Date: October 17th, 2026

Venue: Guildhall Library

Address: Aldermanbury, London EC2V 5AF

Time: 18:00

Join writer and lawyer Selma Dabbagh for a conversation exploring the role of women in shaping cultural change across the Arab world.

Join British-Palestinian writer and lawyer Selma Dabbagh for a conversation exploring the role of women in shaping artistic and cultural change across the Arab world.

Drawing on her work as a writer, editor and cultural commentator, Selma will look at how women artists and writers have used creativity as a way to challenge conventions, tell their own stories and create space for new perspectives. From literature and film to visual art and performance, the talk will consider the ways art can reflect, question and influence the societies around us.

Selma Dabbagh is a British-Palestinian writer and lawyer. Her debut novel Out of It was named by the Guardian in 2024 as one of the best books on Israel/Palestine. Her work spans short stories, radio, stage and screen, including the Oscar-shortlisted film Palestine 36. She is also the editor of We Wrote in Symbols: Love and Lust by Arab Women Writers (Saqi, 2021), and holds a PhD from Goldsmiths, University of London.

This event is part of A Season of Arabic Culture, aiming to share culture from the Arabic-speaking world to those who live, work and pass through the City of London. Please view our programme for A Season of Arabic Culture here.

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This event is supported by The City of London Corporation's Community Infrastructure Levy Neighbourhood Fund.