Write By the River literary festival: Friday, 18 – Sunday, 20 September
A new literary festival – Write By the River – is set to transform Bedford into a hub of storytelling, big ideas, and creative inspiration from Friday, 18 to Sunday, 20 September.
The festival features fiction, non-fiction, poetry, crime, memoir, and children’s literature, with events designed for book lovers of all ages.
The weekend kicks off on Friday from noon at the Bedford Swan Hotel with a free Local and Indie Author Showcase, the perfect opportunity to meet Bedfordshire’s own homegrown talent and chat directly with local writers about their work.
Bestselling voices and page-turners
Across Saturday and Sunday, the main programme brings together an eclectic mix of ticketed and free events featuring everything from chart-topping favourites to thrilling new debuts:
- Literary Heavyweights: Sunday Times bestseller Georgina Moore (The Garnett Girls) visits to discuss her captivating second novel, River of Stars. She’s joined by global bestselling author and proud Bedfordian Ruth Hogan (The Keeper of Lost Things), Women’s Prize-longlisted novelist Luan Goldie, and Amman Brar, whose debut Mr Sidhu’s Post Office earned a spot on the BBC’s “12 Books to Read in 2026.”
- Deep Dives and Big Conversations: Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn pairs up with debut novelist Amy Abdelnoor for a poignant conversation on literature and Palestine. Meanwhile, intelligence historian Professor Rory Cormac (Fakers) teams up with novelists Stephen May and M. J. Robotham for a gripping panel decoding espionage and disinformation.
- History and Travel: Delve into the past with historian Lubaaba Al-Azami as she discusses her British in India Book Prize–shortlisted Travellers in the Golden Realm, or follow travel writer Peter Fiennes (En Route) as he retraces the steps of France’s legendary authors.
- Young Readers and Standout Debuts: Younger bookworms can catch beloved author Lissa Evans discussing her latest children’s book. Plus, an array of vibrant new voices take the stage—including Fauzia Musa (The Strangling Fig), Natalie Gregory (Mother Ghost Mango Seed), Ilona Bannister (the real-time train thriller Five), and Maureen Paton, who reimagines C.S. Lewis as a post-war sleuth in The Mystery at Rake Hall.
Page to Park: Thrills, chills and Frankenstein
In a fun homage to Bedford’s future theme park, the festival introduces its Page to Park strand. Legendary theme park designer John Wardley, the mastermind behind Alton Towers’ iconic Nemesis rollercoaster, will be on hand to discuss his wild memoir, Creating My Own Nemesis. In addition, Professor Andrew Smith traces Frankenstein’s fascinating evolution from classic Gothic novel to stage, screen, and adrenaline-pumping theme park ride.
Get creative: Interactive workshops
For those looking to hone their own writing skills, the festival offers three hands-on masterclasses:
- Character Creation Workshop: Led by Murray Fisher (Underlings: The Spark Engine), perfect inspiration for young, aspiring authors.
- A Sensation of Wrongness: An uncanny exploration of weird fiction guided by Dr. Timothy Jarvis (The Wanderer).
- The Power of Place: A free session with Bedford-based cosy crime author Richard Beynon (James Clatterbridge Mysteries) on how to breathe life into real-world settings and transform them into compelling fiction.
All the action takes place at The Bedford Swan Hotel, the Bunyan Museum, the Mercure Hotel, the Higgins Bedford, and the Polhill Campus of the University of Bedfordshire.
You can see the full schedule and book tickets at the festival website: writebytheriver.org/events.
