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FURTHER LINE-UP ANNOUNCED FOR WOW AT 15 AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL

• Iconic artist, activist and Founder of the global feminist organisation The Circle Annie Lennox announced as special guest for WOW at 15 in conversation with host Jude Kelly.

• Also joining the conversation are broadcaster and comedian Sandi Toksvig, actor Liz Carr, multi-award-winning composer Errollyn Wallen CBE and musician Jordan Stephens.

• 11 time Grammy nominated sitarist and composer Anoushka Shankar will perform as well as appearing as part of the panel discussion.

• Organist Rachel Mahon and an intergenerational choir of 150 women, girls and non-binary people aged between 8 - 80 to perform World Premiere of a new choral commission by Wallen.

• Taking place on International Women’s Day 2025, WOW at 15 will feature a rare UK appearance by legendary activist Angela Davis, with further speakers and performances to be announced.

• Tickets for WOW at 15 are on sale now.

WOW - Women of the World and the Royal Albert Hall have today unveiled the next wave of speakers joining the line-up for WOW at 15, a major highlight of WOW’s 15th anniversary year, which will take place on International Women’s Day Saturday 8 March, at the Royal Albert Hall.

Led by WOW Founder Jude Kelly CBE, this special one-off event, filled with big ideas and conversations, laughter, joy, stories, music and performance, will celebrate the significant impact WOW has made by shifting the dial on gender equity, and look to the future to discuss the urgent challenges that still need to be overcome.

Following her sold out concert at the Royal Albert Hall earlier that week, iconic singer-songwriter, activist and Founder of the global feminist organisation, The Circle Annie Lennox will join Jude Kelly for a conversation about her life and work. She will talk about her vision for the future, and what a lifetime of pushing boundaries and activism have taught her.

Also announced today is a performance by 11 times GRAMMY-nominated composer, activist and sitarist Anoushka Shankar..

As well as performing, she will join Annie Lennox, multi-award-winning composer Errollyn Wallen CBE and musician Jordan Stephens in a fascinating discussion exploring the power of music in activism. The panel, which is made up of speakers who have played a significant part in WOW’s history, will feature celebrated comedian and broadcaster Sandi Toksvig, actor and disability activist Liz Carr. Together they will discuss what brings them joy, freedom and their hopes and optimism for the future.

They join previously announced headliner Angela Davis, who will make a rare UK appearance in a conversation with Jude Kelly, honouring Angela’s life and achievements. Angela will discuss the role of love in activism, hope and healing, her dreams for the future - and her love of the Blues.

Opening the event is the world premiere of a new choral commission by Errollyn Wallen commissioned by WOW to celebrate the global movement’s 15 year history. With music and lyrics inspired by the work of WOW, the piece will be performed by organist Rachel Mahon and an intergenerational choir made up of 150 women, girls and non-binary people aged between eight and 80 years from Mulberry School for Girls, St Boniface School and Lips Choir, a London based trans-inclusive women’s choir.

The evening will also feature the world premiere of a newly commissioned fanfare for the Royal Albert Hall’s 153-year-old 9,999 pipe organ written by award-winning composer Isobel Waller-Bridge and performed by renowned organist, conductor and broadcaster Anna Lapwood.

Annie Lennox said: “I’m thrilled to be celebrating International Women’s Day at WOW’s 15th anniversary event – WOW at 15. I’m passionately dedicated to amplifying the concept of ‘Global Feminism’ – in supporting and empowering women and girls everywhere around the world, especially in countries where gender parity is still so far from being realised. I can’t wait to be in the company of thousands of other people who share the same perspective at the Royal Albert Hall, as we look to the future with resilience and determination. It’s going to be such a joyful evening.”

Over the past 15 years, WOW Festivals and events have taken place in 71 locations on six continents celebrating women, girls and non-binary people. Attracting five million people worldwide, WOW has supported thousands of activists, brought previously taboo subjects into mainstream dialogue and acted as a catalyst for the launch and success of countless campaigns.

WOW at 15 will be the first of several events in 2025 marking WOW’s 15th anniversary, with further details being announced.

Tickets for WOW at 15 start from £20 with 200 £10 tickets allocated for community groups.

The WOW Choral Commission is made possible with support from the Richard Attenborough Charitable Trust. With thanks to support from The Julia Rausing Trust and public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.

