Wow 2012

7 – 11 March

Full programme Passes: £12 each day (£6 concessions) or a £30 three-day pass (£15 concessions)

#WOW2012

Jude Kelly, Women of the World Festival Director What obstacles exist that prevent women from realising their potential? And how can we change these?

These are some of the questions we ask at WOW – Women of the World Festival. It is a festival of talks, debates, music, film, comedy and conversations that celebrates the talents of women, young and old, from all walks of life and all parts of the world.

At WOW, hear great stories from women who are breaking the mould in science, enterprise, law, the arts, health, activism, education, politics, sport, fashion, finance and family life.

On offer are speed mentoring, a market place, free music, a crèche, great food and unexpected discoveries.

Highlights EQUALS LIVE 2012 P10 BIRDS EYE VIEW SOUND & SILENTS: MARY PICKFORD REVIVED

P10

SINÉAD O’CONNOR P17 MIRTH CONTROL, MARCH OF THE WOMEN 2012

P23

EMMY THE GREAT P23

Bloomberg’s support builds on a long history of support across Southbank Centre for a wide range of art exhibitions, public commissions and literature programmes. Through their philanthropy programme, Bloomberg help charities and non-profit organisations around the world with education and literacy programmes, health and medical research, social work, arts and culture, public parks and the environment.

Southbank Centre is grateful to Ms Miel de Botton for supporting WOW 2012

wow through and through Monday 5 march – Sunday 11 March

Friday 9 March – Sunday 11 March

the white ribbon alliance: Dreams for My Daughter

Speed Mentoring

Level 2 Blue Side at Royal Festival Hall

Sign up to 15-minute speed mentoring sessions and share your challenge with high-level experts across all fields, from theatre directors to geoscientists. To mentor, be mentored or to find out more, email wowmentoring@ southbankcentre.co.uk.

Part of a worldwide campaign, this exhibition gathers dreams as poems, stories, film and artwork from parents, health workers, world leaders and celebrities from across the globe.

Friday 9 March – Sunday 11 March WOW MARKET Level 2 Foyers at Royal Festival Hall, Friday 11am – 7pm, Saturday 12 noon – 6pm, Sunday 12 noon – 6pm

Stallholders include everyone from hairdressers, manicurists, female plumbers and DIY experts, to designer makers and charities supporting women.

Browse our extraordinary market and discover activities all weekend long.

Friday 9 March – Sunday 11 March Phenomenal people – Fuel Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, Friday 11am – 3pm, Saturday 11am – 7pm, Sunday 11am – 7pm

The world is full of inspiring women who are brave, beautiful and strong; who have made a difference and whose stories have never been told. We want to hear them. Brilliant artists share their stories live and online over the weekend.

Seek us out, have a drink, hear a tale and share your stories of inspirational women.

Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall

Friday 9 March – Sunday 11 March Crèche Sunley Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, Friday 2pm – 6pm, Saturday 12 noon – 6pm, Sunday 12 noon – 6pm

Crèche facilities are available, however spaces are strictly limited to 20 children at any time. Spaces are offered on a first come, first served basis.

Saturday 10 march – sunday 11 march Speaker’s Corner

by Shabnam Shabazi Riverside Terrace, 12 noon – 6pm

Jump in and get involved in this interactive, audio and visual performance. Shabnam tells her story of living in a car with her mother, grandmother, aunt, cat, dog and goldfish at the height of the 1979 Iranian Revolution, before fleeing to the UK. Exploring themes of displacement, loss, and being taken from your natural environment, this installation is still relevant today in a world where people continue to not be heard.

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wow through and through

Saturday 10 march – sunday 11 march

tuesday 6 march – Thursday 8 march

Wow Bites

BBC Media Action – ignite

St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall

Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall

WOW Bites are little talks and inspiring ideas, achievements, obsessions, stories, performances or manifestos and everything in between. Each one is completely different – come and take a chance.

Bringing together BBC’s international development charity colleagues from developing countries, participants share ideas to tackle poverty and help people claim their rights using media and communications. Five of the women will participate in talks across WOW about how media action is empowering women in Nepal, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, India and Angola. bbcmediaaction.org

Wow education WOW aims to encourage young women to question issues related to their gender, find women who inspire them and empower them to be their generation’s pioneers. A team of ‘WOWsers’ are helping, talking and interviewing throughout WOW and on 9 March a young women conference, led by Mulberry School, asks what makes a 21st Century WOW Education.

Wow Global WOW is going global in 2012! We launched in Baltimore, USA on 2 March 2012 in collaboration with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra and their Musical Director Marin Alsop. In 2013, we are planning to take WOW to Australia, Iceland and across the UK. Watch this space!

THURSDAY 8 MARCH JOIN ME ON THE BRIDGE

mass Speed mentoring

South side of Millennium Bridge, 10.30am

The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 2pm – 4pm

Now in its third year, Join me on the Bridge is the world’s largest women’s rights campaign taking place on International Women’s Day. Join the flagship event in London and march with hundreds of others to Royal Festival Hall where there are speeches by leading celebrities, politicians and women’s activists.

For further information go to joinmeonthebridge. org/events/london

Women for Women International Speeches Rally The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 12.30pm – 1.30pm

Once you’ve marched your socks off, be roused into action by speeches from leading activists, celebrities and politicians who are coming together for women’s equality.

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Cherie Blair © John Swannell

Join us for a mass speed mentoring session for hundreds of people on International Women’s Day and throughout the weekend. Cherie Blair kicks it off with a keynote about the importance of mentoring. To take part, come prepared with a question and be mentored by up to four different individuals. To book a place on the mentoring session, please contact wowmentoring@ southbankcentre.co.uk

FRIDAY 9 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Friday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

From 9.45am

JUDE – AN INTRODUCTION TO WOW: didn’t we talk about women last year?

