Advertise on podcast: Open Book Podcast

In this event Noma Tsheleza facilitates an interactive conversation with Michelle Myeko Kekana, the author of The Fragile Mental Health of Strong Women.  This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival.  The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

In this event Wale Lawal, Athambile Masola and Moray Rhoda speak to Sue Nyamnjoh about meaning making in the age of AI.  This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival.  The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

In this event, Veruska De Vita, Traci Kwaai and Malika Ndlovu speak to Zolani Mahola about the work of reclaiming ancestral and intimate connections to our rivers and oceans.  This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival.  The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

In this event Sven Axelrad, Lebo Mazibuko and Ntombifuthi Nkabinde speak to Lufefe Boss about working through the trauma left by problematic parents. This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival. The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

In this event, Foluso Agbaje, Rémy Ngamije and Sarah Uheida speak to Erin Bates about journeying with grief. This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival.  The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

In this event, Maneo Mohale speaks to literary icon, Tsitsi Dangarembga, about bearing witness to complex states of Black girlhood in her powerful world-bending Tambudzai and Nyasha trilogy (Nervous Conditions, The Book of Not, This Mournable Body). This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival. The festival was made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

Open Book Festival is an annual literary event in Cape Town featuring panelists from all over the writing and publishing spheres. It is a place where writers and audiences are brought together and meaningful discussions are made possible. In this event Foluso Agbaje, Pumla Dineo Gqola, Goretti Kyomuhendo and Athambile Masola speak to Mbali Sikakana about writing feminist histories, and filling in the gaps in the official archives.  This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival.  The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

In this event Siphokazi Jonas and Vusumzi Ngxande speak to Vuyo Koyana about reclaiming a spiritual inheritance and returning to the heart/core of Isintu.  This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival.  The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

In this event, Nkgopoleng Moloi, Pieter Madibuseng Odendaal and Lwando Scott speak to Rebecca Davis about the safety of queer people on our continent and in our cities.  This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival.  The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

Cape Town’s premier poetry slam proudly presents the Slam City Showcase! A celebration of new talent, lyrical grit, and poetic brilliance in different African languages. Each month, the city’s boldest voices battle it out for the grand prize and the coveted title of Slam City Champion. From every slam, a Top 5 emerges; poets whose performances moved both judges and audiences alike. This showcase brings together those powerful voices: the ones who’ve been slamming for their lives, month after month. The Slam City Showcase is a testament to how the intensity of slam poetry cultivates discipline, dedication, and camaraderie. Join us as we shine a spotlight on Cape Town’s community of poets who are living, writing, and igniting the mic. Featuring: Mfundi the Poet, Gali Gali, Riyo, Rea Mmethi, Mtunzikazi Ngozana, Ntsako Layn, Vusumzi Mpofu and Inzima Musicians: Chosi and Mishy Kope Hosted by Thapelo Tharaga and Zizipho Bam. This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival. The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

Better Late is where the country’s most brilliant, bewildering, and occasionally unhinged creatives - Yaaseen Barnes and Callum Hitchcock - band together on the set of a Late Night TV show to get to the bottom of whatever the hell is going on at the Open Book Festival. Joining them for conversations that matter are two very special guests, who you may recognise if you have been anywhere with internet access in the last few years — Settle down, brother! It’s not Grok — it’s Dan Corder and Céline Tshika. This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival.  The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

In this event, Kopano Maroga, Manthipe Moila and Pieter Madibuseng Odendaal speak to each other through their poetry. Please note the readings will be followed by a short Q&A session. This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival. The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival. This session dives into the link between capitalism and mental health, asking what happens to our bodies, minds, and communities when the world gaslights us into distrusting our own senses. Together with artists and thinkers M Mpho Boshego, Andile Cele and Nthato Mokgata, the conversation explores resistance, self-trust as artistic discipline, and vulnerability as something far less cute—and far more urgent—than we've been sold. Following 45 minutes of dialogue, the floor opens. No Q&A. Just a room full of people making noise together. Refusing to stay silent. Naming what’s true – especially if it’s something the world considers mad. The festival was made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust

This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival. In this event, Jon Keevy and Adriana Marais speak to Wamuwi Mbao about the intersections of art and science. The festival is made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust.

This is a recording of a live event that took place at the September 2025 edition of the Open Book Festival. In this event, Tom Eaton, Paige Nick and Zibu Sithole speak to Qarnita Loxton about balancing lighthearted writing with themes that resonate. The festival was made possible by the support of the City of Cape Town, the Heinrich Boell Foundation and the Wheatfield Estate Foundation Trust