History made in Hackney as Children’s Black Book Fair becomes the biggest event ever held at Hackney Library

The Children’s Black Book Fair UK (CBBF UK) has made history, as official footfall figures recorded by Hackney Libraries confirm that 2,500 people attended the fair on Saturday, 22nd August 2026, making it the highest attendance ever recorded at any Hackney Library event.

The figures show extraordinary year-on-year growth across all three editions of the fair, with 2024’s inaugural year hosting 1232 attendees, 2025’s hosting 1853, and 2026 now hosting 2500.

That represents 105% growth over three years and a 36% increase year on year from 2025 to 2026 – cementing the Children’s Black Book Fair UK as one of the fastest-growing free community cultural events in London.

Now in its third year, Europe’s only free annual celebration of Black children’s authors and storytellers arrives at a moment of urgent cultural significance. New data from Inclusive Books for Children – one of the fair’s main sponsors – reveals that just 1.9% of children’s books published in the UK in 2024 featured a Black main character – down 21.5% from 2023″. As a proud pledge partner of the National Year of Reading 2026, the CBBF’s theme could not have been more timely: Representation Matters: We Belong In Every Story. See Us. Hear Us. Read Us.

Run by LIT Stars C.I.C., the fair was founded by former Senior Deputy Headteacher Juliet Coley Bremmer. When Romeo was five, Juliet suffered a heart attack. A year later, she underwent quadruple heart bypass surgery. During his mother’s illness, Romeo began play therapy to help cope with his feelings – and at the age of seven, with Juliet’s encouragement and the support of his siblings, he turned his experiences into his debut book, Life Without My Mummy? The book became the foundation of LIT Stars C.I.C. and ultimately the Children’s Black Book Fair UK.

Juliet Coley Bremmer, founder of the Children’s Black Book Fair UK, says:

“Born and raised in Hackney. Didn’t have much. One thing I did have was a library card. Even though we couldn’t afford to go on a plane, because I was an avid reader, I went all over. Bethlehem. Narnia. Wonderland. Because I read. We hope that through our event, children will fall in love with reading.”

For more info on future events, find the CBBD’s Instagram here.