The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 9.45am – 10am

Jude Kelly, Southbank Centre’s Artistic Director and founder of WOW – Women of the World introduces the festival.

IT’S THE ECONOMY, STUPID The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 10am – 11.15am

Rosie Boycott chairs a panel on why we should all care about global finance, including Emma Duncan, Deputy Editor of The Economist, Polly Toynbee, political and social commentator at The Guardian and Frances O’Grady, TUC Deputy General Secretary, who is the first woman ever to hold this post.

From 11.30am

HOLDING ON TO TALENT Queen Elizabeth Hall, 11.30am – 12.30pm

SELLING US SHORT? The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 11.30am – 12.30pm

Who decides what products should be sold to women and how are women used to sell products to men? How have the imagery and attitude towards women as consumers changed over the last 40 years and has the feminist debate influenced the choices made by creative agencies? Panellists, including Chairman of Interbrand UK Rita Clifton, Kate Stanners, Executive Creative Director at Saatchi and Saatchi, Andrew Cracknell, author of the Real Mad Men and former agency Creative Director and Chairman and Gail Parminter, founder and creative director of Madwomen, an ad agency specialising in advertising to women, ask what has changed and what’s stayed the same?

SPEED MENTORING Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 11.30am – 1pm

Sign up to 15-minute speed mentoring sessions and share your challenge with high-level experts across all fields, from theatre directors to geoscientists. To mentor, be mentored or to find out more, email wowmentoring@ southbankcentre.co.uk.

A lot is reported on how to get more women on to boards, but the catastrophic lack of women at senior levels often gets missed. Keeping women on track is now a business imperative. Find out how the world’s most innovative companies are making this happen. Chaired by Denise Jagger, partner at Eversheds LLP. Panellists include GE Capital Direct Chairman Noel Harwerth; author and entrepreneur Christina Ioannidis; Associate Editor and columnist at The Sunday Times, Eleanor Mills; Head of Diversity & Inclusion at Google Mark Palmer-Edgecumbe; and Managing Director, Global Head of Diversity, Deutsche Bank AG Eileen Taylor and Secretary General of the Council of Women World Leaders Laura Liswood.

In partnership with Eversheds LLP.

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FRIDAY 9 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Friday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

LOSING IT (EXcerpts) starring RUBY WAX and judith owen

TOO POOR FOR POWER? GIVING WOMEN POWER IN the AGE OF AUSTERITY

Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 11.30am – 12.30pm

Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 11.30am – 12.30pm

Consumer power, political power, life chances, independence... do they all really boil down to money? Can we empower women without a price tag? This panel looks at the impact of hard times on UK women’s ability to exercise control over their own lives and their wider world.

In partnership with the Fawcett Society.

From 1pm

The wow lecture: ONE WOMAN’S LEADERSHIP IN TRANSFORMING A MALE PRISON – A NO-COST REPLICABLE MODEL

BY DR KIRAN BEDI Queen Elizabeth Hall, 1pm – 2pm

Ruby Wax and Judith Owen © Trevor Leighton

One in four of us is affected by mental illness.

Ruby Wax had it all – career, dream house, husband, kids – so when was the moment she realised she was the one in four? Somewhere between painting her kitchen beige (again), and realising she didn’t own a life manual or comprehend the contents of a children’s party bag. Ruby’s acerbic, honest humour and Judith Owen’s touching songs are both poignant and laugh-out-loud funny. This show gives you the chance to explore the ups and downs of mental illness, its stigmas and the freedom you discover when you share the darkest moments of your life.

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Dr Kiran Bedi © India Today – Getty Images

Dr Kiran Bedi was the first and highest-ranking woman in the Indian Police Service, a former Inspector of Prisons, and is renowned for reforming the famous Tihar jail in Delhi using tough love, yoga and meditation. Now a celebrity in India, Dr Bedi gives her life story in this talk.

DUODORT: QUANTULUM FRIDAY LUNCH Level 2 Central Bar at Royal Festival Hall, 1pm

CRASH AND BURN St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 2.15pm – 3.15pm

We all have the capacity to self destruct. Rosie Boycott, a recovered alcoholic, is joined by panellists Ruby Wax, who was hospitalised with what she calls ‘the tsunami of all depressions’, comedian Angie Le Mar whose crisis of confidence nearly ended her career, and Cosmo’s agony aunt Irma Kurtz, to open up about what happens when your life hits the wall.

PLEASE SIR, CAN I HAVE SOME MORE? HOW TO NEGOTIATE A PAY RISE Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 2.15pm – 3.15pm

Contemporary music combining the powers of this piano duo, featuring commissions from six young female composers – Kerry Andrew, Christine Abdelnour, Ailís Ní Ríain, Helena Gough, Yuko Ohara and Elo Masing.

Supported by Arts Council England and PRS for Music Foundation.

From 2.15pm

Women are said to be much less likely to ask for a pay rise than men. We try to level the statistics and offer a masterclass with Jan Hall, founding partner of the JCA Group, a top level, international head hunting firm, who has operated at the highest level of executive search for the last 15 years.

This session is followed by an interview with Jan Hall by Southbank Centre Artistic Director and founder of WOW Jude Kelly.

BATTERING DOWN THE DOOR: THE TRUTH ABOUT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

ENEMIES OF GOOD ARt

Queen Elizabeth Hall, 2.15pm – 3.15pm

In his 1938 novel Enemies of Promise, Cyril Connolly asserted that there is no more sombre enemy of good art than the pram in the hall.

