Derby Book Festival’s Autumn Edition begins on Thursday

Derby Book Festival’s Autumn Edition opens on Thursday 12 November with 28 events in venues across the city, including QUAD, Museum of Making, Derby Theatre, St Peter’s Church and local libraries.

Tickets can be booked online at:
https://www.derbybookfestival.co.uk/whats-on/events

Tickets are still available for most events and can be bought on the day at venues. Please check website for details of availability.

For people who are unable to attend in person, four events will be recorded and made available after the Festival ends as both individual recordings or as a Digital Pass for £22.

The Festival, which is a registered charity, is funded by Arts Council England and the University of Derby with sponsorship for a number of individuals and businesses in the region.

Jamie Jordan, Chair of Derby Book Festival, said: “Derby Book Festival’s Autumn Edition is always a high point as we start to hibernate and what could be better than stocking up with some great reading material for the winter months.

“If you haven’t visited the Festival before, the Autumn Edition is a great taster of what to expect in our main Festival – we hope Derby residents will enjoy what we have to offer.”

Highlights of this year’s Autumn Edition include:

• Journalist and war correspondent Fergal Keane who will be talking to BBC TV Midlands Correspondent Navtej Johal about his 37 years of reporting for the BBC covering major conflicts across the world
• Investigative journalist and presenter of BBC’s HARDtalk, Stephen Sackur on Hard Truth: Investigations that Shook the World in conversation with Navtej Johal
• Former Conservative Minister and Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sir Jeremy Hunt on Can We Be Rich Again? The Surprising Potential of Britain’s Economy
• Author and journalist Sathnam Sanghera on Tonight the Music Seems so Loud: The Meaning of George Michael
• History buffs can look forward to historians Tessa Dunlop, on the women who served in World War Two, Paul Beaver, on Father of the Spitfire: The Untold Story of R J Mitchell; David Torrance on the centenary of the General Strike:The Edge of Revolution, Dr Jess Venner on The Lost Voices of Pompeii and Professor Paul A Elliott will launch his new book on Erasmus Darwin, Joseph Wright and Friends.
• Novelists Louisa Young, who is continuing her aunt, Elizabeth Jane Howard’s Cazalet Chronicles, Booker-longlistee Mary Lawson with her latest, Solace in Winter, Derbyshire-based Wendy Holden on artist Hans Holbein in her book, The Queen’s Painter and Festival favourite Stephen Booth, whose Peak-based detectives Cooper and Fry can now been seen in a Channel 5 series.

For children and families, we have a wide range of activities on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 November with authors and illustrators leading sessions which combine music, dance and writing to encourage young people’s creativity to come alive. Check the website for details: https://www.derbybookfestival.co.uk/whats-on/events and search for ‘Children’s’.

There will be two more of the popular, free University of Derby CivicLAB events at Derby Theatre’s Community Hub with academics sharing their latest research publications on a range of subjects.

Following the success of previous Book Appeals, the Festival is organising another Children’s Book Appeal to coincide with the Autumn Edition. To date the Book Appeals have collected and distributed over 22,000 books to organisations in Derby, including to many schools. People are invited to donate gently used, pre-loved books suitable for primary school children.

Drop-off venues include partners Marketing Derby, Derbion, Moorways Sports Centre, Wathalls and QUAD. Check website for details of drop-off venues and timings: https://www.derbybookfestival.co.uk/community/book-appeal

Local businesses are also getting involved with collections from staff, including Rolls-Royce. Festival audiences can also bring their books to events where they will be gratefully received.

Throughout the Festival there will be a book stall at QUAD selling all the books featured at the Festival, plus signed books from the Autumn Edition and previous Festivals, as well as a selection of Book Aid Charity Christmas cards, children’s books and a Mystery Book selection.

There will also be a prize raffle with the chance to win one of two sets of 10 books by Festival authors past and present, as well as a set including books for children.

Tickets cost £1 and will be on sale at all Festival events.

The festival programme, designed by local digital marketing company, Gravity, is available from QUAD, other arts venues, all libraries and tourist offices.