This year’s events calendar for International Women’s Day is packed, with incredible discussions, workshops, gigs and parties:
Women of the World Festival
7th-12th March | Southbank Centre, SE1 8XX | Prices vary
The seventh annual Women of the World festival has arrived to coincide with International Women’s Day. Previous speakers have included Malala Yousafzai, Caitlin Moran and Vivienne Westwood. This year’s festival features film screenings, workshops, discussions and performances to celebrate women’s achievements and promote gender equality, as well as events with Gillian Anderson and Sandi Toksvig. Book.
Typesetting Feminism: Virago Press
7th March | 7.00pm-8.30pm | The British Library, NW1 2DB | £8
To celebrate International Women’s Day, and the British Library’s recent acquisition of the Carmen Callil Archive, Carmen Callil (founder of Virago Press, the women’s publishing house) discusses Virago’s journey with Lennie Goodings (its current editor) and Claire Whalley (who recently made the documentary film,Virago: Changing The World One Page At A Time). Book.
HeForSheArtsWeek
8th–15th March | International | Prices may vary
UN Women is presenting HeForShe Arts Week, with events in major cities including London, New York and Paris. The London events involve film screenings, discussions and events at the Wallace Collection and the British Museum. The week concludes with an exclusive pre-screening of Beauty and the Beast, with a special guest...
Balls & Company IWD Takeover
8th March | Balls & Company W1D 3DY | £50, email info@ballsandcompany.london
Restaurant Balls & Company is hosting an all female chef takeover for International Women’s Day. Some of London’s best female chefs are coming together to create a one-off five course dinner, with each course inspired by women who are important to the chefs: for example, Margot Henderson (co-founder of Rochelle Canteen)’s dish of braised squid and fennel is inspired by Italian cookery writer Marcella Hazan, and Sandia Chang of Bubbledogs will serve crab potstickers with vinegar and ginger, as an ode to her Chinese heritage.
The Women’s Space
8th– 16th March | 8.00am -9.00pm | The Mayfair Collective: Women’s Space, W1K 3AP | Free
The Mayfair Collective, in collaboration with the retailers of Mount Street, is launching a year-long series of talks and workshops for women interested in fashion, culture, business and the arts. The first initiative will be a week-long pop-up, providing a creative co-working space interspersed with hosted talks and panel discussions from leading business women across the UK. Book.
8th March | 6.15pm | Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan Institute of Indian Art and Culture, W14 9HE | £5.90
#SHECAN, organised by the International Women’s Peace Group, celebrates the talent of women in London, and the importance of peace work to reduce the disproportionate impact that conflict has on women. Acts include beatboxing from Kimmy Beatbox, dance from the D4 Girls and interviews with VIPs such as model and natural hair enthusiast FroGirl Ginny. Through their events, #SHECAN hopes to celebrate women’s empowerment, and inspire others to develop creative approaches to peace. Book.
Rebels in the Archives
8th March | 7.00pm-8.45pm | The British Library NW1 2DB | £8
To celebrate International Women’s Day, the British Library is hosting a conversation on power and activism, chaired by Margaretta Jolly (project director of Sisterhood and After: An Oral History of the Women’s Liberation Movement). On the panel are Jill Liddington (historian and writer of Vanishing for the Vote: Suffrage, Citizenship and The Battle for the Census), Abi Morgan (BAFTA and Emmy Award winning writer of the film, Suffragette), Heidi Safia Mirza (Professor of Race, Faith and Culture, and writer of Black and Postcolonial Feminism in New Times: Researching Educational Inequalities) and Deborah Withers (curator, publisher and writer of Feminism, Digital Culture and the Politics of Transmission: Theory, Practice and Cultural Heritage). This conversation between some amazing feminists is set to cover the incredibly empowering things women have done for equality.
The Sorority House: The Big Conversation
8th March | 7.00pm | Boxpark Shoreditch E1 6GY | Free
The Sorority House is a collective force of women in the creative industries, which aims to connect, celebrate and inform women in the industry and construct a shared sisterhood mentality within the creative fields. To celebrate International Women’s Day, The Sorority House is holding a two part event series to follow up last year’s IWD theme of #PledgeForParity. Topics discussed will include:
- Whether equality will ever really exist within the creative industries
- Furthering opportunities for women in the creative industries
- Relationships and Dating in the music business
- Demystifying the 'Female Boss' stigma
- Mentoring & Networking
- Launch of the Sorority House membership scheme
Women Stand Up
8th March | 7.30pm Leicester Square Theatre WC2H 7BX | £20
Oxfam and Comic Relief have come together for International Women’s Day to put an end, once and for all, to the question, ‘are women funny?’ Featuring Shappi Khorsandi, Bridget Christie and Evelyn Mok, this night involves both comedy legends and up-and-comers in the comedy scene.
Dance Like I’ve Got Diamonds
8th March | 7.30 pm | The George Tavern, E1 0LA | £5 advance, £7 on the door
Dance Like I’ve Got Diamonds are celebrating women in music, with two feminist bands and a talk from the activists, Girls Against. With its name borrowing a line from Maya Angelou’s poem ‘Still I Rise’ (‘Does it come as a surprise/ That I dace like I’ve got diamonds at the meeting of my thighs’), this is a perfect way to celebrate IWD. Embrace your inner 90s Riot Girl and dance to feminist indie-punk band The Tuts and activist band Peach Club. Book.