Through our debates and discussions we have found that women with small children continue to feel excluded from art practice and art-related events in galleries and museums. Join us to discuss how we might change this. We encourage you to bring your babies and/or small children.

Across the world, at least one in three women is beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused by an intimate partner in the course of her lifetime.

In the UK domestic violence currently affects one in four women and one in six men. Baroness Scotland, founder of the Global Foundation for the Elimination of Domestic Violence, talks about the realities of domestic violence with leading campaigners.

The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 2.30pm – 4pm

Chaired by Julia Farrington, Head of Arts at Index on Censorship 7

FRIDAY 9 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Friday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

SPEED MENTORING Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 2.30pm – 4pm

Sign up to 15-minute speed mentoring sessions and share your challenge with high-level experts across all fields, from theatre directors to geoscientists. To mentor, be mentored or to find out more, email wowmentoring@ southbankcentre.co.uk

From 3.45pm

RALLYING THE TROOPs Queen Elizabeth Hall, 3.45pm – 4.45pm

LYNNE FRANKS’ SEED CLINIC Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 2.30pm – 5pm

Women’s Business Empowerment Guru Lynne Franks, author of The SEED Handbook: The Feminine Way To Do Business, invites you to join her and her SEED Coaches to learn how to start your own sustainable business based on the SEED values of connection, community and collaboration. Using one-to-ones and an interactive workshop, leave the session feeling inspired and confident that you can create the business of your dreams.

This session begins with an interview with Lynne Franks by Southbank Centre Artistic Director and founder of WOW Jude Kelly.

June Sarpong

Women have campaigned for change since the start of recorded history. Join co-founder of Mumsnet Justine Roberts, Director of Liberty Shami Chakrabarti, disability rights campaigner and Paralympian Baroness Grey-Thompson DBE and broadcaster and co-founder of WIE (Women Inspiration and Enterprise) June Sarpong to discuss what drives them and how they inspire others to go on the journey with them.

Chaired by Jude Kelly.

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THAT OLD CHESTNUT – HAVING IT ALL Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 3.45pm – 4.45pm

FRIDAY TONIC: SARAH GILLESPIE The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 5.30pm – 7pm Sarah Gillespie

The age old question - can we really have it all?

Or do you have to choose between a family and a career? This panel, including author Frances Osborne, co-founder of Women Like Us Karen Mattinson, Jessica Huie, the founder of Colorblind Cards, Helena Puolakka, Executive Chef at Skylon Restaurant and author and deranged working mother Kathy Lette discuss work life balance, compromise and getting what you want.

WHICH WAY TO THE WHITE HOUSE? St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 3.45pm – 4.45pm

Laura Liswood, co-founder and Secretary General of Council of Women World Leaders and Senior Adviser at Goldman Sachs, has been on a quest since 1997 to find out what it would take for a woman to become President of the United States.

She interviewed 15 current and former women presidents and prime ministers to try and identify what it takes to be a world leader. We show the interviews and ask Laura: how close ARE we?

From 5pm

A mix of emotive ballads, raucous gypsy swing, blues and vaudeville with some wild Arabicinfused flourishes. Gillespie’s lyrically driven songs are conveyed with a powerfully sensuous voice and deft finger-picking guitar.

From 6pm

EVE ENSLER Queen Elizabeth Hall, 6pm – 7.15pm

GIRLS – AN ENDANGERED SPECIES. EVE ENSLER’S NEW MONOLOGUES FOR YOUNG GIRLS The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 5pm – 6pm

Special performances of four of Eve Ensler’s new monologues for young girls, You Tell Me How to be a Girl in 2012 (performed by Rachel Scurlock), Emotional Creature (performed by Sally Farag), Short Skirt (performed by Neve Faulkner) and A Teenage Girl’s Guide to Surviving Sexual Slavery (performed by Eno Williams-Uffort).

Eve Ensler© Bridget Lacombe

Eve Ensler gives a talk focusing on two of her key projects: City of Joy and Million Women Rising, finishing with a performance of one of her Vagina Monologues.

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These events are ticketed separately and are not included in the day passes.

Buy tickets online or phone our ticket office (details on the back page).

EQUALS LIVE 2012 Friday 7.30pm, Royal Festival Hall Hosted by Annie Lennox.

Katy B, Jess Mills and Emeli Sandé join Annie in a unique night of music that steps up the call for equality.

annie lennox Katy B

jess Emeli mills Sandé

From £35

BIRDS EYE VIEW SOUND & SILENTS: MARY PICKFORD REVIVED Friday 8pm, Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall Birds Eye View returns with another programme of specially commissioned live music to silent film. Celebrating screen icon and movie mogul Mary Pickford, three female composers premiere new scores live to three of her silent films.

From £15

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saturday 10 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Saturday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

From 10.15am

From 12 noon

WOW MORNING COFFEE

this time it is rocket science

The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 10.15am – 10.30am

The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

Jude Kelly, Southbank Centre’s Artistic Director and founder of WOW – Women of the World introduces the festival.

Notoriously overlooked for the Nobel Prize (it went to her male colleague), Jocelyn Bell Burnell is one of the world’s leading astrophysicists. She gives us a whistle-stop tour of her research and discoveries, and is then joined by space scientist Maggie Aderin-Pocock to talk about life, the universe, and women in science.

WOMEN, POWER AND CHANGE The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 10.30am – 11.30am

Chaired by Southbank Centre Head of Classical Music and curator of 2012’s Festival of Science & Arts, Gillian Moore.

how to talk so people listen Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

Ever had difficulty getting your point across in a meeting? Find your voice doesn’t get heard?

