Appledore Book Festival

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Appledore Book Festival

Appledore Book Festival - Celebrating Literature & The Arts by the Sea from 18-27 September 2026.

Appledore Book Festival is now in its 16th festival year and has established itself as one of the UK's most highly regarded literary festivals. Welcoming world-class renowned authors, newcomers and local authors it ensures there is something for everyone. The village of Appledore is a unique location and it draws authors and visitors back year after year. Please visit www.appledorebookfestival.co.uk for more information.

17/06/2026

📣COMPETITION TIME – NAME OUR 20TH FESTIVAL BEER!📣

We’re delighted to announce that we'll be selling our very own beer between 18th-27th September, to celebrate our 20th Festival!🍺

For the chance to WIN 2 x TICKETS to an author event of your choice*, we’d like you to send in your suggestions of what our new beer should be called!

Entries will only be accepted via email sent to [email protected] and are received by no later than 5pm on Wed 1st July.

The winner, and winning beer name, will be announced on Sat 11 July!

GOOD LUCK!🍀

*Excludes food/drink/VIP events

15/06/2026

📣 NOTICE OF THIS YEAR'S AGM 📣

The Appledore Book Festival AGM will be held on Thursday 2nd July, 6.30pm at St Mary's Hall, Appledore.

We invite Friends of the Festival and members of the local community to attend🎗️

09/06/2026

WOULD YOU LIKE TO SUPPORT THE 2026 APPLEDORE BOOK FESTIVAL? 🎪

We are delighted to invite businesses, both locally and nationally, to become an official sponsor of the 20th Appledore Book Festival. 📚

Managed almost exclusively by a loyal team of hardworking volunteers, our Festival offers a unique and enriching experience, to increase the enjoyment of reading and creative writing by providing access to inspirational events for all ages.

As a charity and non-profit organisation, funds raised go towards helping our local community and running the Appledore Book Festival’s Schools’ Week Programme, where we bring top authors and their books into schools to help inspire and excite young people to read for pleasure. 🎗️

We have a wide range of packages available with fantastic opportunities to promote your brand across all our channels and marketing materials.

Sponsorship benefits include:

· An advertisement in the Festival brochure (7,500 copies) DEADLINE 23RD JUNE
· A presence on the Festival website
· An opportunity to offer products or branded merchandise at events
· Event tickets & hospitality
· An invitation to a VIP Festival party
· Goodwill across the community, whilst committing to your business's Corporate Social Responsibility policy & MUCH MORE!

We also offer standalone advertising in our high-quality Festival brochure, which gets distributed throughout North Devon.

If you’re interested in becoming a sponsor and would like to align your business with our incredible charity, please email: [email protected] for a sponsorship pack TODAY! Visit www.appledorebookfestival.co.uk for full Festival details.

04/06/2026

📣 EXCITING NEWS📣

The paperback of Veronicas Henry’s sweeping new novel, The Invitation, is out today and available at many supermarkets & good bookshops! 💫

Set between post-war London and the enchanting Foxwood Manor in the rolling Somerset countryside, The Invitation is full of glamour, romance and adventures – the perfect summertime read. 📚 ☀️

AND we’re delighted to announce that our wonderful Patron, Veronica, will be appearing once again at this year’s Festival … 🎪

Veronica Henry

02/06/2026

📣 2026 Starting Line-up Announcement 📣

We are delighted to be welcoming these fantastic authors in September! 📚

Comedian, actor and author, Ben Miller, the original star of the popular TV show Death in Paradise, and writer, Robert Thorogood, creator of the hit drama, will join us to discuss the success of the series, the appeal of the murder-mystery and the lasting legacy of Agatha Christie. We’ll also have the Queen of Shops, Mary Portas; BBC Newsreader, Sophie Raworth; colourful actress and singer, Su Pollard; host of Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly, Graeme Hall; actor and broadcaster, Caroline Quentin; angler, explorer and host of River Monsters, Jeremy Wade; Escape to the Country presenter Jules Hudson; Labour grandee, Baroness Margaret Hodge and novelist & presenter, Dawn O’Porter. 🏡 🐟 ✍️ 🎭 🐶 🛍️ 🎬

Returning to the stage will be Festival patrons Ann Cleeves, Jeremy Vine & Tanya Landman, beauty and wellness entrepreneur, Liz Earle; BBC security correspondent, Frank Gardner; author & filmmaker Damian Lewis and the nation’s favourite poet Pam Ayres. 🧘‍♀️ 🎥 📺 📕

