Author appearances, poetry and spoken word events in London this week
Stand Up And Slam at The Poetry Cafe. Details below.
Thursday 6 February
Philosopher Alain de Botton introduces his latest book, The News, and discusses whether watching the news is doing us any good. Followed by a book-signing at the National Theatre. £3+, prebook, 5.30pm
How Numbers Rule The World, a book discussing the use and abuse of statistics in global politics by Lorenzo Fioramonti, launches tonight at King’s College. Free, just turn up, 7pm
Acclaimed poet, short-story writer, novelist and memoirist James Lasdun is in conversation with Adam Phillips at Lutyens & Rubinstein Bookshop. £8, prebook, 7pm
Genesis Cinema’s live Poetry Slam sees local spoken word artists battle it out for the audience’s vote. Free, prebook, 7pm
Stand Up and Slam lets the mediums of stand-up comedy and performance poetry go head to head at The Comedy Cafe, with the audience deciding the night’s winners. £8+bf, prebook, 7.30pm
Keats House School of Night hosts School of Night: Improvised Shakespeare, where actors improvise drama and poetry using suggestions from the audience. £5, prebook, 7.30pm
At Lesbians at Lewisham Library, writer and editor Cherry Potts oversees an evening of poetry and book readings, including from poet Kate Foley. Free, prebook, 7.45pm
Friday 7 February
Burn After Reading is an evening of performance poetry featuring London’s up and coming performers, including Fringe Award winner Hannah Jane Walker, at The Gallery Cafe in Bethnal Green. £3, just turn up, 7pm
Celebrate 100 years of William S Burroughs at a secret location with performers, artists and DJs. £30, prebook, 8pm
Saturday 8 February
Afternoon Poems at Keats House marks the anniversary of the death of Elizabeth Siddal, the original Pre-Raphaelite muse. At this event, Keats House Poetry Ambassadors celebrate her work and that of other pre-Raphaelite women. Free with admission ticket to the house, just turn up, 3pm
How To Read Greek Tragedy is a day-long course at Waterstone’s Piccadilly, led by Philip Womack, helping participants to read and understand Greek tragedies. £99, prebook, 10am-5pm
Sunday 9 February
Jazz Verse Jukebox joins poetry and music in one evening, with a live jazz trio and open mic. Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, Soho. £8, just turn up, 7.30pm
Monday 10 February
Words on Monday at Kings Place celebrates Dylan Thomas, the man widely recognised as Wales’s greatest poet. Including poetry performances. £9.50, prebook, 7pm
Poetry publishers The Tall Lighthouse host a free open mic night at The Poetry Cafe. Free, just turn up, 7.30pm
Tuesday 11 February
Marion Davies and Jane Liddell-King present their work, Face In The Void, telling the stories of survivors of the Holocaust, at The London Jewish Cultural Centre. £8/£10, prebook, 2.15pm
Drink Shop Do hosts That Night Where They Do Writing, giving up and coming authors the chance to showcase their work. This month’s writers are Essie Fox, Samantha Ellis, Anna Whitwham and Ben Johncock. Free, prebook, 7pm
The Poetry Society hosts Poetry Unplugged, a weekly open mic night. £5/£4, just turn up, 7.30pm
The monthly Liars’ League takes place at the Phoenix, with actors telling new stories written specifically for the night along the theme of You & Me. If that’s not enough, join in the famous half-time book quiz. £5, just turn up, 7.30pm
Meet historian Tracy Borman, author of Witches: A Tale of Sorcery, Scandal & Seduction, at the London Jewish Cultural Centre. £12/£15, prebook, 8pm
Wednesday 12 February
Author Joanne M Harris (Chocolat) discusses her new fantasy novel The Gospel Of Loki at Waterstone’s Piccadilly. £5/£3, prebook, 6.30pm
Incite at The Phoenix Artists Club is an LGBT poetry night hosted by award-winning poet Trudy Housan, featuring performance poetry followed by an open mic. Free, just turn up, 7pm
Hanif Kureishi launches his new novel, The Last Word, as part of Southbank Centre’s Literature Spring Season 2014. £10, prebook, 7.45pm
Loose Muse, London’s only regular event for women writers of all genres, takes place at The Poetry Cafe, followed by an open mic. £5/£3, just turn up, 8pm
Follow @LondonistLit for our pick of that day’s literary events.