Psychologies magazine hosts a panel including business coach Ros Taylor and other experts to discuss why women have difficulty speaking out in a work context and asking for what they want in other areas of life. The panellists take questions and offer advice on how to command attention and ask for what you want.

In partnership with Psychologies magazine

Shami Chakrabarti

It’s down to us – three talks from three women who are committed to change. Shami Chakrabarti sets out the story of women’s struggles for freedom across the world. Baroness Helena Kennedy QC gives a shocking and powerful overview of the distribution of power and why it’s important not to stop making noise.

Retail guru and ‘Queen of Shops’ Mary Portas presents the new value we need in our lives and how communities can make that happen.

ALEXANDRA PRINGLE & KATE SUMMERSCALE Level 4 Blue Bar at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

Editor Alexandra Pringle discusses Mrs Robinson’s Disgrace with its author Kate Summerscale. They demystify the writing process, the roles of editor and publisher and their relationship with the work. Alexandra began her career at Virago Press and is now Editorin-Chief at Bloomsbury Publishing. Kate is the author of the prize-winning books The Queen of Whale Cay and The Suspicions of Mr Whicher.

Chaired by Ursula Owen, Founder of Free Word

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saturday 10 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Saturday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

A SPORTING CHANCE – WHY IT’S NOT A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

WoW BITES 1 St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

• Diana Quick tells the stories of pioneering sisters Elizabeth Garrett Anderson and Millicent Garrett Fawcett, and the battles they fought for women.

• Marjorie Nshemere Ojule, from Uganda and co-founder of Women Asylum Seekers Together London, on the life and times of a woman refugee.

• The Art of Serendipity – Liberty Smith and Sophie Windsor Clive talk about their encounter with a million starlings.

• Julie Bindel on how prostitution is both a cause and a consequence of women’s inequality, and how it is never OK to pay for sex.

Hope Powell

Newspapers rarely cover women’s sport and BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2011 failed to shortlist a single woman, yet sportswomen are winning medals, breaking records and coaching the next generation of Olympians. Hope Powell, the coach of England women’s football team; Liz Ellen, sports lawyer at Mishcon de Reya and licensed football agent; Sue Tibballs, CEO of the Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation; and Sarah Winckless, former British rower; confront the challenges facing women in sport and ask what can be done to raise their profile.

CAN MEN BE FEMINISTS? The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

Is feminism a female-only pursuit or are we all in it together? This panel including Matt McCormack Evans, co-founder of The Anti Porn Men Project, and Sunder Katwala, director of British Future, discuss sexism, the sisterhood, and whether men can be feminists.

Chaired by Shami Chakrabarti.

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ADVENTURES FROM THE BEDROOMS OF AFRICAN WOMEN Weston Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

Hear a podcast from Ghana in which writer and feminist Nana Darkoa Sekyiamah reads from her blog Adventures from the bedrooms of African women. Followed by a panel discussion on the sexualisation of black women in popular culture.

Chaired by journalist and author Hannah Pool.

SPEED MENTORING Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1.30pm

Sign up to 15-minute speed mentoring sessions and share your challenge with high-level experts across all fields, from theatre directors to geoscientists. To mentor, be mentored or to find out more, email wowmentoring@ southbankcentre.co.uk

BETTANY HUGHES Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

Historian, author and broadcaster Bettany Hughes takes us back to the time she believes we last saw true gender equality – the island of Thera, with the Bronze Age woman, 3,600 years ago. Followed by a Q&A. From 1.30pm

THE VIOLENCE CYCLE The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

WHICH WAY TO THE WHITE HOUSE? Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

Laura Liswood, co-founder and Secretary General of Council of Women World Leaders and Senior Adviser at Goldman Sachs, has been on a quest since 1997 to find out what it would take for a woman to become President of the United States. She interviewed 15 current and former women presidents and prime ministers to try and identify what it takes to be a world leader. We show the interviews and ask Laura – how close ARE we?

UNDER 10’S FEMINIST CORNER Level 4 Blue Bar at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

Feminism isn’t just for grown-ups – or teenagers.

Are you a budding young feminist? If so, we’ve got the perfect session for you. Join other young feminists for an interactive workshop exploring what feminism means. Get tips on how to start a campaign in your bedroom, and meet likeminded girls.

Led by award-winning poet Caroline Bird.

Camilia Batmanghelidjh

Camila Batmanghelidjh, the inspirational founder of Kids Company, and Erin Pizzey, founder of the first women’s refuge, are joined by psychologist Dr Linda Papadopoulos and Natalie Mitchell, a young mother supported by Kids Company, to discuss how young people carry violence through their lives and through generations unless drastic measures are taken to stop it.

Chaired by Baroness Helena Kennedy QC.

Susie Orbach Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

Susie Orbach in conversation with Jude Kelly, on women’s relationships with their bodies and the various industries involved in selling ideas of health, wellbeing, and physical beauty.

WOMEN IN THE MILITARY Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

Increasing numbers of women are now deployed to the front line and are taking leadership roles in the military around the world. This panel, chaired by TIME Europe Editor Catherine Mayer and including Colonel Marian Lauder MBE, war photographer Alison Baskerville, bomb disposal expert Major Nicola Roberts and LSE Professor Mary Kaldor, asks what effect this has on modern warfare, whether more women should join the forces, whether all military posts should be open to women and what happens when they’re back on civvy street?

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saturday 10 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Saturday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

WOMEN – CAN’T LIVE WITH THEM, CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT THEM Weston Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

From 3pm

SPEED MENTORING Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 3pm – 4.30pm

There are increasing numbers of openly gay women in today’s society. This panel, chaired by BBC newsreader Jane Hill and including journalist Julie Bindel, award-winning publisher of gay community magazines,Linda Riley, Director of Public Affairs at Stonewall Ruth Hunt, and 19-year-old singersongwriter Shea Grant, discuss some of the stereotypes and attitudes that still exist and how we can overcome these together.

