Swindon Festival of Literature

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Swindon Festival of Literature is an annual literature festival held in Swindon, Wiltshire, England, [1] [2] which was founded in 1994 by Matt Holland of Lower Shaw Farm. It takes place in early May.

Contents

History

The festival was founded in 1994 by Matt Holland, who still organises the festival. Holland works at Lower Shaw Farm, an arts centre in Swindon. [3] [4] The festival was initially supported by the Chamber of Commerce and a donation from Dominic Winter, a local book auctioneer. In 2025 it is sponsored by Swindon Borough Council, Swindon Artswords, and Lower Shaw Farm. [5] The festival, which takes place in early May, typically begins with a 'Dawn Chorus' event at 5.30am on the first day. [6]

Events

The festival typically includes creative writing workshops, poetry in the park, flash fiction slams, storytelling walks, and film nights. [3] Speakers at the first event included former Labour leader Michael Foot, and historian and civil servant Clive Ponting. [4] Other well-known writers or speakers who have appeared at the festival include Tony Benn, Melvyn Bragg, Clare Balding, Esther Rantzen, Harriet Harman, Pam Ayres, Michael Rosen, Jasper Fforde, and Kate Adie. [7]

The thirtieth anniversary festival in 2023 featured Claire Fox, John Higgs, Nigel Biggar and Julie Cohen. [7] [8] [9]

The 2024 event was initially cancelled after Matt Holland decided to step down, but he had a change of heart and remained in the role. [7] The 2025 festival includes Professor Muir Gray, Richard Dawkins, local author John Cullimore, Philip Garrahan talking about Swindon local history, and Mike Pringle discussing nature writer Richard Jefferies. [10] [5]

References

  1. Holland, Matt. "Swindon Festival of Literature, 2008". Swindon Borough Council. Archived from the original on 8 September 2008 via Internet Archive.
  2. Swindon Festival of Literature, SwindonWeb TV, March 2009
  3. 1 2 "Popular festival returns for 32nd year with events for all ages". Swindon Advertiser. 9 April 2025. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  4. 1 2 "Interview: Matt Holland has organised Swindon Festival of Literature throughout a history spanning more than 30 years". swindonlink.com. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  5. 1 2 "Richard Dawkins, The Hammerman Poet and a mysterious Swindon mountain will all feature in this year's Swindon Festival of Literature". swindonlink.com. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  6. "Full line-up revealed for this month's Swindon Festival of Literature". Swindon Advertiser. 1 May 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  7. 1 2 3 "Long-running Swindon festival WILL return after organiser's announcement". Swindon Advertiser. 11 January 2024. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  8. "BBC Radio Wiltshire - Ben Prater, Early May bank holiday (01/05/2023), 30th Swindon Festival of Literature". BBC. 1 May 2023. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  9. "2023 EVENTS". Swindon LitFest. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
  10. "Book Swindon Festival Of Literature - Swindon Seen tickets | Swindon Arts Centre". trafalgartickets.com. Archived from the original on 25 March 2025. Retrieved 21 April 2025.