Shipston Bookfest

14/09/2026

✍️ Ever wished you had time to just write? No deadlines, no red pen, and no one judging the first draft?

This Sunday, join writer and editor Lucy Parrott for a relaxed, welcoming writing workshop. Whether you used to keep a diary as a teenager, you've always fancied writing but never known where to start, or you write every day and want fresh inspiration, this is for you.

With 26 years' experience, Lucy has a gift for helping people rediscover their voice — and have fun doing it. You'll leave with new writing, a few tools to keep the habit going, and a lighter, more curious mind (we hope!).

Come as you are. Leave with something you created.

☕ Light refreshments included
💬 All levels welcome
📍 Scout Hut, Shipston-on-Stour
🎟️ https://shipstonbookfest.org/events/2026/writing-craft-workshop

11/09/2026

📚 One week until our first event and it's a good one...

If you love a dark and twisty thriller then this one's for you 📖 Kate Riordan and Claire Quinn kick off the festival by talking about their brand-new thrillers

Kate Riordan's latest book, The Last Time I Saw Her, is a compelling mystery packed with atmosphere and thrilling twists, set in the Cotswolds. When two bodies are discovered decades apart but with eerily suspicious circumstances, one woman makes it her mission to solve the mystery and uncover a murderer...

Clare Quinn’s gripping debut released this summer, The Games We Play, follows three old friends whose teenage secrets come back to haunt them, pushing them to ask how far they’ll go to keep a secret.

Masters of slow-burn suspense and thrilling twists, don’t miss this opportunity to hear from these incredible authors ✍️ Kate and Claire are in conversation with Charlotte Vaughan of Kenilworth Books

🗓️ 7.30pm, Friday 18th September
🎟️ £10, https://shipstonbookfest.org/events/2026/kate-riordan-claire-quinn
📍 St Edmund's Church, Shipston-on-Stour

11/09/2026

Whether it's your first time at the festival or you just need a reminder, here's what to expect at one of our events 📚

There's just one week to go until we kick off the festival with an evening of dark and twisty Thrillers with Kate Riordan and Claire Quinn

This year's festival is jam-packed. We've got gripping thrillers and crime, gardening and wellbeing, adventure and history. And some events are now sold out or have limited availability 🎟️ Book ahead so you don't miss out

🗓️ 18-27 September
📍 Shipston-on-Stour, Warwickshire
🎟️ https://shipstonbookfest.org/events

10/09/2026

You've heard about the placebo effect, but what about the nocebo effect?

In her latest book, Helen Pilcher investigates the placebo effect's evil twin: the nocebo effect, where our thoughts (conscious or not) can trigger real physical symptoms 💊

⚕️Helen joins us this month to talk about This Book May Cause Side Effects. But this is as far from dull medical science as you could get. Expect a witty, myth-busting hour that will change how you think about illness, medicine, and the extraordinary power of the mind.

🗓️ 1.30pm Saturday 26 September
📍 Shipston Methodist Church, Shipston-on-Stour
🎟️ https://shipstonbookfest.org/events/2026/helen-pilcher (or skip the booking fee in person at The Richard Harvey Collection Ltd and The Lily Pad Book Shop )

09/09/2026

Say hello to the local authors who will be speaking our Local Author Showcase this 19th September! ✨

📖 Karen Storey
📖 Sara Fox
📖 Kerry Williams, Fantasy Romance Author
📖 Becky Jones
📖 plus John Horton and Darran Gough

Many other local authors will also be there 📚 At the interval, you can meet all these local authors, buy their books and get them signed!

Plus, there's a bar and, for the first time, we're running a community book swap! Bring a book with you, leave it on the swap table when you arrive, and take something chosen by a fellow book lover home with you.

Tickets are just £5 and include a complimentary first drink 🥂 Don't miss this one!

🗓️ 7.30pm, 19 Sept
📍 Townsend Hall, Shipston-on-Stour
🎟️ Tickets via our website

09/09/2026

We're delighted that Darran Gough, author of Muck, Grime and Sweat, will be part of the Local Author Showcase next Saturday, 19 September 📚

Muck, Grime and Sweat is the powerful true story of a firefighter's extraordinary journey through four decades of service 🚒

This year's Local Author Showcase brings together 12 local authors — an incredible opportunity to discover your new favourite author and see the wealth of talent locally. Tickets are just £5 and include a complimentary first drink 🥂

🗓️ 7.30pm, 19 Sept
📍 Townsend Hall, Shipston-on-Stour
🎟️ Tickets: https://shipstonbookfest.org/events/2026/local-author-showcase

08/09/2026

More tickets released! 🎟️

Due to popular demand, we've been able to release more tickets to our event with Caroline Quentin next week 📚

Find out more and book your tickets here 👉 https://shipstonbookfest.org/events/2026/caroline-quentin

Reconnect with your love for nature with bestselling author Caroline Quentin as she brings her latest book to Shipston Bookfest this autumn 🌿

Illustrated with Caroline's own artwork and ordered by the colours of the rainbow, Drawn to Nature is a beautiful celebration of the outdoors in all its forms

🌸 Whether you have a sprawling garden, keep a few house plants or simply enjoy stepping outside, you'll find this event inspiring and practical.

Caroline will be in conversation with Caroline Mills, who's recent book This Is Not Our Land charts 30 years on the Cotswold farm she shares with her partner, Paul.

🗓️ 2pm, 19 Sept
📍 Townsend Hall, Shipston-on-Stour
🎟️ In person at The Richard Harvey Collection Ltd and The Lily Pad Book Shop The Lily Pad Bookshop, and also via 🔗 https://shipstonbookfest.org/events/2026/caroline-quentin

07/09/2026

Yesterday, we visited Ham Court in Bampton 🪴 It's the incredible home of artist and author Matthew Rice with an orchard, paddock, greenhouse, and small farmyard 🪏

If seeing these snaps has inspired you, you can hear more about life at Ham Court at our event with Matthew on 26 September 🌸

🎟️ A Year in the Garden with Matthew Rice
🔗 https://shipstonbookfest.org/events/2026/matthew-rice
🗓️ 11am Saturday 26 September
📍 Shipston-on-Stour, Warwickshire

06/09/2026

Free books & an incredible event?! 📚

Alexander Armstrong is coming to Shipston Bookfest — and each young person under 16 who attends will receive a free copy Evenfall: The Golden Linnet, the first book in Alexander's acclaimed series

On 26 September, Alexander will join us to talk about his Evenfall series 📖 It's a modern classic for children with heart-pounding adventures, epic worlds, and stunning black-and-white illustrations by Tom Roberts ✏️ For fans of Harry Potter and Percy Jackson!

Find out more and book 👇
🗓️ 3.30pm Saturday 26 September
📍 Shipston High School, Shipston-on-Stour
🎟️ https://shipstonbookfest.org/events/2026/alexander-armstrong