The WOW Foundation is proudly supported by its Global Founding Partner Bloomberg and Global Girls Champion Standard Chartered.

LISTINGS

Royal Albert Hall and WOW - Women of the World Present

WOW at 15

Saturday 8 March 2025, 7pm

The Royal Albert Hall

Kensington Gore, South Kensington, London SW7 2AP

Box Office

Open 9am – 9pm daily at Door 12 (except when there is no show in the auditorium and we close at 5pm).

Our phones are open Monday – Friday 9am – 5pm on 020 7589 8212.

Tickets for WOW at 15 start from £20

Tickets are available from the Royal Albert Hall website and box office

BSL Interpreted by Performance Interpreting and live captioned by My Clear Text

-ENDS

For further information please contact

Kate Hassell kate@breadandbutterpr.uk

Chloe Heard chloe@breadandbutterpr.uk

About The WOW Foundation

The WOW Foundation was created by Jude Kelly CBE in 2018 to run the global movement that is WOW - Women of the World Festivals. The Festivals began in the UK in 2010, launched by Kelly at the Southbank Centre London, where she was Artistic Director, to celebrate women and girls, taking a frank look at what prevents them from achieving their potential, raising awareness globally of the issues they face, and discussing solutions together.

To date, WOW has reached six million people in 45 locations on six continents, in locations including Australia, Brazil, China, Egypt, Finland, Greece, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Somaliland, the UK and the USA.

Over the last 15 years the Festivals have developed a reputation as a space for world renowned artists, activists, thinkers and performers including Angela Davis, Malala Yousafzai, Annie Lennox, Patrick Stewart, Baroness Doreen Lawrence and Salma Hayek, to come and participate, alongside thousands of women and girls who don’t have public profiles but are doing amazing things. WOW provides platforms for people of all kinds, changes attitudes, brings communities together and provides a unique space for people to work together towards gender equity in their own communities.

One example of the Festival’s impact came in 2015, with the founding of the Women’s Equality Party by Sandi Toksvig and Catherine Mayer.

In 2018 Kelly left the Southbank Centre to run The WOW Foundation full time as a charity working to build, convene and sustain a global movement that believes a gender equal world is possible and desirable through festivals and empowering women and girls. The unique festival model creates numerous pathways for participants to take part in WOW projects, amplify their own causes, or start new initiatives which have a wide impact on communities. It is the biggest, most comprehensive and most significant festival dedicated to presenting work by women and promoting equity for women and girls.

WOW Festival was originally produced and presented by Southbank Centre.

The President of WOW - Women of the World is Her Majesty The Queen.

About the Royal Albert Hall:

The Royal Albert Hall is the world’s most famous stage. Throughout its 152-year history, it has welcomed a who’s who of world-renowned figures: artists, athletes and activists. No other place on earth has played host to Winston Churchill, Albert Einstein and Muhammad Ali; Ella Fitzgerald, The Beatles and Adele. This was the Suffragettes’ “temple of liberty” – the site of Votes for Women rallies that helped change the course of British history – the home of the Stonewall concerts, and a place of celebration during Nelson Mandela’s state visit. But its eccentric history has also seen it used for a séance, an indoor marathon and the world’s first bodybuilding contest (judged by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle).

In an ordinary year, the Hall’s extraordinary auditorium presents around 400 world-class events: encompassing rock, pop and classical music, theatre, dance, films, Cirque du Soleil and sport. It typically welcomes 1.8 million visitors a year, while its 1,000 events in secondary spaces help to attract a young, diverse audience. Its Engagement programme includes music therapy, concerts in the community, and workshops with A-list artists, often in collaboration with other charities, such as Nordoff Robbins and Music for Youth.

About Bloomberg

Bloomberg – the global business, financial information and news leader – is a founding supporter of WOW - Women of the World Festivals. Bloomberg has long supported organisations and causes that advance gender equality and seek to address challenges women face around the world, from maternal and reproductive health to women’s economic empowerment and inspiring the new generation of female leaders. Bloomberg has proudly supported WOW Festivals since 2012 www.bloomberg.com/women

About Standard Chartered

We are a leading international banking group, with a presence in 52 of the world’s most dynamic markets. Our purpose is to drive commerce and prosperity through our unique diversity, and our heritage and values are expressed in our brand promise, here for good.

Standard Chartered PLC is listed on the London and Hong Kong stock exchanges.

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