The Big Malarkey Festival is part of the Hull Libraries’ great offer for city schools.
We aim to encourage reading for pleasure and engagement with everything a library has to offer. We do this by providing opportunities for children to stretch their imaginations and discover their creative power, working alongside professional artists.
The festival will be back from Tuesday 21 – Friday 24 June 2022, offering a programme of Activity Days for Schools, including the James Reckitt Hull Children’s Book Award, for all members of our Hull Schools Library Service.
The programme is free of charge and includes sessions for EYFS and KS1 – KS3 pupils, author talks and a range of practical workshops.
This year the theme is What’s The Story? and we invite your pupils to explore some great stories of people, places, events, things – through reading, writing, performance and making.
We hope they will keep inspiring you long after the festival is over. As always, we value your feedback and encourage you to encourage your pupils to keep using their library to discover more great stories!

The experience of The Big Malarkey is invaluable in raising the aspirations of Hull children. A unique experience incorporating dance, drama, poetry, art, music and technology. Appealing to all ages, this unmissable event needs to be a date in everyone’s diary!
We are grateful to the James Reckitt Library Trust for supporting the 2022 Activity Days for Schools festival programme.