Manchester Libraries Crime Festival 2022: when it is, what’s happening and which writers are appearing

Crime writing is a hugely-successful genre of fiction, with audiences eagerly devouring the latest page-turning police procedurals by their favourite authors.

And now Manchester Libraries is putting on a three-day festival devoted to the characters who crack the most twisted and complex cases and the writing minds that come up with them.

Manchester Central Library is the venue for the event next month, which features panels including best-selling authors and a fun crime-themed evening.

Here’s what you need to know about the event.

What’s happening at the Manchester Libraries’ Crime Festival?

The Manchester Libraries’ Crime Festival takes place over three days in March at Manchester Central Library.

The celebration of the city’s finest crime writing starts with two author panel events on Wednesday 16 March and Thursday 17 March.

The host for both events will be Rob Parker, the author of the Ben Bracken thrillers and the standalone post-Brexit country-noir Crook’s Hollow who also spends time appearing on podcasts and going into schools to share his love of the written word with young people.

On the Wednesday evening he will be joined by Cath Staincliffe, known for her series of mysteries starring private eye Sal Kilkenny and for her TV drama writing, Joseph Knox whose debut Sirens made the Sunday Times bestseller list, and proud Mancunian Karen Woods who got her writing inspiration from attending an adult literacy course which was offered by her former employers after she left school without any formal qualifications.

On the Thursday, Rob will be chatting about crime fiction with Mandasue Heller, who is currently writing her 14th book and is also linked to Manchester’s underground music scene, Alex Caan whose debut Cut To The Bone made a huge impression when it was released in 2016, and Chris Simms who pens the DI Spicer series of books set in Manchester.

The Thursday panel also includes star writer SJ Watson, whose debut Before I Go To Sleep has sold some six million copies and was made into a film starring Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth and Mark Strong.

The Friday night rounds the festival off with an event putting the audience in the position of detectives with a murder mystery evening in the library.

A number of detectives are invited to meet a reclusive author who reveals one of them is a notorious thief but dies before the identity of the criminal can be divulged.

The audiences will have to become detectives to crack the case, questioning the sleuths to unmask the villain.

Tickets for the events range from £4 to £7 and are available on Eventbrite.