News

The 26th Festival has got off to a great start! David Runciman got the ball rolling with his magnificently delivered talk on how close we are coming to losing our democracy, followed by Sarah Churchwell’s somewhat different, but equally riveting, take on the current situation in America… This ground-breaking opening night was followed by an […]

Following a relaxed and enjoyable ‘launch party’ for Friends, sponsors, supporters and helpers which was held at Cedars Hall on Thursday 18 October, the Festival itself will begin at 6.30 pm on Friday 19 October with what promises to be a riveting opening night. David Runciman, Professor of Politics at Cambridge, warns about the current […]

We are delighted to announce that former England left-hander Brian Rose will be coming to Wells on Friday 26 October to discuss all aspects of cricket with Mike Brearley. Mike’s latest book On Cricket is a wonderful compendium of anecdotes and observations about the game. Brian of course is best remembered for leading Somerset to their […]

Huge congratulations to forthcoming Festival speaker Liz Berry who has won the Forward Prize in the category ‘best single poem’. This much coveted award was made for her wonderful poem The Republic of Motherhood which features in her current collection of the same name.  The Forward Prize has played a key role in bringing contemporary poetry […]

Now that the holiday season is here and the glorious sunshine is begging to be soaked up in the company of a good book, the Wells Festival of Literature has some wonderful recommendations for your holiday reading. To start with, there is Hannah Fry’s inspirational book Hello World which has just been shortlisted for the 2018 […]

When Michael and Anne Heseltine were delayed on their way to speak to last October’s Festival audience about the creation of their magnificent garden at Thenford in Northamptonshire, disappointment threatened.  When William and Caroline Waldegrave took to the stage instead, that danger was averted! The Waldegraves know the garden well, having visited it in the […]

If you have ever considered becoming a Friend of the Festival, but never quite got round to it, now is definitely the time to act! The countdown to our 2018 Festival has begun, and over the next few weeks we will reveal our speakers and the huge range of subjects they will be covering; this […]

As part of the Wells Festival of Literature Education Committee’s programme of work in local schools, the poet AF Harrold visited Hemington School on 20 March. All the children involved in the day’s poetry activities were so inspired by the visit that they joined forces to say ‘thank you’ in verse. This goes to show that […]

The Festival venue is moving – to the city’s newest performance facility, Cedars Hall, a comfortable, modern and convenient venue at the heart of Wells. Our aims, however, have not changed. We will continue to celebrate the written word and encourage a love of books and reading.  So the end result will remain the same: an […]

Wells Festival of Literature celebrates its 25th Anniversary in October and we are proud to be sharing that celebration, albeit on a longer timescale, with the Reformation and Martin Luther. In October it will be 500 years since Luther famously posted his 95 Theses on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg. In a […]