Mere Literary Festival

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Mere Literary Festival

From the Blackmore Vale to the Vale of Wardour, and right to the heart of Mere.

Good books, great conversations and a warm welcome. 12–18 October 2026
Tickets available at www.mereliteraryfestival.com Each year, in October, residents of the small town of Mere in Wiltshire, along with their friends, get together to put on a Literary festival to support the local Linkscheme charity. Ably organised, as it has been from its inception in 1997, by Adrienne Howell, and staffed by volunteers, the festival uses the talents of a combination of local writers and performers, and those from the international stage, to put on a variety of talks, workshops and shows. The festival caters for a wide range of interests including events for children, and audiences are drawn from those living in this rural district and visitors to the town, among them those shortlisted or commended in the biennial open poetry competition. Everyone is assured of a warm welcome to Mere, which nestles below downland on the western edge of Salisbury Plain. Visitors can explore winding lanes, woodland tracks or longer walks on Castle Hill with stunning views of the Blackmore Vale and Mere Downs as well as enjoy the Literary Festival events.

10/10/2026

On the evening of May 28, 1940, as Britain braced for invasion, a secretive gathering took place at a quiet terrace house in Notting Hill. Arriving one by one, the guests included politicians, high society figures, and even a Japanese spy.

Their host was Dr. Leigh Vaughan Henry, a well-known composer who had conducted for the Royal Family. To the public, he was a man of culture; to MI5, he was the leader of a dangerous Fifth Column preparing a violent coup d'état to overthrow the British government and the King.

Watch this short clip with author Tim Tate as he previews the remarkable story of the Notting Hill conspiracy.
Tim joins us to talk about his new book on:
📅 Sunday, 18 October 2026 at 7:00 PM
📍 Grove Building, Mere

Book for this event here: www.mereliteraryfestival.com/product/tim-tate

08/10/2026

“All four wheels were clear of the ground and the engine note rose to a scream!” 🏁🏎️

in this short clip, Toby Hartwell reads a hair-raising extract from his book Brooklands Belles. Listen to a 1930s Autocar journalist describe "the world's worst ride at Brooklands" with Kay Petre, the 4ft 10in "Queen of Brooklands" who needed wooden blocks on her pedals and cushions behind her back just to reach the controls!

Despite torrential rain and a 20-foot airborne jump over the track's infamous big bump, Kay wrestled the wheel with total skill at speeds over 120 mph.

Hear the rest of these extraordinary true stories live as Toby is interviewed by Jo Hall at the Mere Literary Festival.
Book your tickets here: www.mereliteraryfestival.com/product/toby-hartwell

07/10/2026

We are absolutely delighted to welcome back our official festival booksellers, Winstone's Books Sherborne, for another year! 📚✨

You’ll find them pitched up in their usual spot in the Small Hall at The Grove building throughout the week, stocked with a carefully curated selection of festival titles, author picks, and literary treasures.

Independent booksellers like Winstone's are the heartbeat of the literary world. Beyond getting the right book into your hands, they foster local creative communities, champion emerging writers, and bring a personal warmth and passion to reading that you simply cannot replicate anywhere else.

Be sure to pop in, browse the stand, get your festival copies signed, and say a warm hello to the team!

05/10/2026

The countdown is officially on: just one week to go until the start of the 29th Mere Literary Festival! 📚✨

Whether you're visiting us for the first time or returning for another inspiring week of author talks, lively discussions, and bookish charm, we can't wait to welcome you.

If you have yet to purchase your tickets, now is the time. Head to our site to view the full line-up and book your place today.
www.mereliteraryfestival.com

04/10/2026

Brighton’s own performance poet is heading to Mere on Wednesday 14 October for an intimate Fringe show at The Butt of Sherry. Watch the video to hear what she’s bringing to town...in her words: "fast-paced, optimistic poetry with a political spin... if you're lucky".

📅 Date: Wednesday 14 October 2026 at 6:30pm
📍 Venue: The Butt of Sherry
🎟️ Grab your tickets now before the pub fills up: mereliteraryfestival.com/product/bassie-gracie/

03/10/2026

How do you solve an 80-year-old cold case that has baffled historians for decades?
In this final video, author Paul Hooley MBE reveals that investigating Hermann Goering's su***de was like playing the role of a detective in a real-life "inverted detective story", the genre popularised by Columbo!

By systematically eliminating suspects and analysing evidence, Paul exposes how Hitler's second-in-command was supplied with cyanide.

Join us to hear the full story, and the crucial role played by former Mere citizen Wolfe Frank.

🔗 Book your seats now at mereliteraryfestival.com/product/paul-hooley

02/10/2026

The history of WWII we grew up with is one of national unity and "Keep Calm and Carry On"... and while that is true, newly declassified files show it isn't the whole story.

Watch this short video clip with author and investigative journalist Tim Tate as he previews the dark narrative behind his book, Hitler’s British Traitors.

As Tim reveals, official government files show that 70 British traitors were secretly convicted of working for N**i Germany. Even worse, in 1940, MI5 uncovered three domestic plots to launch a violent coup d'état and overthrow Winston Churchill's government.

Don't miss Tim live to explore these astonishing files.
📅 Sunday, 18 October 2026 at 7pm
📍 Grove Building, Mere
🎟️ Tickets £10.00
👉 Get your tickets today at mereliteraryfestival.com

01/10/2026

Two Dorset authors, two brilliant novels, and one great evening of conversation. 📚✨
We are delighted to welcome bestselling novelists Clare Leslie Hall and Sally Page to the Mere Literary Festival on Tuesday, 13 October at 7pm.

Clare Leslie Hall will be talking about her Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller Broken Country - a tense Dorset-set love story and book club favourite chosen by Reese Witherspoon and Fearne Cotton.

She’ll be joined by Sally Page, author of The Keeper of Stories, discussing her charming new North Dorset mystery, A Curious Ending.

Both authors now call Dorset home and draw deep inspiration from the local landscape, communities, and countryside. Come along to hear about their writing journeys, character creation, and how their Dorset surroundings shape their work.

https://mereliteraryfestival.com/product/clare-leslie-hall/

30/09/2026

Be More Bird is a true story, still unfolding, of a wild predator who by choice flies in partnership with a woman as her earth-bound helper. Bird crosses boundaries: between species, cultures, sky and earth. In this way, Be More Bird is a fable for our times. Listen to Candida Meyrick reading from the book... and come and join us to meet her on 17 October 2026 at 4pm.

18/05/2026

We are delighted to launch our 2026 Mere Literary Festival Children’s and Young People’s Writing Competition. Last year we received some excellent entries and had some great winners. We hope you will send in your best, most interesting and imaginative writing.
This year, our theme is "Adventure". You can write using this theme in any way you like: it can be a story, a poem, a description or an account of how you think about it.
www.mereliteraryfestival.com/mere-literary-festival-childrens-and-young-peoples-writing-competition

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