Join us for an evening with Maggie O’Farrell, author of the multi award-winning book and film Hamnet, as we celebrate the release of her latest novel, Land.
Inspired by the mapping of Ireland in the mid nineteenth century, Land is at once intimate and epic: a story of buried treasure, overlapping lives, and persistent ghosts, and is a portrait of a family navigating a legacy of upheaval and survival with resilience and love.
Maggie O’Farrell is the author of nine previous novels, including After You’d Gone, The Vanishing Act of Esme Lennox, The Hand that First Held Mine, The Marriage Portrait and her memoir I Am, I Am, I Am.
Her novel Hamnet won Waterstones Book of the Year, and the Women’s Prize for Fiction in 2020. The film of the book – with a screenplay co-written by O’Farrell and director Chloe Zhao - has already won numerous awards at film festivals worldwide, and as well as winning the 2026 Golden Globe for best motion picture, is also tipped to win at the Oscars in March.
Monday 1 June, 7pm
The Forum
Get your tickets from @bathboxoffice
#BathLitFest26
@waterstones@waterstonesbath@visitbathuk@greatwestway@totalguidetobath@bathandwiltshireparent@visitwestuk@bathlive@creativebath@bathbid@theforumbath@headlinebooks@maggieofarrellofficial
#BathLitFest #BathFestivals #BathFestival #TheBathFestival #WhatsOnBath #VisitBath #ThingsToDoInBath #VisitBath #ExploreBath #BathLovesBooks
Tom Holland and the lives of the Caesars
We are excited to announce the first author who will be joining us at Bath Literature Festival 2026.
Join Tom Holland as he celebrates his translation for Penguin Classics of Suetonius’s influential, Lives of the Twelve Caesars.
If you'd like to travel back to the Roman Empire with the award-winning star of world’s most downloaded history podcast, The Rest is History pick up your tickets for this fantastic event when tickets go on sale this Friday.
Friday 22 May, 7pm
The Forum
#BathLitFest26
@waterstones@waterstonesbath@visitbathuk@greatwestway@totalguidetobath@bathandwiltshireparent@visitwestuk@bathlive@creativebath@bathbid@theforumbath@penguinukbooks@holland_tom_six
#BathLitFest #BathFestivals #BathFestival #TheBathFestival #WhatsOnBath #VisitBath #ThingsToDoInBath #VisitBath #ExploreBath #BathLovesBooks #Caesars #RomanEmpire #TheRestIsHistory
What to read after Love Lane? After a packed out @bathlitfest event with @rachelcjoyce_writer asking brilliant questions, Zoe of @waterstonesbath opts for Still Life by Sarah Winman.#lovelane #novelistsofinstagram #whattoreadnext #welovebooksellers #authorontour @headlinebooks
If these walls could talk. . .
Just imagine the stories the historic Guildhall Bath could tell. Bath Festivals here on Visit Bath for @bathlitfest all weekend.
As we gather together for live author events for the lit festival you can’t help but imagine all the people who’ve passed through these rooms, and hear the echo of their applause and laughter.
Join us for more events tomorrow, Sunday and next weekend, from Friday.
#visitbath #lovebath #igersbath #bathlitfest26
Join us for a joyous celebration of the life and work of the much-loved author and journalist Dame Jilly Cooper, whose many novels have brought joy to millions. Author Daisy Buchanan, author, recipe columnist and Jilly Cooper superfan Rukmini Iyer and Kat Brown, journalist, author and founder of the Jilly Cooper fan club, lead fangirl tributes to the jolly super creator of some of our favourite bonkbusters!
To celebrate this sparkling event in partnership with Bath Festivals, The Ivy Bath Brasserie will welcome you with a complimentary glass of The Ivy Cuvée on arrival - the perfect way to toast an unforgettable evening honouring the beloved author. (A non-alcoholic alternative will also be available).
Come and join us this evening for a wonderful celebration. Tickets available on the door.
#BathLitFest2026
@waterstones@waterstonesbath@visitbathuk@greatwestway@totalguidetobath@bathandwiltshireparent@visitwestuk@creativebath@bathbid@the_ivy_collection
#WhatsOnBath #VisitBath #ThingsToDoInBath #BathLovesBooks
This is Bath Festivals’ takeover of Visit Bath and we’re in the middle of day one of the festival.
📚Did you know, you can buy tickets for most of our festival events this weekend from Bath Box Office’s pop-up stand inside the Guildhall all weekend.
