Faversham Literary Festival 2020
Tickets are now available and the full programme can be viewed and downloaded here.
Wednesday 19 February
7–9pm Ned Palmer, Old Brewery Store
Thursday 20 February
5–6pm Jack Straw, Alexander Centre
7–8pm Will Self, Alexander Centre
Friday 21 February
11am–12noon Jo Simmons, Alexander Centre
7–8pm Joan Bakewell & Maggie Gee, Alexander Centre
7.30–11pm Poetry Slam, Old Brewery Store
Saturday 22 February
9.45–10.45am Stephen Gillatt, Physic Garden
11–12noon Michael Rosen, Alexander Centre
11–12noon Joe Dunthorne, Max Sydney Smith & Xanthi Barker, Arden
11–12noon John Gregory-Smith, Neame Visitor Centre
12.30–1.30pm Lemn Sissay, Alexander Centre
12.30–1.30pm Clare Pollard, Arden
12.30–1.30pm Gareth E. Reese, Neame Visitor Centre
2–3pm Jenny Eclair, Alexander Centre
2–3pm Christy Lefteri & David Herd, Arden
2–3pm William Shaw & Maggie Gee, Neame Visitor Centre
3.30–4.30pm Naomi Wood & Elizabeth Macneal, Arden
3.30–4.30pm Ken Livingstone, Alexander Centre
3.30–4.30pm Lee Rourke & Will Wiles, Neame Visitor Centre
5–6pm Stephen Morris, Alexander Centre
5–6pm Alia Trabucco Zerán & Sema Kaygusuz, Arden
5–6pm Writing Women's Lives, Neame Visitor Centre
6.30–7pm Tracey Thorn, Alexander Centre
6.30–7pm Hamid Ismailov, Arden
6.30–7pm Peter Williams, Neame Visitor Centre
8–9pm Jane Wenham-Jones, Arden
Saturday 22 February
12noon–11pm Poetry Hub, The Limes
12.30–7.30pm YA workshops & author talks, Alexander Centre
12.30–3.15pm Children's events, Guildhall
Sunday 23 February
11am–2pm Here Be Dragons – Crafts and Stories, Guildhall
11am–12noon Tim Dee, Alexander Centre
11am–12noon Alex Preston, Sara Collins & Sarah Churchwell, Arden
12.30–1.30pm Lara Maiklem, Alexander Centre
12.30–1.30pm Jon Henderson, Arden
12.30–1.30pm Marie-Elsa Bragg, Neame Visitor Centre
2–3pm Peter Fiennes & Sara Wheeler, Alexander Centre
2–3pm Sarah Churchwell, Arden
2–3pm Katherine May, Neame Visitor Centre
3.30–4.30pm Sara Collins, Alexander Centre
3.30–4.30pm Daniel Rachel, Arden
3.30–4.30pm Caroline Greville, Neame Visitor Centre
5–6pm Gavin Esler, Alexander Centre
5–6pm Caroline Crampton, Arden
5–6pm Julie Wassmer, Neame Visitor Centre
6.30–7.30pm Sarah Perry, Alexander Centre
Run-up event: Saturday 15 February
5.30–7pm The Inklings Writers' Group, Guildhall
Our second festival, held in February 2019, was a great success. We hope you will join us again in February 2020 for another exciting programme of events and activities for book lovers of all ages and persuasions, featuring author talks, discussions, creative workshops and spoken word events.
One of England's historic gems, Faversham is a picturesque market town dating back to pre-Roman times and a lovely place to visit. On the north coast of Kent, bordered by coastal nature reserves and the Kent Downs, we're one hour from London St Pancras, with close connections to Ashford International and Canterbury. The festival takes place annually in February in various of the town's historic venues, including the Guildhall , the Old Brewery Store within the Shepherd Neame Brewery, and the Alexander Centre.
Faversham has strong literary connections, past and present. The town has more than forty book-reading groups, various writing groups, book exchanges and a busy public library. The festival will offer a platform for all of these interested groups and individuals to meet and exchange ideas, listen to well-known authors discussing their books and the craft of writing, and provide opportunities for local writers and illustrators to showcase their work alongside published authors from further afield. We also host events for children, writing workshops and short story competitions.
Treasure-trove bookshops are to be found in Faversham. Our independent bookshop, Top Hat & Tales, has enticing displays of books recently published, classics, interesting titles you may not have come across before, local authors and, of course, hats! Top Hat & Tales is the festival bookseller and a wonderful shop – not to be missed if you are planning a visit to Faversham! For secondhand books, The Fleur Bookshop and Past Sentence have great selections; the Alexander Centre also hosts a book fair on various weekends throughout the year.
Faversham has been home to famous writers in the past, including Iain Banks, and is thought to have provided inspiration to Charles Dickens. Thomas Arden, former mayor of Faversham, was portrayed in Arden of Faversham, the first English domestic drama and attributed by some scholars to Shakespeare in part. The literary festival, we hope, will bring more such literary connections and intrigues to Faversham.
The town has many independent shops, cafes and restaurants, traditional pubs offering fine dining and live music venues. It is home to Shepherd Neame, the UK's oldest brewery; the UK's national fruit collection at Brogdale; and various other festivals are hosted here throughout the year, including a spring Hat Festival, a Nautical Festival and the summer Hop Festival.
Faversham Literary Festival is kindly sponsored by:
