Greenbelt Festival 2014 now in its 41st continuous year, will bring to life the theme ‘Travelling Light’, taking place this year at Boughton House, Northamptonshire between 22 – 25 August 2014. A greenfield, eco-positive new setting in the grounds of historic country house. The Festival will explore the interaction of arts, faith and justice. Greenbelt welcomes over 300 artists, thinkers, activists and expert contributors from all over the world to create over 800 hours of programming in just four days.

Musical highlights include Sinead O’Connor’s first Greenbelt appearance, headlining Sunday night, and eclectic folk band Stornoway, Friday’s headliners. About to launch debut album The Fire Inside, Luke Sital-Singh headlines Saturday night. Grammy award-winning Marcus and Levi Hummon, MOBO winner Guvna B, four-time Best Band winners of the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards Lau, west country soul and gospel singer Beth Rowley appear in the diverse line-up over the weekend alongside the distinct sounds of The Travelling Band, DJ and producer Gilles Peterson, slam hip-hop act Dizraeli and the Small Gods, popular X Factor star Jahmene Douglas, unique brass-jazz sounds of Hackney Colliery Band and up-and-coming acts Emily and the Woods, Lotte Mullan and New Zealand-based Tiny Ruins and many more.

Greenbelt is delighted Anne Lamott, international best-selling author, joins for the duration of the festival. Anne Lamott is a renowned and much-loved writing personality who has appeared on Oprah, been the subject of the documentary Bird by Bird and written books on faith, life and how to write. We also welcome Matt Haig, author of The Radleys and The Humans, and poet Patience Agbabi. Slam poet Harry Baker, author and founder of the Easterhouse Project Bob Holman and Sarah Perry, author of After Me Comes The Flood join the line-up with many other names.

The talks and Ideas line-up reflects Greenbelt’s tradition of engaging with current issues in politics, justice and equality, and challenging contemporary culture. We’re delighted to welcome Owen Jones, writer, broadcaster and author of Chavs: the Demonization of the Working Class; priest, writer and activist Revd Mpho A. Tutu, who counts co-authoring Made for Goodness and The Book of Forgiving with her father, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Executive Director of the Desmond & Leah Tutu Legacy Foundation among her achievements, and Sarfraz Manzoor, writer and broadcaster.

Contributors to the belief stream include ordained pastor Nadia Bolz-Webber, author of New York Times Bestselling theological memoir, Pastrix: The Cranky Beautiful Faith of a Sinner & Saint, Sara Miles, author of Take This Bread: A Radical Conversion; Jesus Freak: Feeding Healing Raising the Dead; and City of God, and founder and director of The Food Pantry organisation, and Brian McLaren, named one of Time magazine’s 25 most influential Evangelical Christians. Co-founder of the Westminster Faith Debates, Linda Woodhead, described by Matthew Taylor, head of the Royal Society of Arts as ‘one of the world’s leading experts on religion’ joins the line-up, along with Alastair McIntosh, leading writer, broadcaster and activist on social, environmental and spiritual issues, and Becca Stevens, founder of Magdalene, residential communities of women who have survived prostitution, trafficking and addiction, and Thistle Farms, which provides homes and work for them. Greenbelt is also delighted to welcome back many festival favourites including Revd Richard Coles, Vicky Beeching, author and priest Rachel Mann and Steve Chalke.

Greenbelt is also home to innovative comedy, film, expressions of worship, visual and performing arts including Square Peg Circus, a radical collective of acrobats, dancers, actors and circus artists; contemporary theatre company Third Angel; artistic director of Daily Life Ltd, Bobby Baker and comedian and writer Jo Enright.

Creative Director Paul Northup said of this year’s theme ‘Travelling Light’, “Conscious of the sheer weight of our lives on this good earth, its resources and its people, once more we'll be making a space where all are welcome to explore, engage and to be inspired.” The festival continues to support equality, diversity and justice with programming discussing faith and sexuality, Israel and Palestine, the environment and was recently awarded the Silver Award by events industry accessibility agency Attitude is Everything for its work making the festival accessible to all. A three minute film introducing the festival’s new site is available here.

HIGHLIGHTS BY DAY

FRIDAY 22ND AUGUST appearances from headliners Stornoway plus Lau, Beth Rowley, Hackney Colliery Band, Sam Wells and Big Howard / Little Howard.

SATURDAY 23RD AUGUST features headliner Luke Sital-Singh plus appearances from

The Travelling Band, Dizraeli and the Small Gods, Boo Hewerdine, Linda Woodhead, Owen Jones and Alastair McIntosh.

SUNDAY 24TH AUGUST Sinead O’Connor headlines, plus appearances from Gilles Peterson, Gaggle, Ezio, Mpho Tutu and Sarfraz Manzoor

MONDAY 25TH AUGUST headliners are Tinariwen plus appearances from Jahmene Douglas, Hobbit, Martyn Joseph, Folk On, and speaker Mitri Raheb.

A visual highlight throughout the festival is nightly performances by Square Peg Circus, of Rime, an acrobatic drama show, by a picturesque lake. The full festival line-up can be found here.

Watch our Interview with Greenbelt's Eleanor Mottram here.