Sign up to 15-minute speed mentoring sessions and share your challenge with high-level experts across all fields, from theatre directors to geoscientists. To mentor, be mentored or to find out more, email wowmentoring@ southbankcentre.co.uk

WOW BIG SING: MARCH OF the WOMEN

The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 3pm – 4pm

the cosmo debate: I Am A FEMINIST – CAN I VAJAZZLE?

The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 3pm

We want your voice to join our WOW anthem, The March of the Women by Dame Ethyl Smyth. Come to learn with Mary King on the ballroom floor.

Bring your toothbrush and your inner suffragette!

Please bring home made percussion to help us march around the site, tin cans and wooden spoons at the ready.

WOW BITES 2 St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

• Yasmin Alibhai-Brown on women,food and identity • Alex Foley on being the first female firearms expert at Sotheby’s.

• Eliette Mendes, editor and director of Angolan radio drama Streets of Life, on how the programme tackles gender violence and how ordinary people have a say in its making.

• Students from Mulberry School for Girls in Tower Hamlets talk about little successes and the places they take you.

• Jo Royle on what the ocean and being a sailor has taught her.

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Dawn Porter

What does it mean to own your body? If you pole dance for exercise, and love your Brazilian, does that dent your feminist credentials?

A panel including writer and broadcaster Dawn Porter and comedian, feminist and activist Kate Smurthwaite, Cosmo’s editor Louise Court and academic Dr Kristin Aune, battle it out.

Discuss one of the most divisive topics in contemporary feminism – come and contribute your view on vajazzling, lipstick and leg hair.

Chaired by author and journalist India Knight.

In partnership with Cosmopolitan magazine.

REPORTING BACK FROM THE ARAB SPRING: WHAT’S NEXT FOR WOMEN’S RIGHTS? Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 3pm – 4pm

POPULATION POLITICS AND sex SELECTION Weston Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall 3pm – 4pm

Epidemiologist Dr Precious Lunga is joined by demographers and women’s health experts to explore the gender politics of population and ask is sex selection the new infanticide?

COMEDY WORKSHOP WITH FUNNY WOMEN Level 4 Blue Bar at Royal Festival Hall, 3pm – 4pm

Salma Said

Women in the Arab world have been part of the political movement for centuries and in the recent uprisings they took to the streets with everyone else. Our panellists, including Egyptian pro-democracy blogger and activist Salma Said, tell us their stories of revolution and debate what the future holds for women’s rights in the Arab world.

Chaired by broadcaster Samira Ahmed.

THE QUEEN Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 3pm – 4pm

She’s the world’s second longest-serving Head of State (her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria holds the record), and one of its wealthiest and most famous women – but do we consider Queen Elizabeth II a feminist icon? As the Queen celebrates 60 years on the throne, TIME magazine’s Europe Editor Catherine Mayer chairs this panel including actress Diana Quick, who has played Her Majesty the Queen twice, commentator Yasmin Alibhai-Brown and Ros Coward, academic author of Diana: The Portrait, to assess the impact and importance of the Queen.

Fancy yourself a comedian? Want to improve your confidence, presentation and networking skills by using humour? Drawing on Funny Women’s 10 years of comedy experience from founder Lynne Parker, get a taste of how you can use comedy onstage, in business and in your everyday life.

WOW BITES 3 St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 3pm – 4pm

• Erin Pizzey, author and founder of the first women’s refuge, on how an ordinary housewife ends up in the extraordinary position of having to open a refuge.

• Sulakshana Gupta of BBC Media Action in South Sudan tells the story of Freetown’s only woman taxi driver.

• Sorrel Evans on a teenager’s view of feminism, and how at her girls school, only two pupils put their hands up to say they were feminists.

• Jill Shaw Ruddock, author of The Second Half of Your Life, gives us a whistle stop tour of the menopause.

• The East London branch of the Fawcett Society on how it is tackling the male-dominated art world from the grassroots.BC)

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saturday 10 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Saturday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

From 4.30pm

FUNNY WOMEN AND THE PAN ASIAN WOMEN’S ASSOCIATION PRESENT A SHOWCASE OF PAN ASIAN COMEDY The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 4.30pm – 5.30pm

We present a showcase of smart and hilarious Asian stand-up comics that are sure to defy the traditional submissive stereotype of Asian women. Including former Funny Women Awards finalists and some of the best new and established female comedy acts in the UK. Hosted by Sajeeta Kirshi.

The wow lecture: one WOMAN’S LEADERSHIP in TRANSFORMING A MALE PRISON – A NO-COST REPLICABLE MODEL

BY DR KIRAN BEDI Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 4.30pm – 5.30pm

Dr Kiran Bedi was the first and highest-ranking woman in the Indian Police Service, a former Inspector of Prisons, and is renowned for reforming the famous Tihar jail in Delhi using tough love, yoga and meditation. Now a celebrity in India, Dr Bedi gives her life story in this talk.

PIONEERS The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 4.30pm – 5.30pm

Pioneer: a person who is the first to explore.

Camila Batmanghelidjh, Founder and Director of Kids Company, Salma Said, Egyptian prodemocracy blogger and activist, Bianca Jagger, Founder and Chair of the Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation, and Dame Ann Leslie, veteran foreign correspondent, tell their inspirational stories of paving the way for others.

Chaired by critic and broadcaster Bidisha.

