Best UK literary festivals and book fairs in 2023

A book tent at Cheltenham Literature Festival

(Image credit: Rob Lacey/Alamy Stock Photo)

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Edinburgh International Book Festival
Queen’s Park Book Festival
Jane Austen Festival, Bath
Bath Children’s Literature Festival
Cliveden Literary Festival
Henley Literary Festival
Cheltenham Literature Festival
London Literature Festival
Stratford Literary Festival – autumn edition
Kendal Mountain Book Festival
Cambridge Literary Festival – winter edition
London Book Fair
Oxford Literary Festival
Hay Festival
Borders Book Festival
Bradford Literature Festival
Penzance Literary Festival
Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival
Literature Festival at Sea

By The Week Staff

published 7 August 2023

Edinburgh International Book Festival

12-28 August 2023

Set up in a “pop-up village” in the heart of the Old Town, Edinburgh’s literary festival offers both a “seriously impressive programme” and a “utopian hideout” for book lovers during festival season, said Claire Biddles in the Big Issue. Visitors can “browse the bookshops” and “attend inspiring talks” from authors and world-leading thinkers. There has, however, been some controversy in the build-up to this year’s festival, The Telegraph reported, after climate activist Greta Thunberg “pulled out” after accusing organisers of allowing “greenwashing”.

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Home to a “few classics” and “inspiration to many more”, Bath hosts the annual Jane Austen Festival, said VisitBritain. Come for the Regency-era dress and stay for the 10-day long immersive experience. Join fellow Jane Austen enthusiasts on guided walks, lavish balls, theatre shows, and teleport back to the Georgian era for a chance to truly dive into Austen’s world. The 2024 edition will be held from 13-22 September.

Founded in 2007, Henley Literary Festival has “firmly established itself” as one of the UK’s most popular literary festivals, said VisitThames.co.uk. Featuring talks, performances and conversations for adults and children, 2023’s speakers include Theresa May, Ben Okri, Sophy Henn, Robert Peston, Jacqueline Wilson, Gary Younge and Judy Murray. There will also be pop-up events with Rick Stein, Sara Pascoe, Liam Brady, Philippa Gregory, James O’Brien and Phil Tufnell.

It’s not just horse racing that Cheltenham is “best known” for, but also its annual literature festival, said Ulrike Lemmin-Woolfrey on Fodor’s, which was, in fact, the “world’s first literature festival”. Having started in 1949, this makes it the “longest-running festival of its kind”. Held over ten days, the festival celebrates the written and spoken word, and hosts the new voices in fiction and poetry alongside literary greats and high-profile speakers.

As the “much-lauded” birthplace of William Shakespeare, it’s therefore “fitting” that the ancient market town of Stratford-upon-Avon plays host to “one of the most significant literary festivals in the UK”, said Bolthole Retreats. Twice a year, in May and October, “the great, the good and the unsung” of the literary world participate in a “diverse schedule of literary debates and ideas interwoven with celebrity author events and interactive workshops”. Names confirmed for autumn include Michael Morpurgo, Matt Lucas, Clive Myrie, Richard Eyre, Timothy West, and Maggie Aderin Pocock. The dates for next year’s spring edition have also been confirmed for 1-5 May 2024.

One of the “most famous and prestigious” literary events in the world, the Hay Festival takes over a “lovely small town” in Wales each year, said Ulrike Lemmin-Woolfrey on Foder’s. Bringing together literature and the arts, UK names “dominate” the event, but global authors are “always present”. The “best thing” about this festival is the setting. Hay-on-Wye is a “book town filled with antiquarian and second-hand bookstores, little pop-up libraries, and many specialist stores”.