Sevenoaks Literary Festival

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Sevenoaks Literary Festival https://www.ticketsource.com/sevenoaks-literary-festival-2026

Sevenoaks Literary Festival brings the authors of the best of current writing to a fortnight-long series of events in Sevenoaks. 26th year of connecting people. 2026 Tickets available now.

09/10/2026

: THE RECIPE FOR A FANTASTIC FESTIVAL

Every great festival, like every great book, has a few key ingredients. Here's ours, recipe style:

Take: a handful of brilliant authors, generous enough to share their stories with us.

Add: a splash of sponsors, without whom none of this would be possible. Strutt & Parker, ,

Stir in: beautiful venues that opened their doors to us, week after week. ,
, Trinity School

Fold in: real coffee, glorious cake, and the occasional well-earned glass of w**e. , Lodge Coffee

Season generously with: books, provided throughout by our wonderful partner,

Whisk together with: our brilliant interviewers, whose thoughtful questions turned every conversation into something special.
,

Don't forget: the technicians quietly keeping every mic working and every screen glowing (James Mitchell Events), and the photographers and videographers capturing every moment for posterity.

The secret ingredient: our volunteers, who spend months meticulously planning, organising, and somehow making it all look effortless.

And finally, the thing that makes it rise: YOU! The audience who bought tickets, queued patiently for a signed book, laughed in all the right places, and reminded us exactly why we do this.

Mix well, bake over ten days, and out comes something rather special: Sevenoaks Literary Festival 2026.

THANK YOU, every single one of you, for being part of the recipe. Here's to

📸

CELEBRATING READING IN OUR SCHOOLS Along with the main festival, there's magic happening in our local schools, and with ...
06/10/2026

CELEBRATING READING IN OUR SCHOOLS

Along with the main festival, there's magic happening in our local schools, and with 2026 marking the National Year of Reading, these visits feel more special than ever.

Week before last, author M. A. Bennett visited Sevenoaks Primary School, hosting pupils from St Thomas', St John's and Lady Boswell's, and had everyone gripped with tales from her time-travelling Titanic adventure, The Ship of Doom. A huge thank you to the Mayor of Sevenoaks, Cllr Victoria Granville, for joining us for the occasion.

Meanwhile, our Roving Author programme was out and about too, with local writer Megan Hopkins enthralling pupils at New Ash Green and Downsview Community Primary School with her award-winning book Starminster.

Each visiting school also presented a bundle of signed books by the author, generously sourced from Sevenoaks Bookshop, a lovely keepsake from the day and a lasting invitation to keep reading.

Such a joyful reminder of why we do what we do. Thank you to every teacher, pupil and author who made these visits so special.

06/10/2026

THE NIGHT PARIS CAME TO SEVENOAKS: WITH EDWARD CHISHOLM 🎬

Our final author event ended the festival on a thrilling note, with Edward Chisholm's ( ) gripping true story, Murder in Paris '68, followed by a screening of the 1967 neo-noir crime thriller film Le Samouraï starring the enigmatic Alain Delon.

Edward took us deep into 1960s Paris, a world of glamour, gangsters and intrigue, unravelling the real-life mystery behind the Marković Affair with all the style and tension of a classic thriller. The room was gripped from start to finish — a true crime story this original and atmospheric doesn't come along often, and tonight's audience knew it.

A huge thank you to Matthew Stadlen () whose sharp, thoughtful interviewing made for a brilliant conversation, he really does have a gift for drawing out the best in every author.

04/10/2026

STORIES HELD WITH CARE: PATRICK GALE

What a lovely, moving afternoon with Patrick Gale yesterday, talking about his new novel Love Lane, a tender, searing story about escape, home and family, featuring characters first introduced in his Costa-shortlisted A Place Called Winter.

Patrick spoke so warmly about Harry, a Canadian wheat farmer forced to sell up and sail home to a 1950s England he barely recognises anymore, an England, and a family, he's become a stranger to.
He talked us through some of his research too, including time spent in Cunard's Liverpool archives to really get a feel for what those transatlantic crossings were actually like back then, long before anyone thought of cruises as glamorous. There was a personal thread running through it all as well, his own grandfather worked as a prison official, and that history clearly shaped the world he's built in the book.

He even shared a bit of his own story, growing up inside a prison where his father was governor, and joked that a touch of benign childhood neglect is probably what set him on the path to becoming a writer.

What really stayed with us was just how gently Patrick writes about grief and resilience. He has this way of finding real humanity in even his most complicated characters, and you could feel that same warmth in how he spoke about them.

Thank you to Suzi Feay too, whose interview style drew out such a rich, honest conversation.
Thank you, Patrick for such a generous and thoughtful afternoon.

04/10/2026

SERVED WITH WIT AND CHARM: PRUE LEITH

Yesterday afternoon, Dame Prue Leith brought her full dose of wit, wisdom and no-nonsense charm to Sevenoaks, in a wonderfully entertaining conversation with , whose easy, insightful questioning made for a proper treat of an afternoon.

