. FF members have won numerous awards and played with the likes of Cher, Adele, and Mickey Mouse. Studying in the prestigious halls of Juilliard, Berklee, RCM and Guildhall, our crew have performed at Glastonbury; the 02; Madrid and Barcelona Jazz Festivals, Caesars Palace Las Vegas to name a few. Players can be regularly seen in West End pit bands, the EMI recording studios, and haunting the upstairs of Ronnie Scotts. Also, did we mention how hot they are? Fuck around and find out! Fun fact: there has never once been five of them.

Neal X leads the Byline Festival All-Star Band, joined by Phil Bloomberg (AKA Phil Polecat) of The Polecats and Stephen “Vom” Ritchie (Die Toten Hosen). As the founding guitarist of glam-electro provocateurs Sigue Sigue Sputnik, Neal helped launch one of the most iconic and incendiary acts of the 1980s — with “Love Missile F1-11” reaching No. 3 in the UK charts and their futuristic style setting a new standard for pop spectacle. He’s since played with artists including Adam Ant and Marc Almond, and now brings his razor-sharp guitar work to Byline’s opening night, leading a high-octane set of Top 10 hits, rock ’n’ roll classics and a few wild card surprises.

Alternative/Indie, R&B/Soul, Pop

Churchill's Urinal play reading: a work in progress and play reading of the new play Churchill’s Urinal by Rosie Holt.

Britain's first new female chancellor is determined to get rid of the ancient urinal in her private bathroom. But what should be a simple job soon gets out country is in turmoil. A comedy about politics in an age of social media fuelled outrage and the global rise of the far right.

Anna Hyde left a successful marketing career to focus on climate and democracy activism. She
co-founded Islington Climate Centre, facilitates Climate Fresk workshops, and coordinates for
The Climate Reality Project. A Cambridge Sustainability Leadership graduate, she uses creative
engagement and deliberative democracy to drive community-led environmental change.

In Peter’s workshop he will describe how his new campaign - Adopt a Billionaire- is designed to confront, embarrass and publicise the destructive behaviour of the world’s most politically powerful people. There are about 3000 dollar billionaires but few people can name more than a dozen of them. Research has shown that these people should carry a great deal of blame for the growing disaster of global warming through their own wasteful and dissolute lifestyles, their ownership of climate-change-denying media and their bankrolling of right-wing politicians. Learn how you can adopt a billionaire of your own.

Thomas Barlow

Neal Lawson, Compass

Zoe Williams

Jon Jackson

Stuart Spray, a former ecologist turned investigative environmental journalist, now runs an ecological consultancy and creates films on climate change, wildlife crime, and activism. A passionate advocate for nature, he was recently arrested with Greenpeace for protesting plastic pollution and strongly opposes the Government’s proposed Planning and Infrastructure Bill.

Kit Stoner, CEO Bat Conservation Trust. Also Vice Chair of Environmental Investigations Agency, and a trustee of BatLife Europe

Dr Malcolm Tait, Professor of Planning at the University of Sheffield

Alexa Culver, Legal Counsel at RSK Wilding

David Cadman, Head of Nature Recovery Networks at Staffordshire Wildlife Trust.

Join Write2Speak for a spoken word poetry workshop. Create, collaborate and connect with like-minded individuals through a range of topical discussions, creative writing, and performance exercises. Learn to use your voice and share lyrics with impact. You may even craft something to share at Saturday's Bylines Poetry Party. This session is  facilitated by Staffordshire based professional poet, actor and performance educator Tyler Luke Cunningham. Everyone is welcome, no previous experience needed.  If you have any questions please email us at info@write2speak.co.uk https://write2speak.co.uk/

Artist and Art teacher Kate Tulett will help you create protest art on all types of materials that you can upcycle. Bring your thoughts to life and get in touch with the artist inside you. Have fun!

Deborah Curtis & Schools

At Byline Festival 2025, Deborah Curtis, Josh Knowles and Stephen Whitehead from Handsworth Association of Schools will be joined by a group of students from the West Midlands who have been working with The Great Imagining Staffordshire this term. They will present the programme and how it works and what the ambition for it is over the next year in Staffordshire and beyond. 

This session will have interactive elements, will include some demonstrations of the kind of resources and carbon literacy we are working with in schools as well as how we are using Media and Journalism to get  messages around a Greener Fairer Wiser World out there to the wider public. 

Go and speak to the team at The Great Imagining Stand to find out more and contribute ideas to their ideas wall.

Relational artist Stephen Whitehead is a dedicated Green Mentor at Handsworth Association of Schools as well as being a creative collaborator with The Great Imagining and The House of Fairy Tales. He champions sustainability and climate education. With a passion for youth empowerment and community engagement, he supports schools in developing eco-initiatives that inspire action and awareness, helping young people become confident, informed advocates for a greener future. For Byline Festival at Keele University he will be coming with some young people who will run carbon literacy workshops with the audience on the Friday and advocate for a greener, fairer, wiser future for everyone.

Josh Knowles is an artist, illustrator, and creative collaborator with The House of Fairy Tales & The Great Imagining. Renowned for his vibrant, whimsical style, he brings stories to life through immersive visuals and playful designs. Josh’s work sparks imagination and wonder, transforming everyday spaces into enchanting realms that captivate audiences of all ages. for Byline festival he will be working with the audience to create NEWS ARTICLES that are greener, fairer, wiser. 

Deborah Curtis is a visionary at the intersection of art, education, and civic culture. Through The House of Fairy Tales, she crafts playful, interactive worlds for children and adults alike—integrating theatre, art and narrative. With The Great Imagining, she elevates this mission into national ecological and social engagement, with immersive programs designed to empower young people in shaping a sustainable, imaginative future.

There are about 3000 dollar billionaires but few people can name more than a dozen of them. Research has shown that these people should carry a great deal of blame for the growing disaster of global warming through their own wasteful and dissolute lifestyles, their ownership of climate-change-denying media and their bankrolling of right-wing politicians. Learn how you can adopt a billionaire of your own.

Peter Robbins, author and ex City trader