Hinterland Festival Kells

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Hinterland Festival of Literature & Arts, Kells 25 - 28 June 2026 - illuminating words & ideas

This year will mark 10 years of the Hinterland Festival of Literature & Arts in Kells. It began, initially linked to the world renowned Hay Festival, and then evolved into Hinterland Kells. Over the decade, our guests have included all the leading Irish fiction writers (Colm Tóibín, Sebastian Barry, Roddy Doyle, Anne Enright, Joseph O’Connor, John Boyne, Marian Keyes, Liz Nugent) and a number of major UK writers and artists (Germaine Greer, Jung Chang, Jeremy Paxman, Brian Eno, Ben Okri, Hanif Kureishi, Jeannette Winterson, Louis de Bernières) tp name but a few. In addition to our annual Hinterland Festival, which takes place over the last weekend in June each year, we have also run shorter two day events such as Gallipoli 100, Tailteann and lecture series on a diverse range of subjects. Internationally, we work with the Litquake Festival in San Francisco and are affiliated with their franchise (www.litquake.org) and have staged Ireland's three Lit Crawl events. We also 'went global with our first sister festival Hinterland: West in San Francisco in 2019 with the assistance of Culture Ireland.

15/10/2026

WE’RE WINNERS! 💚

We’re absolutely delighted to share that Hinterland Festival has won the Culture & Heritage Award at the Pride of Place Awards last night! 🎉

This award is a wonderful recognition of the people, stories, creativity and community that make Hinterland what it is.

A huge thank you to our incredible team, volunteers, sponsors, partners, local businesses, audiences and everyone who has supported the festival. Hinterland wouldn’t be what it is without you.

We’re so proud to celebrate the rich cultural life of Kells and the power of bringing people together through literature, ideas and conversation.

01/08/2026

Get your tickets at The BOOK MARKet, Kells 🙌

07/07/2026

The books you couldn’t stop talking about…

From powerful memoirs and compelling fiction to thought-provoking history and unforgettable conversations, these were some of the best-selling books at Hinterland Festival 2026. 💚

A huge thank you to everyone who visited the Festival Bookshop, met our authors, and left with a new story to discover. And, of course, to Antonia's Bookstore for keeping readers supplied all weekend long.

Did one of your favourites make the list? Or did you discover a new author at Hinterland?

Let us know in the comments!

02/07/2026

Our latest Hinterland Book Club pick has arrived!

How far would you go to leave your past behind?

In Saoirse, writes a moving novel about identity, belonging and the search for home.

📖 Pick up your copy from Antonia's Bookstore and enjoy 10% off with the discount code:

HBC10

We can’t wait to hear what you think. Happy reading!

29/06/2026

Sunday in photos 💚

📸by Barry Cronin

Address

Ticket Office: Market Street, Meath
Kells

Telephone

+353830960345

Website

http://www.hinterland.ie/

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