This year’s Shout Festival has some of the most thought provoking, emotive and flamboyant events you’ll see in the city, featuring theatre, visual arts, talks, live performances, cabaret, workshops and films from all over the UK. See our general preview here. Here are our top 4 picks.

1. Renegade Gameshow hosted by Miss Behave. A launch party with proper punch. Winner of two Olivier awards for the revered La Clique and La Soiree, Miss Behave and her glamorous assistant will be pulling out all the stops, in this show which as already received smashing reviews.
Thu 10 Nov, Chic Nightclub, 28 Horse Fair, Birmingham, B1 1D 8pm – 11.30pm, £8/5. www.shoutfestival.co.uk

2. Looking for John at the Rep. A freshly commissioned piece of new writing set to move us to tears, with it’s sweet and empowering story about a man’s obsession with John Curry, the Birmingham born Olympian, that was outed and disgraced, and this man’s persistent journey to reinstate John Curry to his former glory.
16 – 19 Nov at Birmingham Rep Centenary Square, Birmingham, B1 2H, various times, £10 www.birmingham-rep.co.uk

3. Big Girl’s Bouse at mac, Birmingham. Looking at the credentials’ of this show it should be obvious why Kate O’Donnell’s ‘Big Girls Blouse’ is our third pick. Rated five stars, award winning and having had a run at the ‘queercentric’ Soho theatre in London, it shows what live in the 1970 was like for a transgender woman, using song, dance and best of all, costume!
Sat 20 Nov, see our full preview here

4. Free Shout Out Community Day. This free grand finale takes places in spaces all over the mac on the transgender day of remembrance and offers a massive array of free activities, performances and events including kids craft workshops, Birmingham Gay Symphony Orchestra, films and art to fill the day with colour, expression, joy and remembrance.
Sun 20 Nov 12pm onwards at mac, Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham, B12 9Q, FREE.www.shoutfestival.co.uk

Full listings from shout festival are available from: www.shoutfestival.co.uk