Visiting & Venues

Winchester is a city steeped in history and with strong literary connections.

Home to Jane Austen and the inspiration behind Keats’ famous ode ‘To Autumn’. What better place to visit and listen to rich tales of fiction, explorations of fact and have the opportunity to pose your questions, get your books signed and meet your favourite authors.

All our venues are accessible and range from the intimate to the grand. Whether you prefer a debut writer or a star of stage and screen, the Winchester Books Festival has something for everyone.

Winchester Books Festival April 2025

A short recap from April 2025

Our Venues

The Arc

Jewry St, Winchester SO23 8SB (Capacity 175)

The Library

Jewry St, Winchester SO23 8SB (Capacity 50)

Middle Brook Centre

Middle Brook St, Winchester SO23 8DQ (Capacity 700)

The Guildhall

The Broadway, Winchester SO23 9GH (Capacity 525)

The Wessex Centre

8A The Cl, Winchester SO23 9LS (Capacity 100)

Explore Winchester and our venues

Our audiences love our festival events

“We came to see Ben Macintyre this evening and wanted to say thank you for arranging such a great evening.

The venue was perfect and we could have happily listened to him speak for hours!

We were grateful for the opportunity to have our books signed, and we were delighted to have a moment to speak with him.

We left feeling really enriched and have just signed up for the newsletter in anticipation of next year’s programme of events. “

Winchester Books Festival April 2024

Winchester Books Festival 2024

Some lovely audience feedback

"It was the best day."

We love the Books Festival. Highly recommend it!

"We met our favourite author."

Wonderful venue and event. Coming back.

"I met my hero!"

I fulfilled a dream.

"I loved it!"

Our event was so brilliant that I am off to write!

"Brilliant event and venue."

Our first book event and it was perfect.

Watch our David Nicholls event for free

Ever wondered what a literary event is like? Watch David Nicholls free.

We were lucky enough to be joined by the acclaimed playwright and author of “One Day” in February 2025.

You can watch the recording here for free anytime on any device or share with a friend.
We hope you enjoy it as much as we did and look forward to seeing you at an event soon.

Watch an event for free

Just say hello

If you have any special requirements, please do let us know how we can help.

We look forward to seeing you soon.

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