Tickets go on sale for summer book festival

Tickets have gone on sale for Derby Book Festival’s Summer Festival.

Taking place from Thursday 30 May to Wednesday 5 June, it will feature 46 book-related events, which will take place in venues across the city, including QUAD, Derby Theatre, Artcore and Derby Museums.

The festival is funded by Arts Council England and the University of Derby, with sponsorship from several local businesses and individuals.

Highlights for this summer’s festival include Patrick Grant, judge on The Great British Sewing Bee, who will be talking about his biography and his passion for sustainable fashion at a special event at Derby Theatre, to be sponsored by Smith Partnership.

Other events include Guardian journalist Polly Toynbee, who will speak about her memoir An Uneasy Inheritance and LBC radio presenter and political commentator James O’Brien will talk about his book How They Broke Britain. Both events will be sponsored by Geldards.

The two annual primary schools’ Meet the Author events, both to be held at Derby Theatre, will feature Derby Children’s Picture Book Award-winning author Sophy Henn and acclaimed author SF Said.

These events will also be live streamed to schools across the city and county, reaching around 12,000 children.

Other events include a special ‘Takeover Day’ at Derby College Group’s Roundhouse campus and University of Derby academics will present four more free CivicLAB events at Artcore to talk about their latest research and publications on a broad range of subjects.

Professor Keith McLay, chair of Derby Book Festival and provost (learning and teaching) at the University of Derby, said: “Derby Book Festival is an important part of our city and region’s cultural year.

“This is the second of three festivals taking place throughout 2024, and once again offers a wide-ranging programme with something to appeal to all ages and interests.

“We are looking forward to welcoming so many talented and engaging authors to the city to share their passions and insights.

“The university is proud to continue its support for the festival, which opens up a wealth of opportunities for our communities to come together to explore books and reading.”

To view the full list of events and book tickets visit https://www.derbybookfestival.co.uk/whats-on/events .