TEENAGE campaigner and Nobel Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai has been announced as another high profile guest at an upcoming Bradford festival.

Her battles for female equality led to her being shot in the head by the Taliban in 2012 over her views on girls’ education. Now 19, Malala has won a Nobel Peace Prize and been described as one of the most influential people in the world. And on Saturday November 5, she will discuss issues vital to young women at an event in Bradford Cathedral.

It is part of the WOW (Women of the World) festival, which is being held in the city for the first time next month and will both celebrate women and look at some of the most pressing issues they face in modern society.

Her addition to the festival is down to a group of local school girls who were asked to help shape the festival. Called the Wowzers and made up of pupils from different schools, they had hoped Malala, originally from Pakistan, would be able to attend the two day event. When they found out that she could not, the group sent a video message to her, impressing her so much that she re-worked her schedule so she could take part.

Aina Khan, one of the festival’s organisers, said: “If it wasn’t for that video by the girls, I don’t think she would have responded. It was their video that swerved it.

“She will be talking about how young girls can help change things in their communities. She wants to inspire young women, whether they are from a South Asian background or not.”

Most of the tickets for her talk have been allocated to teenage pupils, but those made available to the public have already been snapped up.

The WOW Festival started at London’s Southbank Centre, and thanks to funding by Spirit of 2012 will be held in Bradford annually over the next three years.

Most of the events will take place in Kala Sangam Arts Centre, and other guests appearing over the two days include Kay Mellor, discussing her groundbreaking series Band of Gold, which looked at prostitution in Bradford. She will be joined by campaigners and women from local prostitution services to talk about how things have changed in the 20 years since the show.

Other sessions include a talk about “badass women from Bradford,” boxing, and body image.

To book tickets call 0207 960 4200 or visit southbankcentre.co.uk/whatson/festivals-series/wow-bradford