Prue took us from falling in love with food in Paris and training at Le Cordon Bleu, to cooking privately for London's high society, to finally earning her Michelin star after a few consistency wobbles the Guide wasn't shy about pointing out. There were brilliant mishaps too: a pineapple mousse that simply refused to set (turns out pineapple enzymes have opinions of their own), and the unforgettable story of accidentally leaking the Bake Off winner while on holiday in Bhutan, resulting in a phone call from the Bhutanese Prime Minister himself.

A particularly lovely touch: Prue's husband was there throughout, graciously taking photo after photo of fans with Prue while she signed books, clearly a charming double act.

Funny, candid, and utterly charming. Thank you, Prue, for a wonderful afternoon.

&learning to love it

02/10/2026

GUS CASELY-HAYFORD: THE OBJECTS THAT HOLD OUR STORIES

Last night we welcomed the wonderfully charismatic Gus Casely-Hayford, Director of V&A East and recently named by Time among the 100 most influential people in art, for a talk on his new book, Objects & Us.

Drawing on items from the 250,000-strong V&A Storehouse collection he oversees in East London, Gus took us on a journey through ordinary and extraordinary objects alike, each one a quiet window into how we live, what we value, and who we are. One line from his reading has stayed with us since:

"We humans simply need to create, and to spend time with creative excellence. And while we might construct museums and galleries as platforms for this purpose, a basic need to spend time with art is simply part of who we are. Creating and being among creativity are ancient drives."

There were plenty more such gems through the evening, and for those, you'll simply have to read the book.

We were equally moved by his work touring East London schools by bicycle, bringing pieces from the Storehouse collection directly to pupils, and his inspiring belief in the next generation's creative potential.

The evening ended with a long queue for the book, and sold out completely, now taking orders for more.

Thank you, Gus, for such a thoughtful and inspiring evening.

01/10/2026

BLOOMING MARVELLOUS: AN EVENING WITH CAROLINE QUENTIN

If a room could glow, ours did last night. Caroline Quentin () brought her trademark warmth, wit, and sheer joy to talking about her book Drawn to Nature, and honestly, we defy anyone to have left that talk in a bad mood.

She spoke candidly about recent chapters of her own life, from going back to university to study art (hearing loss and digital timetables included, which she admitted have not been friends) to downsizing from a Devon farmhouse to a small rented bungalow, swapping possessions for more time spent painting, gardening and walking. Both her books, illustrated by her own hand, grew from that same instinct: slow down, look closer, let nature do some of the heavy lifting on your mood.

She spoke beautifully too about accessibility, and shared a tender, nature-woven parable from her first book about her unwell mother, growth and resilience quietly wrapped into one.

Funny, generous, and completely herself. Thank you, Caroline, for an absolutely joyful evening. And thank you for a delightful conversation

29/09/2026

FINDING LIGHT IN THE WINE-DARK SEA

Last night's sold-out event for The Wine-Dark Sea by Victoria Hislop left the whole room quietly moved. So many of you told us that you'd read this book in tears — moved by the empathy, the humanity, and the care with which Victoria handles a history so rarely spoken about.

She took us into the long shadow of the Greek Civil War, a conflict without a clean ending, where winners and losers went on living side by side in the same villages, the same families. From a remote northern Greek village at the close of the occupation, to the islands once used for exile, to a story that stretches across forty years, Victoria showed us why this history still matters, and why, in Greece, it is often a history still too painful to name. And yet, for all its sorrow, there was something hopeful in the room too — a reminder that even the hardest stories, once told with honesty and care, can bring healing rather than only grief.

The book's title, drawn from Homer's own description of the sea in the Odyssey (as rendered in Emily Wilson's celebrated translation), feels perfectly chosen for a story so steeped in journeys, loss and endurance.
We are so grateful Victoria chose to bring this story to Sevenoaks, so early in her tour.

**edarksea 🇬🇷

28/09/2026

THE FIRST CHAPTER STARTS HERE!

Sunday at the festival wasn't just about talks. Alongside the day's other events, we also had our Write with Me workshops at Sevenoaks Library with Sunday Times bestselling novelist Tasmina Perry, and they were a joy.

Packed out, sold out, and full of aspiring writers who left buzzing. From finding and shaping a story to getting a manuscript ready for agents and publishers, the day was practical, encouraging and full of ideas.

Tasmina said it best:
"I loved my day at the festival. We had such a fantastic group for the writing and publishing sessions - everyone was full of ideas and very supportive of each other. It was a wonderful and energising way to share my own experience in the industry."

Thank you to Tasmina , and to everyone who came along to write, share and cheer each other on. Also, thanks to Sevenoaks Library for a wonderful venue.

If you've got a story in you, keep an eye out for next year's festival. We'd love to see you there.

On Friday we were delighted to welcome in conversation with to the Festival to discuss her new book ‘The Book of Revel...
07/10/2025

On Friday we were delighted to welcome in conversation with to the Festival to discuss her new book ‘The Book of Revelations’

From post-war silences to the digital age, Juliet shared moving stories and personal reflections on how secrecy shapes our lives, and what happens when it’s finally broken.

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