Louis Theroux and Mr Motivator among speakers at Northumbrian Water’s Innovation Festival

The fifth annual festival sees a host of names from the worlds of broadcasting, fitness, health and environment joining for a series of interviews, live talks and Q&A sessions between October 18 and 21.

Some of the festival will be at hubs where people can physically attend, including one at Seascape in Crimdon, but the majority of events will be held virtually.

On Wednesday, October 20 at 2pm documentary maker Louis Theroux, whose work includes Weird Weekends and When Louis Met…, will take part in a live chat about how he has needed to innovate in order to achieve his long and successful career.

Opening the festival, which will see attendees from all across the world, will be legendary fitness coach Mr Motivator, who will set the tone for the high-energy event with one of his famous workouts. This will be on Monday, October 18 at 9am.

Will Kirk, the craftsman from The Repair Shop, also joins the line-up and will be passing on his creative and inventive ideas.

Joining the headliners will be journalist Rory Cellan-Jones, Peter Kay’s Car Share and Meet the Richardsons creator Tim Reid and former mayor of Sheffield and activist Magid Magid.

They will be delivering some inspirational talks, reflecting on how “disruptive innovation” has got them where they are today.

Angela MacOscar, head of innovation at Northumbrian Water, said: “It’s going to be the biggest and most global Innovation Festival yet, which is why we have needed to pull in some extra-special inspiration.

“Every one of our guests has had to embrace the elements needed for innovation throughout their career in order to get where they are, and I am sure they will all have some fantastic insights to impart.

“I am so excited to see what each of our guests has to say, and I am sure that our attendees will be inspired and gain knowledge from this incredible and diverse line-up.”

Each of the sessions are completely free to attend and can be watched live virtually.

To register for the Innovation Festival, visit www.innovationfestival.org/the-festival.

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