Celebrating 5 years of the Free Books Festival

The Free Books Campaign marked five years of its festivals with another free book event at Brixton House over the first weekend of August. It represents something more than half a decade of commitment, hard work and defying the odds required to make it happen. It represents a vision of a future that is not so cynical as to let literature and the wider arts be gatekept and locked away behind corporate strategies and a ticket price.

The Free Books Campaign at Brixton House, August 2026. Image credit Angelo Mikhaeil

Walking around the space, seeing their legion of volunteers and the growing archive of their community work displayed over the walls, there was this rising sense, I felt, of an audacious hope. Wow, what if we could really give people days like this for free? What if this was normal? But you didn't really need to wonder what if, when you were living it in real time. It is in these spaces that change happens in the present tense, even if the full picture isn't clear yet. FLO London spoke with the campaign's founder, Sofia Akel, earlier in the year, who told us how they have made it happen:

"All our events and everything we've ever done has been free since we started, and this is our sixth year. It's hard to do that in London.

We've been able to stay firm with our values on accessibility. That's down to the hundreds of people that have helped us over the years… It's the authors, the storytellers, the people that volunteer their time. Although it's run by a group of us, it very much belongs to the community."

The Free Books Campaign at Brixton House, August 2026. Image credit MTotoe/FLO London

Across the weekend, guests could attend author talks, get involved with workshops and book clubs, and browse the free book shop to take home their next read. There was a whole constellation of literary voices present, including Caleb Femi, Candice Carty-Williams, Cecile Pin and Yomi Ṣode. For children, they facilitated a movie showing, a create your own superhero workshop, and a book reading with Dapo Adeola. Alongside sessions and activities on football, manga, film and photography, there was a sense that the curators had been thoughtful about including something for anyone and everyone on the programme.

The Free Books Campaign at Brixton House, August 2026. Image credit Angelo Mikhaeil

I left with thoughts on a conversation I had with one of the volunteers. They were studying for a Masters in Cultural Policy, which we agreed was something of an abstract notion. How much can something as sprawling, splintered, spontaneous and effervescent as culture be subjected to policy and governance? Who is setting the policy, and from what position are they looking at the question of culture and its influence on our lives? There is a whole list of questions and uncertainties.

The Free Books Campaign at Brixton House, August 2026. Image credit Angelo Mikhaeil

Still, what wasn't abstract was the space we were standing in and what was happening around us. Events like this give people the opportunity to stumble upon a book they otherwise wouldn't have found, a book that inspires a love of reading and the wisdom of literature. Maybe they'll decide to be a writer and become the voices of the future. Events like these give people a chance to hear from someone they may have never crossed paths with, and hear some words that could guide them on a new path or to some new understanding of the world and themselves. Opening up spaces like this symbolises that there are those that believe that a brighter future for arts and culture doesn’t need to wait for policy change or alternative corporate strategies. All that is needed is a vision, a sense of civic responsibility, and good people who are willing to give their time and efforts to contribute to making a difference. 

By Angelo Mikhaeil