Luke Wright Takes His Most Personal Show on the Road with Later Life Letter
A sharply funny, deeply moving spoken-word show about adoption, identity and belonging
Award-winning poet and spoken-word trailblazer Luke Wright is touring the UK with Later Life Letter, his most intimate and revealing live show to date. Blending poetry, storytelling and stand-up, the show explores adoption, family and the quiet questions that shape who we become.
The tour opens in London at the Southbank Centre’s Purcell Room on 16 January 2026, before travelling extensively across the UK throughout the year.
In Later Life Letter, Wright traces his life from the moment he discovered his birth mother on Facebook to adulthood, marriage and the unresolved pull of origin stories. What does it mean to belong? How do you honour the people who raised you while wanting to understand where you came from? And how much of a life is shaped by luck?
The title refers to a “later life letter”, a document written by a social worker to an adopted child, intended to be read when they are older. From this starting point, Wright builds a show that moves between memoir and myth, using poetry where facts fall short. It is candid without being confessional, thoughtful without being heavy, and often very funny in the way only lived experience can be.
Known for his electrifying live performances and sharp, streetwise writing, Wright is one of the UK’s leading stand-up poets. His work has earned a Fringe First, a Stage Award and the Saboteur Award for Spoken Word Artist of the Year, alongside regular appearances on BBC Radio 4. Here, his trademark wit is matched by a new vulnerability and emotional clarity.
Running for around 60 minutes and recommended for ages 14+, Later Life Letter will resonate with fans of contemporary poetry, autobiographical theatre and storytelling that sits somewhere between comedy and confession.
Full UK tour dates and venues:
https://www.lukewright.co.uk/later-life-letter
Elena Leo is the Arts & Lifestyle Editor of Ikon London Magazine.