NEWS: Crossing the Tees @ Various Locations, Middlesbrough

Words: Emily Park

This June, Teesside’s largest literary festival will grace the North East with its presence for the second year running. Organised by library services and local councils, Crossing The Tees will bring a fantastic array of events to libraries across Stockton, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool, Thornaby, Billingham and Darlington between Wednesday 3^rd and Saturday 20^th June.

The programme will include workshops for budding writers, as well as opportunities to meet with professionals. The likes of Susan Lewis, Milly Johnson and Simon Scarrow will be among the celebrated writers sharing their experiences and offering advice. Also, poets John Hegley and Kate Fox will be on hand to talk poetic writing techniques.

Other Crossing The Tees events will include Frocks on Parade, a showcase of fashion from throughout the decades; graphic novelists Bryan and Mary Talbot will give a talk about how they collaborate on their award-winning books; plus there’s a discussion between local authors who have gone down the self-publishing route.

This year’s event also comes with the addition of Crossing The Tees Film Festival, which will be hosted at Stockton’s ARC between Wednesday 10^th and Thursday 18^th June. Classics such as Breakfast At Tiffany’s, To Kill A Mockingbird and the 1971 version of Charlie And The Chocolate Factory will be screened alongside recent releases such as Suite Française and Insurgent, plus a unique version of Ridley Scott’s Teesside inspired film will provide the highlight of the film festival when Bladerunner: The Final Cut gets an airing.

Crossing The Tees takes place at various locations in Teesside from Wednesday 3^rd to Saturday 20^th June.