This year’s LitFest will be in a hybrid live/online format with Town Hall events being livestreamed to reach a wider audience online.
Tickets are available from 2 September.
The line-up features literary talks and events for all ages and genres, including fiction, non-fiction, children’s authors, bookish workshops and poetry events, as well as the 10th Golding Speaker and this year’s Big Town Read.
The 2021 line-up covers themes of memoir, nature, climate change, politics and history, including Elif Shafak, Colm Tóibín, Sathnam Sanghera, Mick Herron, Jonathon Porritt and Gill Hornby, culminating in an exclusive festival finale from LitFest patron, Sir Simon Russell Beale.
Festival brochures are available from The White Horse Bookshop in Marlborough and the full programme is available online at https://www.marlboroughlitfest.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/Programme2021-WEBSITEs.pdf
A spokesperson said about the festival’s children’s programme: “After a difficult year for children, families and schools, LitFest offers a little literary respite with itsmix of schools events and ticketed talks for different ages. As part of the festival’s annual free schools programme, local primary school children will hear children’s authors Tom Palmer and Natasha Farrant talk about writing and their latest books, Arctic Star and Voyage of the Sparrowhawk, respectively.
“Local children’s author, Eileen Browne will talk to younger children about her book, Handa’s Noisy Night, and award-winning children’s author Emma Carroll will share tips for writing from her new historical adventure, The Week at World’s End. If a debate is more your thing, don’t miss Sixth Formers from St John’s Academy in Marlborough, discussing: “Is there still a place for Shakespeare in a 21st-century curriculum?”
The Marlborough LitFest team wishes to give thanks to new lead festival sponsor, Sarah Raven, livestream sponsor Hiscox Insurance, its patron Sir Simon Russell Beale and event sponsors William Golding Limited, Marlborough College, St Francis School, marlborough.news and new event sponsor, Adam Matthew, as well as Hamilton Trust, Katharine House Gallery, Haine and Smith, The White Horse Bookshop and Wiltshire Life for their continued support to the festival.
This festival team say the events will abide by current government covid-19 guidelines and that the festival programme plans to offer a mix of live and online events.
Those wanting a mailed copy of the festival brochure can email their name and address to general@marlboroughlitfest.org
More information about Marlborough LitFest can be found at https://www.marlboroughlitfest.org/
Sir Simon Russell Beale