The Foundation is delighted that poet and author Jackie Kay will deliver its 2026 annual lecture. She will talk about responding creatively to the challenges we face and the impact responding creatively can make.
The lecture will be held on Tuesday 2 October 2026 at 7:00 pm in the City Chambers, George Square, Glasgow. Lyn Henderson, Chair of the Jimmy Reid Foundation and PCS, will chair the event. There will be an opportunity to ask questions. Doors will open at 6:15 pm, and tea and coffee will be available beforehand, with stalls to browse.
Tickets can be purchased here: https://www.zeffy.com/en-GB/ticketing/jimmy-reid-memorial-lecture
We are using the charity fundraising site Zeffy this year, so there is no mandatory ticket charge. You have the option to tip them, which helps keep the services free of charge. If you want to purchase from us directly, or in bulk numbers, please contact us at contact@reidfoundation.scot.
Sustaining members are entitled to a complimentary ticket.
One example of her poetry books is May Day. These poems cast an eye over several decades of political activism, from the international solidarity of Glasgow in Kay’s childhood, when she accompanied her parents’ Socialist campaigns.
“At the core of this vital and wonderful book are Jackie’s activist parents, and the book is filled with marches, demos, protests, dreams of Peggy Seeger and memories of Hugh MacDiarmid pushing a pram. Here’s a beautiful writer at the top of her game and if I ran Britain I would give out copies on the NHS. It’s a sublime, joyous, pot-banging volume of genius.” (Andrew O’Hagan)