We’re welcoming a wonderful mix of authors, poets, journalists and performers, alongside workshops, family activities and free community events. Whether you’re here to hear from your favourite writers, discover new voices, or simply soak up the festival atmosphere, there’s something for everyone to enjoy.
Friday 6 November
Lee Child In Conversation
Todmorden Hippodrome 7.30pm - 9pm</p> <p>Lee Child is one of the world’s leading thriller writers. He was born in Coventry, raised in Birmingham, and now lives in England’s Lake District. It is said one of his novels featuring his hero Jack Reacher is sold somewhere in the world every nine seconds. Killing Floor, published in March 1997, was the first in the series. It won the mystery writers’ Anthony Award and Barry Award for Best First Novel. Since then there have been 30 more Reacher novels and his books consistently achieve the number one slot on bestseller lists around the world, selling over one hundred million copies to date. Lee is the recipient of many awards including Author of the Year at the 2019 British Book Awards. He was appointed CBE in the 2019 Queen’s Birthday Honours.</p> <p>Interviewed by Cheryl Taylor</p> <p>Doors open at 6.30pm and the bar will be open before and after the performance.
Saturday 7 November
Naz Shah - Survival, Strength and My Path to Politics
St Mary’s Church 7.30pm</p> <p>Naz Shah has been the Labour MP for Bradford West since her election in 2015, when in a bruising battle with George Galloway’s Respect Party she won a resounding 49.6% of the vote and a majority of 11,420. She was born in Bradford but sent to Pakistan by her mother at the age of 12 to escape the attentions of her mother’s abuser. There, she was forced into a marriage at the age of 15. When she was 20, her mother was convicted of the murder of her abuser and served 14 years in prison after receiving a 20-year sentence. Naz was instrumental in campaigning for and securing a reduction of her mother’s tariff. Honoured is her first book.</p> <p>Interviewed by Yvette Huddleston, Yorkshire Post.
Stephen May Novel Writing Masterclass
Todmorden Library 10am – 12pm</p> <p>What makes a writer’s voice unique? Join novelist Stephen May for this stimulating workshop we will explore how to depict fictional worlds, characters, relationships, and situations so that they seem ‘real’.
Felicity Goodall - Seeking Mea Allan
Fielden Hall 2pm – 3.30pm</p> <p>War correspondent Mea Allan worked for the Glasgow Herald throughout WW2. An accredited journalist serving with the British Forces, she was the only woman to report on Belsen in 1945. The first woman news editor in Fleet Street and a novelist, she was once so famous her name was used to advertise Horlicks, yet her story is almost forgotten. Seeking Mea Allan, the first biography from Radio 4 broadcaster and writer Felicity Goodall, aims to change that. Goodall was inspired to look further into her fascinating life after reading archive letters Allan wrote in 1940 during the London Blitz. Seeking Mea Allan interweaves past and present as we travel from London to Glasgow, from Paris to Hamburg and beyond, to answer the questions that still linger: was Mea written out of history because of her sexuality? Or was something more subtle at work?
Katharine Grant - Clinging to the Crags
Fielden Hall 4pm – 5pm</p> <p>Katharine Grant was born into a family described by Lord Burghley, Treasurer to Elizabeth 1st, as of ‘more than usual perversity’. Her five times removed great uncle, Francis Towneley, was the last person in the UK to be hanged, drawn and quartered. A former newspaper columnist, she is currently Consultant Fellow of the Royal Literary Fund. Sedition, her first novel for adults, was published to rave childhood that wasn’t a childhood at Towneley’. reviews. Clinging To The Crags is her memoir of a ‘Towneley. Why not make an afternoon of it? Tea, scones and jam will be available for a small donation, adding a little extra treat to your visit to the beautiful Fielden Hall for this fascinating event.
