A BITTERSWEET teenage memoir, a rugby legend in conversation, some free-style jazz and the story of an unlikely Buddhist retreat are among the line-up for the opening weekend of this year’s Bradford Literature Festival.

The festival is back, after going entirely virtual last year, with a Covid-safe programme. Running from tomorrow to Sunday, July 4, half the events are in city centre venues and outdoor locations and the other half are online.

“After an entirely digital edition in 2020, we’re incredibly excited to bring BLF back into some of the physical spaces for which it was conceived,” says festival director Syima Aslam. “We owe a great deal of thanks to the Culture Recovery Fund. We have greatly missed venues such as the debating chamber at City Hall and our beloved gothic Waterstones bookshop in the Wool Exchange, and we can’t wait to fill them with inspiring, thought-provoking conversation.”

With more than 220 speakers and over 100 events, there’s a lot to pack in over the next week. Guests include Bradford-born TV presenter Anita Rani, discussing her coming-of-age memoir The Right Sort of Girl, best-selling author Caitlin Moran and acclaimed children’s novelist Michael Rosen.

There are guided tours of the Bronte Stones trail, from Thornton to Haworth, historic Undercliffe Cemetery, and a Jewish heritage walk in Manningham. And there are events marking significant anniversaries this year, including the 2001 Bradford riots, the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the fifth anniversary of the death of Batley and Spen MP Jo Cox.

Here are some festival highlights for the opening weekend:

* TOMORROW: Jacqueline Wilson: The Runaway Girls. For over 30 years, the popular children’s author has delighted readers with her stories of Tracy Beaker. In an on demand event, from 9am, Jacqueline talks about her latest coming-of-age adventure, The Runaway Girls.

* The Blood Divide: Author AA Dhand in conversation, Waterstones, 7pm. The Bradford crime writer discusses his new page-turner, The Blood Divide, taking a journey from Delhi’s red light district to India’s demilitarised zones.

* SATURDAY JUNE 26: The Secret Diary of a British Muslim Aged 13 3/4 - Tez Ilyas in conversation, Midland Hotel, 1.30pm. Rising comedy star Tez shares funny and touching stories from his teenage memoir, chronicling the challenges of growing up British-Asian Muslim in post-Thatcher Blackburn.

* How to Stop Facism - with Paul Mason, Midland Hotel, 4.30pm. Paul shares his views about the rise of the far-right, from Trump and the Capitol Hill riots to the Covid chaos left in the wake of Brazil’s conspiracy-theorist leader Bolsonaro.

* David Lascelles: A Hare-Marked Moon, Waterstones, 7pm. The Earl of Harewood shares the remarkable true story behind an extraordinary meeting of cultures that resulted in the Harewood Stupa, a Buddhist retreat founded in the grounds of Harewood House.

* Shaykh Abdal Hakim Murad: In Conversation, St George’s Hall, 3pm. Shaykh discusses his latest book Travelling Home: Essays on Islam in Europe.

* SUNDAY JUNE 27: Masle Masail, Kala Sangam, 1pm. This women-only event offers an opportunity to seek advice on Islamic matters from an experienced female scholar.

* Mehfil-e-Milad, Kala Sangam, 3pm. A women-only afternoon of devotional performance featuring singer Shabnam Khan.

* Ellery Hanley in Conversation, The Studio, 6pm. The rugby league legend reflects on a career that saw him captain and coach Great Britain. Now the chairman of the Man of Steel panel, Ellery shares his views on the game today.

* Saima Mir: The Khan, Waterstones, 7pm. Former Telegraph & Argus journalist Saima discusses her debut novel, a gritty thriller in which crime, justice and family mix with explosive consequences.

* Anthony Joseph: The Frequency of Magic, The Studio, 7pm. Award-winning author, poet and musician Anthony delivers a performance spanning spoken word, literature and improvised jazz celebrating his experimental new novel about a Trinidadian wannabe author whose long-delayed book begins to magically write itself.

* Stonehenge and the Durrington Shafts, The Studio, 2.30pm. A panel of industry experts, including historians and archaeologists, discuss the historical and cultural impact of a circle of deep shafts recently discovered near Stonehenge which changed our understanding of Neolithic life. Dubbed the ‘Durrington Shafts’, this mysterious find dates back more than 4,000 years and was labelled the largest prehistoric structure ever to be unearthed in Britain - but what was its purpose?

* For tickets go to bradfordlitfest.co.uk