Deer Shed Festival, which took place across three days at Baldersby Park in Thrisk, North Yorkshire, is an annual summer festival featuring music, comedy, arts, science, poetry, theatre and sport. Leeds Trinity worked closely with festival organisers to create opportunities for seven of its postgraduate students to perform live on stage, share their work and gain valuable experience in front of a live audience. The University is the only educational partner Deer Shed work with to provide students with opportunities to be part of the festival programme.

Six of the students, studying as part of the MA Creative Writing course, featured across two Writing Big Ideas events, where they explained the key themes of their work and how they turn ideas into reality.

The first discussion, hosted by Kathryn Penny, Deputy Head of School of Digital and Screen Media at Leeds Trinity University, featured three students – Rebecca Ryan, Helen McDonald and Ailsa Pater. Since starting the course at Leeds Trinity, Rebecca’s first two novels – My (extra)Ordinary Life and The Philosophy of Love – have been published by American company Simon & Schuster. Helen is a speculative science-fiction writer, while Ailsa is currently writing a literary murder-mystery.

The second session, headlined by Kenyan born, British comedian who has also featured on Comedy Central and the BBC, Njambi McGrath, welcomed students Lucy Rice, Lisa Holmes and Keith Fenton to the stage. The trio read extracts of manuscripts they have been working on as part of their degrees. Lucy Rice performed her original poetry Unthinkable, a powerful piece written in response to her mother being diagnosed with a terminal illness.

Rebecca Ryan said: “Deer Shed Festival has such a friendly, family-oriented atmosphere, so to be a part of the line-up in the Buckendz tent was brilliant, especially as I was alongside some of my course mates. I really enjoyed discussing my work and processes, and it is always fascinating to hear other authors talk about what inspires them. I had a great time and learnt a lot that will benefit me in my career.”

Ben Webster, from the University’s MA Journalism programme, also recorded a live Desert Island Discs-esque podcast named Soundtrack to my Life. Ben interviewed up and coming artists tinyumbrellas, a Leeds-based act whose music focuses on romantic and platonic love, and Frankie Archer, an electrofolk artist from Consett in the North East of England, both of whom performed at Deer Shed Festival, about the music that shaped their lives.

Ben Webster said: “Taking to the stage at a music festival has been something I have wanted to do since I was little, so being a part of Deer Shed Festival was an amazing opportunity. It gave me a platform to express my passions, allowed me to put many of the skills I have learned at Leeds Trinity University into practice and taught me valuable lessons that I will carry forward into my professional career.”

Megan Evans, Deer Shed Festival Director, said: “We were delighted to work with students from Leeds Trinity University's Creative Writing and Journalism programmes. At Deer Shed, we pride ourselves on providing platforms for early career individuals from the North, and from their initial ideas, through to in person performances, the students developed creative concepts to support their career journey. The output of work created by students from both programmes was of high quality, and hearing from early writer voices provided a different slant and perspective for our literary and spoken word programme. Thanks to everyone involved.” 

Kathryn Penny, Deputy Head of School of Digital and Screen Media at Leeds Trinity University, said: “This was a fantastic opportunity for our students to demonstrate their skills and knowledge at a music and arts festival. I’m so proud of those involved for discussing their creative process and performing so brilliantly. I hope being a part of the festival has given our students increased confidence and found them useful contacts and future opportunities.”

For more information about the School of Digital and Screen Media courses at Leeds Trinity, visit the University website.

Picture (from left to right): Ailsa Pater, Rebecca Ryan, Helen McDonald (all MA Creative Writing students) and Kathryn Penny, Deputy Head of School of Digital and Screen Media at Leeds Trinity University.