A ground-breaking festival in Birmingham this spring brings together coffins and cakes, walks and wakes and authors with absent friends.

Organised by community-interest company BrumYODO, A Matter Of Life And Death takes place in venues across Birmingham and the West Midlands.

A volunteer-led group based in the second city, BrumYODO aims to create safe spaces to think and talk about death and dying. To coincide with the national campaign Dying Matters Awareness Week, it has been running A Matter Of Life And Death since 2016 and is getting ready for another great year.

Helen Tomblin, one of the BrumYODO board members, says: “This year’s festival hosts some regular events, such as a tour of an undertakers, a Birmingham Catacombs walk, theatre pieces, an author event and numerous Death Cafes and In Memory events. And this year, new venues and contributors have joined the festival, including Northfield Community Partnership and The New Photo Company in Kings Heath. We’re really pleased to see that the momentum is growing to promote healthy and productive conversation about death and dying.”

The festival kicks off on 3 May with Tell It To The Bees at London Road Cemetery in Coventry, where storytellers Pyn Stockman and Kate Luxmoore will use music and narrative to share tales of bees in folklore, nature, life and death. The team also perform the show at Packwood House near Lapworth on the 11th of the month.

On 7 May people have the chance to Meet The Undertakers at Kings Heath-located company A Natural Undertaking. The open evening offers an opportunity to learn more about options and choices in terms of funerals.

Life Cycle, at Northfield Community Centre on the 11th, is a family-friendly interactive day that explores the cycle of life and death through the nature of gardens. Organised in partnership with Northfield Neighbourhood Network Scheme, the event uses storytelling, arts, crafts and garden activities ‘to explore the big ideas that are found in the little things around us’.

Also on the 11th, and in conjunction with The Heath Bookshop in Kings Heath, the festival welcomes writer Sarah Tarlow, the author of The Archaeology Of Loss. Sarah will be discussing her memoir, which explores the death of her husband and the universal experience of the loss of a loved one.

Kevin Thomas will lead a guided tour of Birmingham Catacombs on 12 May. Then, on the 16th, an interfaith walk around Lozells and Handsworth will explore the rituals and practices that follow death and bereavement within diverse faiths.

Together with Itzatna Arts, children’s theatre show The Stories Of The Wind at The Old Print Works in Balsall Heath on 11 May will explore Mexican folk tales and the country’s famous Day Of The Dead festival.

Absent Friends events - which include an informal drink and meal and at which people share stories of loved ones who have died - take place at the Black Horse in Northfield on the 8th and Anjuna Lounge in Stirchley on the 9th.

The festival also features a number of Death Cafes at venues across the region, providing people with a space in which to chat informally over tea, coffee and cake about anything related to life and death.

Helen urges both previous A Matter Of Life And Death supporters and new visitors to give the events a go.

“The festival includes so many very different events, we hope we have something for everyone. We’ve done all we can to ensure as many as possible are free or low cost. Some need to be booked, some are simply drop-in. Please check our website for all the information - and we hope to see you there.”

For full information, including booking details, see A Matter Of Life And Death Festival 2024 on the BrumYODO events page: brumyodo.org.uk/events and follow the festival on social media @BrumYODO