Festival Events
Our Book Group Event
The Festival’s Book Group event is always a favourite and Wandering Souls, Cecile Pin’s dazzling debut, was no exception.
The formula for this popular event is that of book groups up and down the country – namely a group discussion of a chosen book. In Wells we have extended the appeal – to include the author! It is a rare treat for readers to enjoy this privilege, so we are careful to ensure that the whole event ‘belongs’ to the audience.
Cecile Pin’s heart-wrenching story about a family from Vietnam who are desperate to build a new life for themselves was shortlisted as a Waterstones debut novel in 2023 and was described by the Financial Times as ‘an enormously evocative portrayal of dispossession.’
Although created with book groups in mind, this event can be enjoyed by everyone. But we do recommend that you read the featured book in advance. If you belong to a book group, please make sure we have the details so that we can contact you.
We are very grateful to Waterstones Wells and Bailey Hill Book Shop Castle Cary who traditionally offer a 10% discount to customers who buy the Book Group Event featured book before attending the Wells Festival of Literature.
Literary Lunches
Our Lunches have been an integral ingredient of the Festival since the beginning, offering audiences the chance to meet the speaker in an informal and enjoyable way. After a delicious light lunch in the Cedars Dining Hall the speaker makes a point of moving around and talking to everyone. Equally important – the lunch itself makes a perfect appetizer for the talk ahead: a delicious bowl of home-made soup accompanied by freshly baked artisan bread and followed by a yummy dessert. Irresistible!
Doors open at midday with lunch beginning at 12.30pm giving you time to chat before tucking in. But please don’t be late for lunch! The event, which is just a short stroll from the Dining Hall, starts at 2.00pm
Our Lunchtime speakers offer variety and choice. In 2024 we welcomed Petroc Trelawny who discussed his beloved homeland with Christopher Somerville.
Jonathan Dimbleby was also a lunch-time guest, talking to William Waldegrave about how it was actually Stalin who ‘won’ the war; and William joined us for a second lunch (they really are very good!) to discuss with Geoffrey Wheatcroft the demise of the Tory party.
“I enjoyed everything about my time at the Wells Literary Festival – from the kindness and efficiency of the organisers to the enthusiasm of the audience. And of course, the icing on the cake is that all this is taking place in such a beautiful setting, in the shadow of one of the most magnificent cathedrals in the UK. It’s a model festival which deserves to go from strength to strength.”
Jonathan Coe
Wells Literary Quiz
Literary, lively and light-hearted!
This year‘s most enjoyable quiz was again hosted by Gary Wigglesworth, successful author of The Book Lover’s Quiz Book. The Swan Hotel was jampacked with quizzers, literary twists and run in a humorous and fun loving style. The evening included light buffet refreshments. There was a mix of light-hearted and trickier questions – something for everyone!
Keep your eyes peeled to see where next year‘s quiz will be………..
