Chester Literary Festival Presents TRUE STORIES LIVE: Lost and Found

True Stories Live is an intimate storytelling event with a simple premise, ordinary people tell their own anecdotal stories to a warm and friendly audience, relating to a different theme each time. Unscripted and unpolished, heartwarming, revealing, funny, occasionally shocking or sad - True Stories Live will have your emotions leaping from one extreme to another as you are drawn into each storyteller's world. For some it's their first time ever on stage; others are used to performing, but what they have in common is that they are telling their own personal stories about their own experiences. Recent 'guest' storytellers have included Sara Pascoe and Shôn Dale-Jones.

Following a year of sell-out events at Norwich Arts Centre and a special appearance at the 2017 Edinburgh International Book Festival, True Stories Live is touring festivals through the autumn and comes to Chester Literary Festival with a FREE workshop for potential storytellers on 14 November and the main TSL event on 15 November, both at Storyhouse, Hunter St.

The theme for the Chester evening is 'Lost & Found'. Compere, poet and scriptwriter Molly Naylor will introduce a line up of storytellers that is expected to include a hand picked selection of Festival performers.

One audience member described the event as 'like eavesdropping into people's stories in the pub - and here I'm allowed to!' A first time performer said 'I was absolutely petrified before I went on but I feel amazing now, the audience was really receptive. I had so much fun... everybody should do it'.

See a short video trailer here!

True Stories Live is the brainchild of producer Lucy Farrant. She teamed up with Radio 4/Sky TV writer, poet and performer Molly Naylor who is compére , host and workshop leader.

The workshop on 14 November will be a lively and fun designed to help potential participants find and shape their anecdotal and personal story and give them the confidence to present it in public. Molly Will help boost their confidence in public speaking and give tips on how to make the stories interesting and fun.

Lucy said, 'The idea came from an American organisation called The Moth, which has been the subject of BBC Radio 4 programmes. We believed that British people have many funny, sad, heart-warming, inspiring and downright awesome tales to tell too and, over the past year, we have been proved absolutely right!' www.truestorieslive.co.uk

Molly Naylor is a scriptwriter, poet and performer. She is the co-writer and creator of Sky One sitcom After Hours, wrote and performed the autobiographical show Whenever I Get Blown Up I Think Of You, which toured internationally and was adapted for BBC Radio 4 and recently directed her first short film, Callback.

Those interested in speaking at the True Stories Live event, please send a short synopsis of their story to truestorieslive@gmail.com.

Listings information:

True Stories Live workshop: 14 November, 6-9pm FREE but reserve your place at www.storyhouse.com/event/molly-naylor-workshop.

True Stories Live 15 November, 8.30pm (approx 2 hours with interval) £5 www.storyhouse.com/event/molly-naylor.

Both at Storyhouse, Hunter Street Chester, CH1 2AR 01244 409 113