Sunday 8 November
Frank Cottrell-Boyce In Conversation
Hippodrome Theatre 7.30pm – 8.30pm</p> <p>Frank Cottrell Boyce 's eclectic career includes writing scripts for Coronation Street , Dr Who and acclaimed film 24 Hour Party People , starring Steve Coogan as Manchester 's iconic Tony Wilson. With director Danny Boyle, he devised the Opening Ceremony for the London 2012 Olympics. An award-winning children's novelist, he was Waterstones Children's Laureate from 2024 to 2026, travelling the country and meeting children and young people in a variety of venues including schools, libraries and young offenders' institutions. A British Childhood tells the story of this journey and reflects on how life has changed for children since the 1960's, when Cottrell-Boyce was growing up in his native Liverpool.</p> <p>'No home, no school, and especially no library should be without this story and this book' – Michael Morpurgo</p> <p>Interviewed by Frankie Mullen.
Naomi Booth - Haunted Locations & Writing Ghost Stories
Herald Buildings / The Wholefood Cafe 10am – 12pm</p> <p>Join award-winning writer Naomi Booth to experiment with different approaches to the macabre. Naomi Booth is Professor of Creative Writing at Durham University and author of the novel raw content, Exit Management and Sealed, and the short-story collection, Animals at Night. Her folk horror story, ‘Sour Hall’, is set in the Calder Valley, and it has been adapted into an Audible Originals drama series. Her forthcoming novel, A Thousand Ghosts, is set on the York ghost-tour circuit.
James Bailey - The Nine Lives of Muriel Spark
Town Hall 4.30pm – 5.30pm</p> <p>James Bailey is a writer and researcher from Manchester. He is a Doctor of Literature, his previous publications include Muriel Spark’s Early Fiction and he is co-editor of British Women Short Story Writers. His day job involves working to support the development of other writers, as well as independent publishers, bookshops and literature festivals.</p> <p>Interviewed by Bec Evans.
Amanda Dalton Writing Poems Masterclass
Herald Buildings / The Wholefood Cafe 12.30pm – 2.30pm</p> <p>Whether you’re an absolute beginner or seasoned writer, this practical workshop led by poet and playwright Amanda Dalton is for you. For everyone aged 16-plus. Amanda’s collections How To Disappear and Fantastic Voyage are published by Bloodaxe. She is also a theatre and BBC Radio playwright and visiting lecturer at Manchester University.
John Billingsley - Magical Dispositions
Herald Buildings / The Wholefood Cafe 3pm – 4pm</p> <p>John Billingsley is a local historian specialising in the folklore and less regarded aspects of the area’s community heritage. His 12 books, drawn from 50 years’ residence in the Upper Calder Valley, deal with an eclectic range of subjects including folk tales, protective carvings, corpseways, magical culture and Ted Hughes.
Monday 9 November
Horatio Clare - We Came By Sea
Town Hall 7.30pm – 8.30pm</p> <p>Horatio Clare's acclaimed memoirs, travel and children’s books include Running for the Hills (Somerset Maugham Award), A Single Swallow, Down to the Sea in Ships (Stanford Dolman Award), and Heavy Light, charting his experiences with psychiatric treatment and recovery. Your Journey Your Way – the recovery guide to mental health, is a Sunday Times self-help book of the year. Horatio presents ‘Is Psychiatry Working?’ on Radio 4. His new book, We Came By Sea:<br /> stories of a greater Britain, tells the story of the small boat crisis. Horatio delivers training to NHS intervention teams and lectures at the University of Manchester. He lives in West Yorkshire.
Tuesday 10 November
Campbell Malone - Lives Ruined
Why Miscarriages of Justice Matter</p> <p>St Mary's Church 7pm – 8.30pm</p> <p>Campbell Malone was born in 1944 in the Scottish Borders but moved to the North of England aged two. In his book he describes how in a legal career extending over 40 years he dealt with some of the most high-profile miscarriages of justice cases of the day including Stefan Kiszko, Ricky Tomlinson and the leading Court of Appeal case including the controversy of Shaken Babies. He lives with his wife Judith in Todmorden and was made an Honorary Citizen in 2005.
Wednesday 11 November
Ian Douglas - Folk Tales from the Canal Side
Todmorden Library 7pm – 8.30pm</p> <p>Ian Douglas has been telling stories at festivals, schools, libraries and on street corners both nationally and internationally for over 30 years. Originally a street theatre performer, Ian has founded two story-based theatre companies, He has also worked as a theatre practitioner in residence for organisations across the North including Northern Stage in Newcastle and Theatre by the Lake in Keswick
Thursday 12 November
Jeremy Hunt - Can We Be Rich Again?
