Broadcaster and former Lioness Jill Scott MBE will headline WOW North East on 18 October 2025 at Gala Durham – the first ever WOW Festival in the North East! Free tickets are on sale now for the one day packed festival.

From winning the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 with England to her hilarious and heartfelt turn on I’m a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!, Jill has won over hearts across the country with her grit, humour, and unmistakable North East spirit.

Jill will reflect on her remarkable journey – from kicking a ball around in Sunderland as a child, to becoming one of the most respected figures in women’s football. Expect laughter, inspiration, and no shortage of great stories as she shares the highs and lows of a life in sport, her experience breaking barriers in a male-dominated field, and what comes next now that she’s swapped the pitch for punditry and presenting. Jill Scott’s conversation will take place as the closing session for WOW North East, and will be included in the free festival day pass.

Jill Scott MBE says: “I’m thrilled to be part of WOW here in the North East. It’s so exciting to see such an incredible event taking place in this region and to have the chance to showcase all the amazing talent we have here. Being able to celebrate that with the community that shaped me makes it even more special"

Alongside Jill Scott MBE, WOW North East will be brimming with events and panels for festival day pass holders – from raw conversations on maternal healthcare and motherhood, to a fresh look at women’s work within industry in Sophie Piper’s new photographic exhibition. The festival will also feature panels on the impact of race tensions and life beyond the riots that shook the region with speakers including Yasmin Khan and Faty Kane and urgent conversations about what comes next for our communities with speakers including Tracy Brabin and Charlie Kemp.

The festival will open with special guests celebrating the North East in all its glory from the proud history of the railways to the stories of local people driving things forward, and everything else that makes the North East special. They’ll explore the role that women and girls had in the huge leap forward that the creation of the railway presented 200 years ago, and how the world can make sure that women and girls are at the centre of the next wave of technological advancement right around the globe.

Joy and injustice will sit side by side as the festival looks at how both economic innovation and financial hardship is shaping women’s lives in the North East. Sessions will include workshops on finance and f*ck off funds, aimed at empowering women to take control of their finances with entrepreneur Jordan Groody to more panel sessions with women at the fore of business and STEM including Hays Travel founder Dame Irene Hays and Chi Onwurah MP.

WOW’s flagship WOW Big Ideas and WOWBites sessions will see some of the region's most compelling and inspiring speakers explore complex societal issues, including Teissy Easton on grief, child loss and honouring memory through dance through a powerful performance with her son; to psychiatrist and activist Dr Nina Burrowes on alternative forms of justice for survivors. Kate Craddock and Google's Freya Salway will also explore the legacy of Getrude Bell and the future of AI and the arts and Dr Lucy Reynolds will discuss her motivations for founding the organisation ‘We are all Disabled’. Sade Sangowawa will also share the joy and struggles behind setting up the transformative Middlesbrough based organisation, ‘Taste of Africa’. Margaret Hedley will share her research based in the Durham coalfield and the resilience and resourcefulness of women who were silent and invisible.

Award-winning playwright and and Artistic director of Open Clasp Catrina McHugh MBE will join the Festival to open a screening of ‘Rupture’, a film co-created three miles down the road with the women of HMP Low Newton, exploring the reality of motherhood for prisoners; whilst young people from South Shields and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil will explore the outcome of a grassroots project exploring activism and the arts, funded by the AHRC, and part of a wider research programme developed in partnership with King's College London, Redes da Maré (Brazil), People's Palace Projects and Queen Mary University.

Former MEP and local activist Julie Ward will host a climate cafe, and founder of BokBok books Rumana Yasmin will run a Bengali inspired embroidery workshop. There will also be painting workshops with Katie Dyer as well as mural painting, a hilarious gameshow on ‘how to be good in bed’ run by the Consent Collective and a series of pop up performances with Tees Women Poets while hula hooping will take place with Newcastle Circus Arts.

Ravinda Cheema will lead a Bollywood dance class in addition to dance workshops led by the much loved Stockton based duo, Urban Kaos, as dancer Laura Connolly leads a fusion of clog dancing and hip hop in Clogbeatz, celebrating Durham’s clog dancing past.

There will be singing and entertainment with community choir Girls, Theys and Slays, protest songwriting with homegrown musical talent Beccy Owen, and a closing performance by folk singer- songwriter Amelia Coburn, as well a theatre showcase of some of best and most exciting shows across the North East right now which will include artists Maryam Ali, Luca Rutherford and Vici Wreford Sinnott.

Throughout the day, WOW North East will also be celebrating the LGBTQ+ community of the region through a Pride Banners Workshop from Curious Arts and working with artist Lady Kitt to proudly explore life and creativity beyond the binary with Drag Declares Emergency.

Outside the grounds of Gala Durham, Curious Caravan will join the festival, sharing stories of underrepresented communities, raising awareness of the issues they face while also gathering new stories from the people they meet. There’ll be opportunities to write cards to women in local detention centres and create moments of joy in this artist led interaction. Audiences will also have the opportunity to get hammering with SAWDUST! and create eco-friendly pop up seating for festival goers. Working with The Story and S&DR200, WOW have also commissioned a new set of city tours unearthing women's history in the region with accessible routes available.

For under-10s, the return of WOW Under 10s Feminist Corner will encourage children to find out what they can do to fight for equality in a series of fun workshops, and discover what life is like for girls across the world.

Festival-pass holders will be able to explore everything from politics to pop culture, sex to sport, and activism to art through personal, local stories of resilience and activism, events, performances, panels, headline interviews and workshops. There will also be thought-provoking moments, joy and celebration at every turn with mindfulness painting and radical song-making, surprise poetry pop-ups and music, dance and theatre performances. There will be a marketplace of stalls and activity in the main atrium, and a chance for attendees to nominate themselves or others for the Hope Brigade with photographer Joanne Coates.

Then, in a separately ticketed festival event on Saturday evening, WOW will be joined by broadcaster, DJ, and outspoken feminist Ashley James for a powerful and personal conversation exploring what it means to be a woman in today’s world. Known for her honesty about everything from postpartum realities to online misogyny, Ashley has built a platform rooted in authenticity, activism, and breaking down stigma. She will be interviewed by acclaimed writer and broadcaster Emma Dabiri.

As part of the wider programme of WOW North East events taking part across the region, on Friday 17 October at Live Theatre in Newcastle, WOW and Live Theatre presents the sold out world premiere reading of Astell and Woolf, a sharp new comedy by Shelagh Stephenson. When pioneering feminist Mary Astell meets Virginia Woolf in the afterlife, the result is a riotous, thought-provoking clash of minds. Gemma Whelan (Games of Thrones, Gentleman Jack) will star as Viriginia Woolf.

Additionally, as part of this wider programme and fresh from its Edinburgh Fringe run, The WOW Show with Jude Kelly will also be at Gala Durham on 11 October 2025. Jude Kelly and some special guests will embark on bold conversations as part of the Durham Book Festival for an interactive evening discussing big ideas and current pressing issues, with a very special guest to be announced. This is part of a larger regional tour, and will also go to Middlesbrough and Hexham.

Find out more, view the full line-up and book your WOW North East tickets here.