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BODY POLITICS: WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU? PART 1 SIZE & AGE Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 4.30pm – 5.30pm

The first of this two-part series looks at women’s relationships to their bodies, wading through the media mania to discuss size and age. The panel, chaired by Catherine Mayer, TIME magazine’s Europe editor and author, discuss wrinkles, cellulite, size and sexism.

Kick-Ass Characters Weston Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 4.30pm – 5.30pm

When it comes to female characters, Hollywood is stuck in a time warp. Most films still have a male lead with female characters playing second fiddle. As Pixar launches Brave, a film with Pixar’s first ever female protagonist, this panel including academic Richard McCulloch and screenwriter Helen Jacey, discusses why it matters that we see more women leading the action in films, cartoons and on TV. In partnership with Women in Film and Television

WOW BITES 4 St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 4.30pm – 5.30pm

• James Maclaine, fish curator at the Natural History Museum, on how size doesn’t matter to a female deep sea anglerfish.

• Kamini Lakshmikanthan and students from St Mark’s Academy in Mitcham on the women who have won the Nobel Prize (and some who haven’t but should have).

• Lucy Manning, Political Correspondent for ITV News, on women, politics and power.

• Shivani Wazir Pasrich performs I am the Tiger – dance, music and poetry connecting two essential aspects of life that are in danger: feminine energy, and endangered species.

This event is ticketed separately and is not included in the day passes. Buy tickets online or phone our ticket office (details on the back page).

DRY ICe Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 4.30pm – 5.30pm

SINÉAD O’CONNOR

PLUS SUPPORT Saturday 8pm, Queen Elizabeth Hall

Sabrina Mahfouz

Nina’s world is crazy. She gets paid £20 a pop to take her knickers off. She then goes home to a boyfriend who describes himself as a half drug-dealer, half art-dealer – but who’s no good at being either. Her super-religious mum knows nothing of all this and she’s on the way to stay.

Telling wild and wonderful stories is the only way Nina can stay sane – but for how long? Written and performed by Sabrina Mahfouz who ‘delights with punchy, dry humour and piercing poetry’ (What’s On Stage).

Irish-born icon and iconoclast Sinéad O’Connor has been making music, rejecting stereotypes and defying expectations for more than a quarter of a century. Sinéad performs from her new album, How About I Be Me (And You Be You)?, which ranks as one of her best and most confident pieces of work so far.

From £22.50

‘ In quite a different league… a really substantial piece of writing… she speaks lyrically and powerfully.’ **** The Times

‘ On form, focused and fervent again’ The Guardian

© Neil Gavin

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sunday 11 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Sunday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

From 10.15am

WOW MORNING COFFEE The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 10.15am – 10.30am

BODY POLITICS: WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU? PART 2 - HAIR & skin Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 10.30am – 11.30am

Jude Kelly, Southbank Centre’s Artistic Director and founder of WOW – Women of the World introduces the festival.

IRONING IT OUT: MARGARET THATCHER – FEMINIST ICON? The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 10.30am – 11.30am

As the first female British Prime Minister, some say she normalised female success and inspired the next generation; others say she was the worst example of a woman in power and set back gender equality. This panel, including author of The New Feminism, Natasha Walter, famed journalist and veteran foreign correspondent Dame Ann Leslie and Laura Liswood, co-founder and Secretary General of Council of Women World Leaders, asks: is Margaret Thatcher the unsung hero of British feminism?

Chaired by Woman’s Hour’s Jane Garvey.

MEN TALK The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 10.30am – 11.30am

A panel of men including writer and critic Gareth McClean and Poet and Associate Artist Lemn Sissay bare their souls and discuss sexism, the sisterhood, and whether men can be feminists.

Hannah Pool

In the second of this series looking at women’s relationships to their bodies, we discuss the politics of hair and skin. Author and journalist Hannah Pool chairs this panel including Dr Shirley Tate (author of Black Beauty: Aesthetics, Stylization, Politics), and Sali Hughes, writer, broadcaster and The Guardian’s chief beauty columnist.

Agony Aunt – the gloss and the goss Weston Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 10.30am – 11.30am

Generations of women have been brought up by glossy magazines. From puberty to menopause and beyond, they have offered advice and tips on sex, relationships, fashion and beauty. Has the role of women’s magazines changed in the age of social media, and will we always need an agony aunt?

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WOW BITES 5

GIRLS: AN ENDANGERED SPECIES

St. Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 10.30am – 11.30am

The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

• Filmmaker Ana Godinho de Matos shows excerpts of N’Thiana Othampítjá Tríptico/ A Triptych of Fisherwomen and talks about her journey into the daily ritual of fisherwomen from the village of Murrebue in northern Mozambique.

A panel of teenage girls talk feminism – is it cool, can you do it on Facebook, what do boys think, and would they use the f-word in the playground?

The panel includes co-founder of SE1 Utd Melba Mwanje, and Sherna Bushay from St Mark’s Academy in Mitcham. This is followed by a reading of Eve Ensler’s monologue for young girls, You Tell Me How to be a Girl in 2012 (performed

by Rachel Scurlock) and Emotional Creature (performed by Sally Farag).

• Julia Long, Chair of Object, on the secret to a great feminist campaign stunt.

• Kenyan Performance Poet and Activist Larry Liza, named a champion for women by the White Ribbon Alliance for his powerful and witty poems challenging sexual violence and discrimination.

• Nimco Ali, co-founder and CEO of Daughters of Eve, talks about thinking globally, acting locally and addressing female genital mutilation in the UK.

FRom 12 noon

And when she was bad…

WOMEN AND THE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

Statistics show that women are frequently sentenced for short periods of time for very minor offences, causing chaos and disruption to their lives and families, without any realistic chance of addressing the causes of their criminality.