St Mary's Church 7.30pm – 9pm</p> <p>The Rt Hon Sir Jeremy Hunt MP was elected Conservative MP for South West Surrey in 2005. He was first appointed Secretary of State for Health in September 2012, then served as Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs from July 2018 to July 2019, and Chancellor of the Exchequer from October 2022 to July 2024. Before his election as an MP, Jeremy ran his own educational publishing business, Hotcourses. He also set up a charity to help AIDS orphans in Africa in which he continues to play an active role. Jeremy lives in Godalming and London with his wife, son and two daughters.</p> <p>Interviewed by Ben Jancovich.
Saturday 14 November
Celebrating our Friendship with Ukraine
A Free Community Event for Everyone at Todmorden College 1pm – 4pm</p> <p>Join us for songs, dance and storytelling from the Huddersfield Ukrainian Singing Troupe and Zolota Kalyna Dance Ensemble - British born Ukrainians and refugees showcasing the country’s culture and traditions in solidarity with families and friends still bravely resisting the Putin regime. Plus traditional food, and a presentation from Michael Drapan, whose book Home From Home tells the story of the emigre Ukrainian community in Huddersfield, which was mirrored across many towns in the North and Midlands.</p> <p>12.30-1.30pm Free lunch including traditional Ukrainian savouries and sweets.</p> <p>1.30pm Home from Home with Michael Drapan.</p> <p>2pm Huddersfield Ukrainian Troupe sing traditional folk songs.</p> <p>2.15pm Zolota Kalyna Seniors perform 1 folk.</p> <p>2.30pm Poetry and stories with Olena Bezlepkina.</p> <p>Tea break.</p> <p>3pm Huddersfield Ukrainian Troupe.</p> <p>3.15pm Zolota Kalyna dance ensemble (Seniors and Juniors) perform dances from Ukraine.</p> <p>3.30pm Music for the Many perform Ukrainian folk songs with Stasia Chalova.</p> <p>4pm close.
Janine Warren & Elizabeth Alker
From Punk to the Proms – Two Music Writers Tell All</p> <p>St Mary’s Church 7.30pm – 9pm</p> <p>Music matters. Join two great women writers as they discuss what sparked their personal love of popular music and the importance it has had in their lives.</p> <p>In The World Was A Mess But His Hair Was Perfect Janine Warren chronicles the legendary gigs, records and parties that evolved into the messy decadence known as 'The Last Indie Scene'. She was there as one of the movers and shakers, and tells its story through interviews with the scene's leading lights including The Libertines, Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party, The Cribs among many others.</p> <p>Meanwhile in Everything We Do Is Music: How 20th Century Classical Music Shaped Pop Radio Three presenter Elizabeth Alker delights in music of all kinds and her book is enlivened by encounters with practitioners ranging from Paul McCartney to avant garde composer La Monte Young</p> <p>If you love music - any kind of music - you won't want to miss this event.</p> <p>Janine Warren has championed some of the most influential artists of the past two decades, working for Johnny Marr, Marianne Faithfull and many others. She edited Punk Fiction: An Anthology of Short Stories Inspired by Punk. She regularly hosts events and co-curates the Cult Music Film Club at Hebden Bridge’s Trades Club.</p> <p>Elizabeth Alker is a journalist and broadcaster. Born in Rochdale to music teacher parents, she studied Communications & Politics and English Literature at the University of Leeds, joining the BBC in 2003. In 2025 she published ‘Everything We Do Is Music’, about connections between popular and classical music. She lives in Hebden Bridge.
Sunday 15 November
Rik Moran - Chance Encounters in the Valley of Lights
Todmorden Community College 2pm – 3pm</p> <p>Photographer and writer Rik Moran grew up near Todmorden. His new book, Chance Encounters in the Valley of Lights, looks into the famous tale of PCAlan Godfrey, whose UFO sighting in the skies above Burnley Road and possible abduction by aliens in November 1980 has never been properly explained. Rik’s book combines original photography with never-seen-before archive material, including newspaper clippings, police reports, transcripts of interviews and letters from the Ministry of Defence. What really happened? Was it all a government cover-up? Is there anyone out there? Come along and find out.