John Makinson to Chair Bradford Literature Festival
John Makinson, who led the Penguin Group from 2002 to 2012 and served as chairman of the merged Penguin Random House for three years, has been appointed as the new chair of the board for the Bradford Literature Festival.
Makinson succeeds Sir Richard Lambert in the position. The appointment comes as BLF celebrates its 10th anniversary, having attracted a record-breaking audience of 155,934 from 24 countries in 2024.
"With John Makinson’s leadership, support and extensive experience in the creative industries, we are ready to further grow our national and global presence and partners, to make an even greater contribution over the next ten years," said Syima Aslam, CEO and Artistic Director of BLF.
In prepared comments, Makinson said he is looking forward to help continue making BLF not only one of the U.K.'s biggest fairs, but one of "the most diverse and distinctive, literary conversations in Europe."
In addition to his time at Penguin and PRH, Makinson currently chairs the advisory board of the Bodleian Libraries at Oxford University and is a board member of Harvard University Press. He is also a director of Mercy Corps, an international humanitarian organization, Mercy Corp.
