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Australian festival apologises for cancelling Palestinian author

  • On Thursday, the Adelaide Festival Corporation apologised and announced it would reinstate Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah's invitation to Adelaide Writers' Week in 2027.
  • The festival board said Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah's inclusion was not culturally sensitive due to her past remarks and posts tied to October 7, 2023, amid political pressure from Norman Schueler and South Australian premier Peter Malinauskas.
  • By Tuesday, withdrawals reached around 180, including former prime minister Jacinda Ardern and authors Zadie Smith, Helen Garner and Kathy Lette, leading to Writers' Week cancellation and leadership resignations.
  • Almost $50,000 has been raised to help cover Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah's legal fees as she issued a concerns notice under the Defamation Act, threatened legal action, and accepted the apology while considering the 2027 invitation.
  • The controversy has highlighted free speech and censorship debates as Australia's premier annual cultural event faced turmoil, with organisers acknowledging failures and pledging to rebuild trust while most Adelaide Festival Corporation board members step down.
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9News9News
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British band Pulp backflips on Adelaide festival withdrawal

British band Pulp has backflipped on its decision to cancel its performance at the Adelaide Festival after the organisers apologised for cancelling Palestinian writer Randa Abdel-Fattah's appearance.Pulp, fronted by Jarvis Cocker, said it was "appalled" after the Adelaide Festival Board decided to uninvite Abdel-Fattah from Adelaide Writers' Week earlier this month over cultural sensitivities following the December 14 Bondi attack."We want to m…

·Australia
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Australian Financial ReviewAustralian Financial Review
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Abdel-Fattah doxxed me. Outrage over her removal exposes hypocrisy

The Adelaide Writers’ Festival hypocrisy is glaring. When Jewish people come together to engage in support and activism, double standards seem to apply to us.

·Sydney, Australia
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PerthNowPerthNow
Center

How the festival author saga has been brewing for years

The dumping of a Palestinian-Australian author caused a boycott and national furore, but the seeds of discontent at the Adelaide Festival were sown long ago.

·City of Perth, Australia
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Sydney Morning HeraldSydney Morning Herald
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Why Britpop legends Pulp U-turned on Adelaide Festival boycott

The band’s Instagram page was swamped with requests for the beloved band to join the boycott – now the full story has emerged.

·Sydney, Australia
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NewsNews
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Axed author’s defo action could ‘bankrupt’ family

An Australian-Palestinian author who threatened to sue the SA premier after being dropped from a festival line-up has warned legal action could “bankrupt” her family.

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NMENME
Center

Pulp's Jarvis Cocker speaks out in support of Palestinian author after near "collapse" of Adelaide Music Festival

Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker has expressed his support for a Palestinian author who has been removed from Adelaide Festival's Writers' Week.

·London, United Kingdom
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5Pillars broke the news in on Wednesday, January 14, 2026.
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