Panellists including Dr Kiran Bedi, a former Inspector of Prisons in India, Lucy Perman MBE, Executive Director of Clean Break, a theatre company who work with women whose lives have been affected by the Criminal Justice System and poet, ex-offender and adviser on prison experience Sophie Barton-Hawkins, look at the realities of women in prisons and debate how to make progress.

Chaired by Lucy Gampell OBE, Member of the Parole Board and trustee of Clinks

Chaired by award-winning poet Caroline Bird.

SPEED MENTORING Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1.30pm

Sign up to 15-minute speed mentoring sessions and share your challenge with high-level experts across all fields, from theatre directors to geoscientists. To mentor, be mentored or to find out more, email wowmentoring@ southbankcentre.co.uk

ARAB ART REVOLUTION Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

Whether it’s graffiti, poetry or campaign songs, revolution has always inspired art, and art has often inspired revolution. Join writers, performers and visual artists from the region as they discuss the crucial role art has played in the Arab Spring.

COMEDY WORKSHOP WITH FUNNY WOMEN Weston Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

Want to improve your confidence, presentation and networking skills by using humour? Drawing on Funny Women’s 10 years of comedy experience from founder Lynne Parker, get a taste of how you can use comedy onstage, in business, or as part of your everyday life.

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sunday 11 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Sunday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

Cut it out: does the cosmetic surgery industry threaten gender equality?

Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

FRom 1.30pm

TEA WITH THE LADY The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

Kat Banyard

Cosmetic surgery is on the increase in the UK and, following the PIP silicone breast implants scandal, it is high time to have the debate on the nature of an industry that is fuelled by, and profits from, gender inequality. We also explore the wider implications of cosmetic surgery as part of our culture. Kat Banyard leads a discussion to ask: what can we do about it?

In partnership with UK Feminista.

WOW BITES 6 St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 12 noon – 1pm

• Natasha Walter, founder of Women For Refugee Women, on why women flee.

• Salem Ayalew explains how storytelling changes lives in Ethiopia, and how the BBC Media Action ‘Catalysing the Girl Effect’ project gets stories to thousands.

• Kieran Yates, author of Generation Vexed, on the rise and rise of the female MC. • Shea Grant performs two songs from her new album Smokey Dreams.

• Kate Berridge tells the remarkable story of Marie Tussaud, the obscure woman behind one of the most famous names in the commercial world.

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Bidisha © Pauline Keightley Photography

Bidisha interviews former editor of The Lady magazine Rachel Johnson alongside columnist Anna Blundy and other writers about the idea of being a ‘lady’. Bidisha asks if the regression to a 1950s pseudo-kitsch style and domestic goddess image is a reaction against the sexism of modern culture, in which women are merely sex objects, or sexist in itself, cultivating the myth of a domesticated, etiquette-obsessed little woman. And is the idea of ladyhood subversive in any way?

MONEY, MONEY, MONEY The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

Global finance can feel distant and irrelevant, but these decisions have a direct impact on our day-to-day lives. This panel, including Merryn Somerset Webb, Editor-in-Chief of MoneyWeek magazine, The FT’s Mrs Moneypenny and Jill Shaw Ruddock founder of The Second Half Centre explains what world money does to your life, and why we should all care about global finance.

Having no Children or Grandchildren – undivided attention Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

THE WORLD’S WIFE

BY CAROL ANN DUFFY PERFORMED BY LINDA MARLOWE Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.45pm

This women-only discussion explores how women with no children (or grandchildren) work round assumptions of friends, colleagues and the media to contribute to life beyond stereotype.

Led by Julia Rowntree, Arts Development Adviser and Producer.

This is a woman-only session.

GLOBAL FEMINISM Weston Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

Women and men are fighting for gender equality all over the world, but all too often non-Western feminists are left out of the dialogue. What mistakes does Western feminism make in a global context, and what can it learn from its non-Western sisters? Chair of Gender Studies at SOAS, Dr Nadje Al-Ali, blogger Ms Afropolitan and writer and commentator Nesrine Malik discuss.

Chaired by author and journalist Hannah Pool.

WOW BITES 7

Linda Marlowe

Seabright Productions and LMP present The World’s Wife. Directed by Di Sherlock.

A new stage version of the acclaimed poems that imagine the perspectives of the wives of famous men through the ages. Laced with dark humour and acerbic wit, this is a passionate exposé for lovers of Duffy’s poems and newcomers alike.

‘a rich and rollicking ride through the dark and dangerous aspects of womankind’ ****

St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 1.30pm – 2.30pm

The Scotsman

• Justice in Action – Students from Mulberry School for Girls in Tower Hamlets tell the story of a journey to the site of the world’s worst genocide since World War II.

FRom 3pm

• India Gary-Martin on motherhood and adoption.

• Rachel Mars, performance maker, uses Pecha Kucha to tell a story of heroes, underdogs and swimming the channel when you can’t swim a length.

• Katharine Whitehorn on agony aunts and the dos and don’ts of aunting.

MARY WHITEHOUSE – PRUDE or PROPHET? The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 3pm – 4pm

Mary Whitehouse was berated for her strident views on the lack of morality in popular culture but now, popular culture is more sexualised than ever, and hardcore porn more hardcore. Is censorship the answer?

Chaired by Baroness Helena Kennedy QC. 21

sunday 11 MARCH day pass Events If you have a Sunday/3-Day Pass, choose one event to attend in each time slot and arrive early, as it’s first come, first served.