Others in the line-up include Tim Marshall, Oliver Bullough, Amy Jeffs, Iain Dale, Claudia Hammond, Esther G**y, Peter Ricketts, Gilly McArthur, Clare Leslie-Hall, Shehan Hettiaratchy and even more names to be announced in the coming weeks and months! 💫

Tickets will be on sale for Friends of the Festival on Fri 24 July & on General Sale on Sat 1 Aug. 🎟️

Friends Membership for 2026 is now available, which offers priority booking and other great benefits! Visit appledorebookfestival.co.uk for more details ℹ️

📸 Ben Miller (©Arved Colvin-Smith), Dawn O’Porter (©Toby Madden), Frank Gardner (©Kin Ho); Mary Portas (©Linda Nyland), Sophie Raworth (©BBC)

26/05/2026

📣 Volunteer Treasurer Needed 📣

The Appledore Book Festival is looking for a committed and organised individual to join the Board of Trustees as our Treasurer. This voluntary position would be ideal for someone with financial experience who wants to make a difference in the community.

As Treasurer you would help to oversee the charity’s finances, support good governance and work with your fellow Trustees to ensure the Charity’s aims are sustainable and effective.

What you will bring
• Financial knowledge of bookkeeping or accountancy experience and charities.
• Good organisational skills.
• Commitment to the Charity’s aims and values.
• Ability to work as a team.

What you will do
• Monitor income and expenditure.
• Present Financial reports to the Board.
• Support budgeting and financial planning.
• Ensure proper procedures are followed.
• Contribute to the charity’s planning.

This a rewarding opportunity to support a meaningful cause and contribute your skills to the Festival and the local community. 🎗️

To express interest, or for more information, please contact Jan Thompson by email at [email protected] with your cv or equivalent by 2nd July 2026

11/05/2026

We are delighted to announce that the Appledore Book Festival 2026 Art Prize winner is local artist, Rosie Burns. CONGRATULATIONS ROSIE!🎉

The winning artwork named ‘THE NETTED SUNBEAM DANCE’ will appear on the front cover of this year’s brochure. The title is a line from Tennyson's THE BROOK - one of Rosie’s favourite water poems.🖼️

The original artwork will be on display at the Festival in September and will be auctioned at the end of the 10 days, with profits being shared between the artist and the Festival.

Rosie is a painter and printmaker, she is one half of Rosie and Red Art and Leather, working from studios in Bideford. Her work is a vibrant exploration of light, life, and the interplay between humanity and the environment. More formal oil paintings celebrate the natural world, and generate narratives, whilst experimental printmaking processes challenge depictions of gender, environmental concerns and push the boundaries between print and paint.🎨

She initially trained as an Archaeological site and finds illustrator, she then went on to train to teach art and design in schools, she worked in state education for over 20 years. Rosie has exhibited locally, nationally and internationally for over 3 decades, participated in Art for Social Justice exhibitions in Miami, Berlin and the 2024 Venice Biennial. She is an Artivist, a pacifist and keen to use her work to engage broad audiences in issues of contemporary social justice, she is a full-time, self-employed artist.👩‍🎨

For more information visit www.rosieburnsartist.com

We would like to offer a warm thank you to ArtMakers for their continued support and to everyone who entered the competition.🎗️

ArtMakers

29/04/2026

The latest book from, Festival Patron, Jeremy Vine hit the shelves this month! 📚

Turn the Dial for Death, is the second book in his new murder mystery series, The Sidmouth Murder Mysteries. We have no doubt it will be another huge bestseller. 🗡️

Be sure to look out for Jeremy who will be appearing again at this year’s Festival (18-27 September). 🎪

Congratulations Jeremy! 🎉 The Jeremy Vine

📸 Sophia Spring

03/04/2026

🎪 Wishing you all a very Happy Easter from everyone at the Appledore Book Festival 🐰 🐣

06/03/2026

🎪We are delighted to be supporting local writer, Laurie Page, as part of her English and Creative Writing degree at University of Plymouth. It’s fantastic to see new writers emerging, and our book festival relies on that fresh talent to remain aspirational and inspirational. 💫

As a charity, funds raised from the book festival go towards supporting our local community and delivering the Appledore Book Festival Schools Week, one of the largest schools outreach programmes in the UK. In 2026, as we celebrate our 20th anniversary, we are especially delighted to be able to offer this bursary to a university level student to help with study books and other associated costs. 📚

Address

Westward Ho

Website

https://linktr.ee/appledorebookfestival

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