Women Live was started in Edinburgh in the autumn of 1981 inspired by the work of Women in Entertainment, which was based in London. The aim of Women Live was to encourage women’s work in the arts and media in Scotland and to explore and campaign around issues such as stereotyping and distortion of women’s experience in the media and the status of women in society at large.
The 1982 festival was their first event. It was financed by the Scottish Arts Council and through sponsorship and membership fees of the initial 100 women who joined Women Live. It was a great success, with nearly three shows per day at the Netherbow Theatre (the centre of the festival) for the whole of the festival, along with other exhibitions and events. The following year in 1983, the festival was equally successful with shows all over Edinburgh. Women Live also participated in the Women's Health Fair in 1983 which coincided with the last weekend of the Women Live festival. Throughout this time regular meetings and events took place, with newsletters keeping members informed of the group’s activities. Due to lack of funding a festival was not planned for 1984. However, there were several events throughout the year. In 1985, thanks to Edinburgh District Council, Women Live were able to stage another festival known as the Spring Fling. This festival was not as long, just over a week, and was also mostly based at the Pleasance theatre as opposed to various venues.