All About
William Hanson on book festival etiquette
Welcome to Winchester Books Festival
Our vision for the Winchester Books Festival has always been simple: to bring the most exciting and thought-provoking authors to Winchester — a city steeped in culture, history, and creativity. It’s the perfect setting for a world-class books festival, and that is what we have created.
We want our festival to be inclusive, inspiring, and diverse. We have hosted authors from David Nicholls to Jeremy Bowen, Tracy Chevalier to Dame Mary Berry, fashion designer Patrick Grant, popular children’s author Maz Evans and best-selling historian Tom Holland, amongst many others. We’re proud to be building a programme that celebrates the brightest and best authors at the top of their game.
Our first festival took place in 2023, and since then, we have collaborated with many organisations, local and national, to create a Festival that is now at the heart of our City. We host an annual 3-day festival each April with stand-alone events held throughout the year. Over 4,000 tickets were sold in 2025.
We were delighted to be recognised by the University of Winchester, being awarded Honorary Fellowships on 23 October 2025 in recognition of the key part Winchester Books Festival plays in the cultural life of the City.
We believe we are redefining what a literary festival can be, combining innovation, style, and a love for the written word.
Winchester Books Festival is a Community Interest Company.
Festival founders Sophie & Sian share their passion for books
Meet the Founders
Sophie Liardet and Sian Searles
We are driven to curate author events in Winchester that continue to spark conversation long after audiences head home.
Our passion for books and for the city we call home fuels our creativity as we select writers for the annual three-day festival each April, as well as for our stand-alone events throughout the year. We seek to cover every genre — as long as the work can captivate attendees and inspire the lively discussions we aim to foster.
Newsletters
Read about all the latest news and events in our 31 October 2025 newsletter.
Watch our events for free!
To celebrate the launch of Exit Strategy this year, Andrew Child joined us at The Arc, Winchester, all the way from his home in America.
In conversation with Rebecca Fletcher, he revealed how he and his brother craft these global blockbusters, the inspirations behind Reacher’s adventures, the experience of being a best selling author—and what it’s like to see their hero brought vividly to life on screen.
Contact us
Say hello to our little but lovely team by sending an email. We always try to reply to you within 2 working days.
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