A podcast festival being held at Birmingham City University will remember the work of the acclaimed writer and poet, Benjamin Zephaniah.

The UniPostFest enters its second year, taking place on Wednesday June 5th at and celebrates diverse voices from podcasters across the Midlands delivering workshops, discussions, and networking with the industry’s experts. Festival Director, Nina Robinson, said:
 
“Benjamin Zephaniah has always been inspiring, and he embodies so much of what is wonderful about Birmingham and the talented people that live here.
 
“The first thing that I wanted to do for this year’s podcast festival, was to honour Benjamin Zephaniah in some, small way. He has given the world so much in his poetry and his unique perspective on life, which lends so much from his Jamaican heritage. 
 
“This has a special place in the hearts of people whose lives he has touched.”

The festival will have a special tribute to Zephaniah from multi-award-winning podcaster George the Poet and Professor Dr Martin Glynn who is one of Benjamin Zephaniah’s lifelong friends.

 The lineup also includes Hamza Syed, the host of the global number one hit podcast ‘The Trojan Horse Affair’; Good Morning Britain broadcaster, Marverine Cole and a Sports Podcasting Panel.

There will be workshops sharing podcast skills and knowledge including one on ‘How to Pitch your Podcast’ with company director Bernard Achampong from ‘We Are Unedited’, an independent audio production company. The festival is also supported by BBC Sounds Audio Labs through a podcast competition. 
 
Speaking about the hopes for this year’s festival Nina added: “I really hope UniPodFest 2024 will lead to greater diversity in the podcasting landscape.
 
“By showcasing regional voices, the voices of women of colour, the voices of those from working class backgrounds, and all those voices who are not part of the London media elite.”