about us
Our Festival
Over 30 Years Of celebrating the joy of books
The Festival promotes a love of reading, of the pleasure to be found in picking up a book and discovering new worlds, fresh ideas or fascinating characters within its cover. For more than 30 years Wells Festival of Literature has attracted a wide range of writers, from novelists to scientists, politicians to poets, to come and inspire its audiences. And it doesn’t stop there as the Festival works year-round with local schools and colleges. An exciting programme of author visits and classroom workshops all help youngsters to discover the joy of reading for themselves.
the Team behind the Festival
What makes our festival so special?
WFL is a registered charity run by a committee of volunteers, and funded by ticket sales, competition entries and generous local sponsors and Friends.
It is thanks to this support that we can help fund numerous local educational projects, one of which is a series of talks at the Festival to Year Six pupils by a best-selling author. Sam Sedgman entertained more than 1,000 youngsters across four sessions at the 2025 Festival. Not only is the event funded by WFL, but children can also buy books at a discounted price.
The Festival has come a long way since 1992, growing from a weekend in the Bishop’s Palace to a nine-day extravaganza in Cedars Hall, a state-of-the-art performance venue situated in the beautiful grounds of Wells Cathedral School.
No two events run simultaneously, so it is possible to attend them all if you choose. In recent years we have added a fun and quirky Literary Quiz which now also takes place in Cedars Hall.
Find out more about our active education programme, read how the Festival began, or take a look at our writing competitions which attract entries from all over the world.
There’s something for everyone at the Wells Festival of Literature.
“I thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Wells Festival of Literature. It was wonderful to be surrounded by people who love books. Wells itself is a beautiful place and the organisers did everything possible to ensure that the event was stimulating and well-run.”
Midge Gillies – 2025