Upstairs you’ll find our festival bookshop run by our official booksellers Waterstones. A chance to get your hands on some lovely new publications!
#visitbath #lovebath #igersbath #BathLitFest26
It's tomorrow! We're so excited that Bath Literature Festival 2026 is about to begin! What does the first day at the festival have in store?
At 11am in the Guildhall join authors Hallie Rubenhold and Madeleine Pelling for a feminist take on history. Last time Hallie visited the festival she was fuelled by righteous anger at what she called Jack the Ripper Tourism, and this time her focus will be on the women in the notorious Dr Crippen’s life. Dr Pelling’s book Hoax, has links to Bath as she delves into the lives of 18th century women, including the story of Princess Caraboo.
At 2pm, we are delighted to welcome author Patrick Gale, who will be talking to fellow bestseller Rachel Joyce about his new book Love Lane, which follows on from his novel A Place Called Winter.
At 4:30pm former Chancellor Sajid Javid will be interviewed by journalist Stephanie Wessell. This will be no political grilling, but an inspirational conversation, as told in his memoir The Colour of Home, Growing Up in 1970s Britain.
Saturday ends with two uplifting events and if you’re nimble, you could squeeze them both in. William Sieghart’s Poetry Pharmacy, which starts at 6:30pm, may be just what the soul doctor ordered, full of solace and joy.
That event is due to finish at 7:30pm, which just gives you time to join our tribute to the late Jilly Cooper, Is It Too Early for Champagne? which begins at 7:30pm, also in the Guildhall. You will be offered a glass of fizz (or alcohol-free alternative) courtesy of The Ivy, Bath, then invited to sit back and enjoy the company of superfans writers Daisy Buchanan and Kat Brown. If you’ve seen the first of the new Disney+ Rivals series, this is one chat you’ll definitely want to be in on!
⭐️ Head to @bathboxoffice to discover ALL our events for tomorrow and the whole of the festival and pick up your tickets before it's too late!
#BathLitFest2026
@waterstones@waterstonesbath@visitbathuk@greatwestway@totalguidetobath@bathandwiltshireparent@visitwestuk@creativebath@bathbid@hallierubenhold@maddypelling@trevilley@sajidjavid@thedaisybee@katbrownwrites@the_ivy_collection
#WhatsOnBath #VisitBath #ThingsToDoInBath #BathLovesBooks
Join us for a joyous celebration of the life and work of the much-loved author and journalist Dame Jilly Cooper, whose many novels have brought joy to millions.
Dame Jilly Cooper began her career as a cub reporter on a local paper in Brentford, covering everything from fetes to football. Her breakthrough came in 1969 when the Sunday Times colour supplement published a humorous piece about being a hopelessly undomesticated young wife. The success of that article let to a column in the Sunday Times Newspaper which she wrote for over 13 years. She wrote her first novel How To Stay Married in 1969 and over the following decades went on to write romantic novels, children’s books and non-fiction. She is best known for her Rutshire Chronicles – including Riders, Rivals and Polo. Rivals is now a successful TV series with the second season out today!
To celebrate this sparkling event in partnership with Bath Festivals, The Ivy Bath Brasserie will welcome you with a complimentary glass of The Ivy Cuvée on arrival - the perfect way to toast an unforgettable evening honouring the beloved author. (A non-alcoholic alternative will also be available).
Make an evening of it with The Ivy Bath Brasserie before attending Is It Too Early For Champagne? Remembering Jilly Cooper on Saturday 16th May.
Located just moments from the event, The Ivy Bath is the perfect place to dine before an evening celebrating the beloved author. From elegant cocktails to seasonal dishes, join us for a memorable start to your night at Bath Festivals.
⭐️ Saturday 16 May, 7.30pm
⭐️ Head to @bathboxoffice for tickets
#BathLitFest26
@waterstones@waterstonesbath@visitbathuk@greatwestway@totalguidetobath@bathandwiltshireparent@visitwestuk@creativebath@bathbid@the_ivy_collection
#WhatsOnBath #VisitBath #ThingsToDoInBath #BathLovesBooks
It’s all about the conversations. There’s still time to catch tickets to here me interviewing Curtis Garner aka @queer_novels about his strikingly unsparing novels Isaac and Orange at @bude_litfest tomorrow afternoon, where you can also catch me being interviewed about Love Lane by Tom Hunter. And, if you’re quick, you might yet get into Saturday’s treat of a conversation with @rachelcjoyce_writer at @bathlitfest . Do join us!
