Full ticketed and free programme for Newark Book Festival 2025
Authors, musicians, poets, crafters, historians and travellers will be bringing their creativity into a town centre as a popular festival returns.
The Newark Book Festival will be celebrating the world of words from July 10 to 13 with a number of events, and the tickets have just gone on sale.
The full four-day programme of the festival includes ticketed events such as taking a walk along the North Road with Rob Cowen, on Thursday (July 10) at Tudor Hall, National Civil War Centre from 7pm until 8pm.
On July 11, people will get to hear about the Deadly Secrets and Dystopian Fears with Eva Björg Ægisdóttir and Eve Smith and have a sit-down with interviewer Dr Tim Rideout for a chillingly compelling conversation. This will be from 10.15am until 11.15am at Tudor Hall, National Civil War Centre.
Author Kit De Waal will be discussing her new novel — The Best of Everything — at the Newark Town Hall from 2pm till 3pm.
Still on Friday, from 4pm until 5pm, bestselling authors Caroline James and Rowan Coleman will discuss creating characters in their books with BBC Radio 1Xtra’s Fee Mak at Newark Town Hall.
Internationally bestselling author Sophie Hannah is back with a brand-new novel, No One Would Do What the Lamberts Have Done and will tell the audience all about the book from 7pm till 8.30pm on Friday at the Palace Theatre.
On Saturday (July 12), historical fiction authors Essie Fox and Laura Shepherd-Robinson will be interviewed on Georgian Creativity and Artistry: Mad, Bad & Dangerous.
The event will take place at Newark Town Hall from 12.30pm until 1.30pm.
From 2.30pm till 3.30pm, Newark Town Hall will welcome four bold creatives—Chris Shepherd, Gillie Ford, Eleanor Tomlinson, and Lucy Mangan— to go head-to-head in a lively battle of imagination, ideas and inspiration at Creative Battle: Stories, Stitches & Sketches.
Still at Newark Town Hall, top TV comedy writer Lee Stuart Evans will be in conversation with Nick Quantrill as they discuss his new novel, Pleasantly Disturbed. This will be from 7pm until 8pm.
On the festival’s last day, Sunday (July 13), ticketed events will begin at Newark Town Hall with Trio of Creative Criminals, with a thrilling panel of M.J. Arlidge, T.M. Logan, and Ian Moore from 10.30am until 11.30am.
On the same location from 3.30 to 4.30, the audience gets to join top romance authors for love, laughter, tea and cake for a feel-good afternoon with Cathy Bramley, Cressida McLaughlin and Sue Moorcroft.
To end this year’s festival on a big note, the Town Hall will welcome Steve Cawte, a spoken word artist, performance poet and playwright, for an open mic finale.
To book tickets, people can call the Newark Palace Theatre box office on 01636 655755.
Despite the event having ticketed events, the four-day festival will also see plenty of free events, such as The Zone at Newark Market Place, an event taking place throughout the whole festival dedicated to teens and young adults.
The award-winning youth space for 11-18 years old at Newark Market Place is to include gaming activities, high-energy workshops with pro artists, party games, and book corners.
Free events at this year’s Newark Book Festival include:
July 10:
- Fantasy and Adventure Panel, where visitors get to step into the magical worlds with authors Michelle Harrison and Philippa Leathley, at the Palace Theatre from 10am until 11am.
- Your First Novel - Writing Workshop with the writer of The Coffehouse, Mandi Allen, at the Newark Library meeting room from 10am until 12noon.
- Grown, Play & Live with award-winning author Luke Palmer for a talk about his new book Live. It will be at the Palace Theatre from 1.30pm until 2.30pm.
- Creative writing workshop — From the Stars to Electric Cars — is inviting beginners and seasoned writers to take part at Inspire, Newark Buttermarket from 1.30pm till 3pm.
- Gannets Bistro will welcome Wine and Words with poets Fiona Theokritoff and Jane Wyles from 3.30pm until 6pm.
July 11:
- Newark Library Children’s Area will welcome Do Lions Hate Haircuts: Storytime and Craft session with Bethany Walker from 9.30am till 10.30am
- Newark Art Gallery will host a book reading session with Emma Oldham reading The Whale Who Disappeared at the Shimmer and Shine bookbench from 11am till 12noon
- Derby-based songwriting duo –vocalist Nina Blaszczyk and guitarist Phil Baggaley will perform Island Spirit at Newark Library meeting room from 11.30am till 12.30pm
- Lawrence Mahon and Via Macnab will host CAT Dungeons and Dragons workshop at the Newark Library meeting room from 1.30pm till 4pm
July 12:
- Newark Market Place will see the Literature Village with books of all genres and bookish crafts and trinkets from 9.30am to 4pm
- From 10am till 11am, neuroscientist Dr Joseph Jebelli will talk about his latest book — The Brain at Rest — at the Newark Town Hall
- The Newark Library children’s area will host the 2025 summer reading challenge story garden from 10am until 12noon
- Newark Library meeting room will see an exclusive creative writing workshop for Newark Book Festival’s Young Ambassadors from 10am till 12noon
- Author Geoffrey Bond will talk about his book where he explores Lord Byron’s early life and poetry. It will be at Tudor Hall, National Civil War Centre from 11am till 12noon
- Newark Book Festial’s Young Ambassadors will be at the Newark By Day/Night Bench at Newark Town Hall for a storytime session from 11.30am till 12noon
- Family-friendly event Dragons and Fairytale Fun will be be at Inspire, Newark Buttermarket from 12noon till 4pm and people have the chance to meet Sapphire the Dragon and her friend Sparky.
- From 12noon til 2pm, the Castles in the Air bench at Inspire, Newark Buttermarket will be hosting a storytime event with a dragons and fairytales theme
- Newark Library meeting room will see — From the Page to the stage — as a poetry performance workshop takes place from 1pm till 3.30pm
July 13:
- Newark Market Place will see the Literature Village with books of all genres and bookish crafts and trinkets including paint club — En Plein Aire — from 10am to 3pm
- Environmentalist Jules Acotn is inviting people to Tudor Hall, National Civil War Centre to discover her debut book Oaklore: Adventures in a World of Extraordinary Trees, from 11am till 12noon
- Newark Castle will welcome Amy Lilwall with family-friendly walk and writing workshop around Newark from 11am till 12.30pm
- C.L. Peache will discuss her new mystery novel — One Step Ahead — at Tudor Hall, National Civil War Centre from 12.30pm till 1.30pm
- Newark Town Hall will host a high-energy creative workshop with freestyle rapper and poet Rob Bradley at The Rap School from 1.pm till 2pm
- Stokes Tea & Coffee will share the story behind the perfect brew from 1pm till 2pm
- Crime author Trevor Wood will talk about the next novel in his series — The Inside Man — at Tudor Hall, National Civil War Centre from 2pm till 3pm
- Gannets Bistro will see its regular monthly news event from 2pm till 3pm
- Inspire at Newark Buttermarket will celebrate the launch of Inspired Anthology from 2pm till 3pm