LOSING IT (EXcerpts) – starring RUBY WAX and judith owen

SPEED MENTORING

Purcell Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall, 3pm – 4pm

Sign up to 15-minute speed mentoring sessions and share your challenge with high-level experts across all fields, from theatre directors to geoscientists. To mentor, be mentored or to find out more, email wowmentoring@ southbankcentre.co.uk

An extract of the mental health comedy by Ruby Wax and Judith Owen, followed by a Q&A. See page 6 for details.

FASHION: THE HISTORY OF DECORATION The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 3pm – 4pm

Women have been dressing up for centuries.

Knowing your Gucci from your GAP doesn’t necessarily mean you’re not also interested in politics, or the economy. Join Grazia writer Polly Vernon, trend analyst and Strictly It Takes Two expert Oonagh O’Hagan as they discuss the history of decoration and celebrate the innate joy of dressing up.

Chaired by our very own fashionista Maggie Semple OBE.

Spirit Level at Royal Festival Hall, 3pm – 4.30pm

SPEAK UP, DEAR Level 5 Function Room at Royal Festival Hall, 3pm – 4pm

On panel shows and on the news sofa, women are in the minority on the small screen when it comes to comment and comedy. Is there a culture behind the camera that still excludes women, or are we our own worst enemies? Guardian Writer Kira Cochrane, journalist and Have I Got News for You and Question Time regular Julia Hartley Brewer and others discuss why we still see gender imbalance, how it impacts upon society, and how we can address it.

In partnership with Women in Film and Television.

WOW BITES 8

FRom 4.30pm

St Paul’s Roof Pavilion at Royal Festival Hall, 3pm – 4pm

WOW DEN

• Dipika Shrestha, a presenter for BBC Media Action in Nepal, on how radio provides a powerful way of boosting the health and wellbeing of many.

• Jessica Akerman explores the history of women’s work songs, from Scottish ‘waulking’ songs to the campaign for equal pay.

• Rosie Swash on why women should Hollaback.

• ‘The girl from Montego Bay’ - Reverend Rose Hudson-Wilkin on being the first black woman to be Chaplain to the Speaker of the House of Commons.

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The Clore Ballroom at Royal Festival Hall, 4.30pm – 5.30pm

Throughout the weekend you are asked to give ideas on a postcard that you think will change women’s lives for the better. Our judges Baroness Helena Kennedy QC, Frances Osborne, Roberta Akpan and Katharine Whitehorn pick the five best to present to the conference and are given the third degree, followed by an audience vote. Jude Kelly comperes and a magnificent prize awaits.

These events are ticketed separately and are not included in the day passes.

Buy tickets online or phone our ticket office (details on the back page).

MIRTH CONTROL, MARCH OF THE WOMEN 2012 Sunday 7.30pm, Royal Festival Hall Sandi Toksvig hosts a night of comedy, stories and music inspired by great women. With Jo Brand, Sharon D Clarke, Jane Glover, Lucy Parham, Stevie Wishart and comedian-turned-conductor Sue Perkins. Sue conducts an all-woman orchestra in The March of the Women, by suffragette-composer Dame Ethel Smyth. A unique evening of fun for all men and women.

From £15 7pm Gaggle kick off the night with singing in The Clore Ballroom. Free

EMMY THE GREAT + Amanda Applewood Sunday 8pm, Queen Elizabeth Hall

Two years after her critically acclaimed debut album First Love, Emmy The Great returns to WOW with songs from her new album Virtue. Emmy plays with a string section to create a strange, ambient, twisted and atmospheric music to confront her life without fear.

From £14

© Alex Lake

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how to book

SHOP & EAT

Online southbankcentre.co.uk/wow (£1.75 transaction fee*)

Southbank Centre has a vast array of restaurants, bars, cafes and shops, plus we have some special WOW-only opportunities:

Phone 0844 847 9910 9am – 8pm daily

(£2.75 transaction fee*)

In person Royal Festival Hall Ticket Office 10am – 8pm daily (no transaction fee) * No transaction fee for Southbank Centre Members and Circles Supporters

Groups and schools Discount available Phone 0844 875 0070 9.30am – 5.30pm Monday – Friday Concessions

Unlimited number of half-price tickets and day passes available. Visit southbankcentre.co.uk/ concessions

Transport & Access Access Southbank Centre is accessible to people with disabilities.

Email: accesslist@southbankcentre.co.uk Phone: 0844 847 9910 Fax: 020 7921 0607

Public Transport

Southbank Centre is located on the Thames riverside between Golden Jubilee and Waterloo Bridges.

Underground: Waterloo & Embankment Buses: Waterloo Bridge, York Road, Belvedere Road & Stamford Street National Rail: Waterloo, Waterloo East & Charing Cross

Feng Sushi 020 7261 0001 Get 15% off food when you show your WOW ticket or day pass.

Ping Pong 020 7960 4160 Complimentary exclusive cocktail when you dine and show your WOW ticket.

Skylon 020 7654 7800 Inspired by WOW festival, try one of three exclusive cocktails and bites.

Foyles Choose from an extensive selection of literature about women, for women and by women.

Caffè Vergnano 1882 020 7921 9339

Le Pain Quotidien 020 7486 6154

Canteen 0845 686 1122

Queen Elizabeth Hall Bar & Food Counter 020 7921 0758

Concrete 020 7921 0758

Riverside Terrace Café

EAT 020 7401 2989

Strada 020 7401 9126

Giraffe 020 7928 2004

wagamama 020 7021 0877

Las Iguanas 020 7620 1328

YO! Sushi 020 3130 1997

Shop Three Southbank Centre Shops: Royal Festival Hall Festival Terrace Hayward Gallery

/womenoftheworldfestival #WOW2012 Download WOW app All listings correct at time of going to press

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