Ilkley Literature Festival Opens With A Strong Yorkshire Accent

The north's longest-running literary festival opens its doors today, and a third of this year's line-up is from Yorkshire, lives here or has close ties to the county. Group Editor Andrew Palmer picks out some of the highlights.

Ilkley Literature Festival 2026 begins today, bringing more than a fortnight of talks, readings and discussions to the Wharfedale town. Big names from home and abroad will appear as usual, but this year the programme leans heavily on writers from much closer to home.

"With such a wealth of home-grown literary talent here in Yorkshire, we are proud to champion local writers too," said Erica Morris, Chief Executive of Word Up North, which produces the festival. She pointed out that the festival has been part of the county's cultural life for more than fifty years. In her view, events like this inspire new generations and show that Yorkshire's writers can hold their own against anyone.

Nancy Birtwhistle Photo: Clare Winfield ©

Some of the earliest events will appeal well beyond the usual book crowd. On Sunday (4 October, 2.30pm), Hull's Nancy Birtwhistle, who won The Great British Bake Off in 2014, discusses her latest book, Clean Magic. Since her television success, she has turned her attention to cutting plastic, single-use products and harsh chemicals out of the home. Her advice on simple swaps and natural cleaning has won her a following in the millions, and she says the motivation is the planet her ten grandchildren will inherit.

John Yorke Photo: Stephen Parker©

Later the same afternoon (4 October, 3.45pm), John Yorke looks at what makes a story work. It is one of several events built around storytelling to mark the National Year of Reading. Yorke has run Channel 4 Drama and BBC Drama Production, and his bestseller Into the Woods changed how many people think about story structure. His new book, Trip to the Moon, argues that stories shape politics and current affairs as much as art and culture.

Mozley, Fiona Photo: Aleksandra Maciejewska©

Saturday 10 October brings two Yorkshire authors. At 1.15pm, York-raised novelist Fiona Mozley, shortlisted for the Booker Prize with her debut Elmet, introduces Awake Awake. Her narrator, Mary Mooney, is also a novelist from York whose first book is up for a major prize. Mary's trouble is that she remembers too much rather than too little. The most unsettling memories concern her Jewish grandfather and a supposed role in the death of Adolf Hitler, a story she is sure cannot be true and yet cannot quite dismiss.

That evening at 6.15pm, Keighley's Shahnaz Ahsan, an award-winning food writer and columnist, presents The Jackfruit Chronicles. The book is part memoir, part recipe collection, and draws on her family's Bengali cooking and the history behind it. Dishes include jackfruit kofta curry, sour tomato broth, fish with clementine peel and a cardamom-scented vermicelli pudding.

Railway enthusiasts should head to the festival on 11 October at noon, when Paul "Piglet" Middleton takes the stage. He joined the North Yorkshire Moors Railway straight from school, has looked after it for more than 30 years and now leads the team that keeps it running. The heritage line is the most visited in the world, and Middleton, familiar to viewers of Channel 4's Steam Train Diaries, will share stories about the railway and the staff and volunteers who keep it going.

Two of the county's best-known poets close the festival's main fortnight. Ian McMillan returns on 16 October (7pm) with Red River Valley, a collection named after his father's favourite song. Its poems draw on family life, everyday absurdity and the effect of austerity on the village near Barnsley where he has always lived. Despite decades of writing and broadcasting, McMillan says he is still looking for his voice.

The following evening (17 October, 7.30pm), Poet Laureate Simon Armitage launches his new verse translation of Gilgamesh, which he has worked on for more than ten years. The epic was first told in ancient Mesopotamia almost 4,000 years ago. Armitage's version adds commentary and context to the verse, and he presents Gilgamesh's search for immortality as a story that still speaks to modern readers.

Armitage, Simon
Photo: Paul Stuart Photography Ltd©

Elsewhere in the programme, Kate Atkinson and Joanne Harris appear in conversation, and Oyinkan Braithwaite and Tom Hindle join panel discussions. Jasper Fforde unveils the last instalment of his Thursday Next series. Michelle Anya Anjirbag and Melanie Ramdarshan Bold explore the cultural histories of Cinderella and Paddington Bear. Matthew Sweet examines the life and huge output of Barbara Cartland. There are also debut novelists to discover and reading groups devoted to the classics.

Armitage has called the festival a landmark of the literary year. For a programme in which so many of the best voices are from Yorkshire, that seems fair.

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