The Wantage Literary Festival, which began on October 26, highlights a range of topics including Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and climate change, during its final days. The opening event attracted over 100 attendees to a discussion on the poetry of Seamus Heaney.
Read More
Festival director Berne Ferry noted that the festival has maintained its appeal for 16 years, saying it continues to attract distinguished guests and enrich cultural life in Wantage.
The festival will run until Saturday, November 7, with author Andrew Lownie, known for his biography 'Entitled: The Fall of the House of York,' set to speak on the final day. Before that, on November 4, a free event focused on self-publishing is scheduled, along with a talk for over 500 local school students led by children's novelist Isaac Hamilton-McKenzie.
Other notable speakers thus far have included football writer Jonathan Wilson, who covered the history of the World Cup, and criminologist Professor David Wilson, who discussed his book 'A History of Modern Britain in 20 Murders.'
Upcoming speakers include novelist Victoria Hislop, broadcaster Stephen Sackur, television historian Janina Ramirez, and former Home Secretary Alan Johnson.
The festival has also initiated 'The Big Town Read,' a communal reading project aimed at connecting residents. This year, the chosen book was local author Simon Mason's 'The Dangerous Stranger.' Aside from talks, the festival featured watercolour demonstrations, ghost walks in Wantage, and a recital of Schubert’s piano works at the Church of St Peter and St Paul.