Bring books to life at Derby Book Festival

Fri 6 May 2016

After a truly successful first year, Derby Book Festival will return with a compelling line-up of international talent, inspiring authors and with over 70 events for everyone to enjoy.

The Festival’s programme includes author talks, discussions, theatre performances, poetry readings, workshops for budding writers, a children’s book trail and much more. Taking place across the city, we are excited to host some of the top talent and events to celebrate the occasion. 

You are invited to join us on Derby Market Place at our exclusive, Bringing Books to Life, event to celebrate the 100th birthday year of Roald Dahl. We encourage you to wear something yellow, wear something backwards, use the BFG’s favourite language, swap a Roald Dahl book or celebrate in your own style. Fancy dress will be welcomed as book token prizes will be on offer for those who dress as their favourite book character!

Taking place throughout the morning and afternoon on Saturday 4 June, there is plenty to join in with: cartoon drawing, interactive street theatre, a summer reading challenge, the BFG's pop up cafe and so much more! For more information, please visit the event page.

Writer and broadcaster Stuart Maconie will take to the Guildhall Theatre stage to take you on a nocturnal trip through Britain in search of fun. With his best-selling books as a guide Stuart plots a route that takes in high art to low culture, family holidays to fell-walking, music, sport, politics, crown green bowling and zombie apocalypses… always keeping in mind his motto… "All things in moderation… including moderation!"

Stuart Maconie is at the Guildhall Theatre on Saturday 4 June at 7:30pm, tickets available here.

The programme also includes an exciting event for all of Derby's cycling fans! Soak up the atmosphere in Derby Arena with Tim Moore as he brings his book tour to the state-of-the-art venue on Sunday 5 June from 3:30pm. 

For those that don't already know, Tim Moore has ridden the route of the Tour de France, led a donkey on a 500-mile pilgrimage, driven round the worst places in Britain in an Austin Maestro and much more. Tim has also ridden the 3,160km route of the 1914 Giro Italia (only eight out of 81 made it back) on a gearless, wooden-wheeled road bike with wine corks for brakes.

Listen to his inspiring, adrenaline-fuelled stories as his next book recounts his hideously over-ambitious challenge to cycle the length of the old Iron Curtain on a two-wheeled East German shopping bike! That’s 9,000km and 20 countries in three months on a 1960s version of a Boris Bike!

More events will be taking place in venues across the city and in local schools and libraries. For more information and to view a full event programme for the Derby Book Festival, please click here.