- 28 May -30 June 2025
- Partner Event
- Workshop
Design Your Own Tote Bag
Design your own tote bag, and learn the basic principles of screen printing. You will come away with a bag that celebrates the character(s) of Essex and its diverse communities. You will be inspired by the people, heritage, and social history of the county, and use our screen printing equipment to transfer your design onto fabric. Read more
- Listen Up!
- POSTPONED
Will You Read This, Please? – POSTPONED
Will You Read This, Please? is a frank and impactful collection of twelve stories as told to our best British writers, based on the lived experience of people who have faced mental illness in the UK. Join contributing author, Hafsa Zayyan (We Are All Birds of Uganda) for an open and honest conversation about mental health and the power of giving a platform to unheard voices. Read more
- Partner Event
- Workshop
Experience the Beauty of Lino Cutting
Experience the beauty of lino cutting, we will guide you through the process of creating your own print inspired by the county's biodiversity. Whether you choose to depict a bird, a flower, a fox, or something else you will learn how to carve your design into the linoleum surface and then print it onto paper or fabric using our proofing press. Read more
- Historical Fiction
The Glutton
From the winner of the 2021 Desmond Elliot Prize comes a novel of desire and destruction set in Revolutionary France and inspired by a true story. avels from the South of France to Paris and beyond, through the heart of the Revolution, The Glutton is an electric, heart-stopping journey into a world of tumult, upheaval and depravity, wherein the hunger of one peasant is matched only by the insatiable demands of the people of France. Read more
- CANCELLED
How Nature Keeps Time
How Nature Keeps Time discovers the natural world’s most important and intriguing patterns of time. From the lifecycle of immortal jellyfish and identifying the perfect amount of time for a ‘good sleep’, to mass extinction and the destruction of the coral reef, Helen Pilcher will tackle highly relevant and fascinating topics in this thought-provoking and deeply entertaining discussion. Read more
- Opera
- Partner Event
Rapture
World premiere: Duffy’s Rapture follows the narrator as they fall in love and then lose their beloved. Noah Max’s setting rearranges the story, starting with what has been lost before working back to the height of love, almost in a dream: “You pass the moon to me, like a loving cup. I roll you the sun.” Read more
- Historical Fiction
The Grand Illusion
Syd Moore is back with a thrilling opener to a new historical fiction series set in WW2. The Grand Illusion is inspired by an event alleged to have taken place in the New Forest in the summer of 1940 - a spectacular magical ritual - “The Cone of Power” - that would be witnessed by German agents in the area and reported back to the Führer. Its goal: to avert invasion on British shores. Read more
- History
- SOLD OUT!
Sold Out – Witchcraft: A History in 13 Trials
This book explores the history of witchcraft and witch hunts through the stories of the victims, stories which have too often been overshadowed by those of the powerful men, such as King James VI and I and “Witchfinder General” Matthew Hopkins, who hounded them. Marion Gibson will be in conversation with Syd Moore, author of The Essex Witch Museum Mysteries series. Read more
- Sci-Fi
- Thriller
- FREE
Livestream: Prophet
Watch online for free. In collaboration with Appetite Book Club and Red Lion Books. Award-winning poet and naturalist, Helen Macdonald (H is for Hawk) has collaborated with musician and writer Sin Blaché to write this dazzling, breath-taking and genre-blending science fiction thriller, Prophet. Read more
- Partner Event
- Workshop
Create a Limited Edition Risograph Print
Create a limited edition Risograph print inspired by the Essex landscape, from the waterways and woodlands to the coast and the cities. You will learn how to cut and paste shapes and colours to make your own collage, and then print it using this addictive DIY printing process. You will love the vivid colours and stunning imperfections of your artwork. Read more
- Thriller
- CANCELLED
Cancelled: The Lion Conspiracy
Join member of the House of Lords, author and life-long human rights campaigner, Peter Hain, as he delves into his gripping third thriller. The Veteran, Thandi and Mkhize are back battling to save lion prides from being killed for their claws, teeth and bones. Struggling to defeat the international criminal syndicate responsible for poaching, the team find themselves embroiled in mafia-style smuggling, illicit night flights and tense shoot-outs. Read more
- Partner Event
- Performance
A Monster Calls
There’s a yew tree at the bottom of Conor’s garden, and in it there is a Monster. An elemental force, one night it appears at his window and tells him “I will tell you three stories from when I walked the earth… and when I have finished my three stories, you will tell me a fourth. And it will be the truth.” Read more
- Podcast
- Manifesto For Essex
- Partner Event
Essex Podcast Festival – An Audience with Manifesto for Essex
This event is part of the Essex Podcast Festival, featuring a jam packed line-up of Essex inspired podcasts staged in front of a live audience. The discussion will be chaired by Marina Cusi who is joined by two outstanding young people who have been part of our Writing and Talking National Saturday Club. e who have been part of their Writing and Talking National Saturday Club based at ARU. We will also be welcoming Steve Mortimer to the panel. Read more
- FREE
- Online
- Partner Event
- Young Essex
The Children & Authors’ Literary Fanfare – BHM 2024
Get ready for a virtual celebration of all things books and storytelling, featuring an array of engaging activities led by CALFE authors, publishers, and creatives of culturally diverse books. For 4-11 year olds, don't miss out on this exciting opportunity for children to connect with fellow book lovers, and discover new stories. Read more
- FREE
- Partner Event
- Young Essex
CALFE 2024: A Galaxy of Culture and Curious Adventures
The Children & Authors’ Literary Fanfare Events (CALFE) Festival is back with an exciting line-up of multicultural, literary-inspired activities celebrating Black History Month 2024. This free, family-friendly event is designed to inspire creativity and cultural curiosity in children aged 4-11. Read more
- In partnership
- Memoir
Blythe Spirit
Ronald Blythe (1922-2023) lived all his life in East Anglia and is considered one of the greatest writers on the English countryside. Drawing on unparalleled access to letters, notebooks, published works, drafts, and conversations from decades of friendship, he tells the full story of Ronald Blythe for the first time. Read more
- In partnership
Tattoos
EA Festival, Essex Book Festival and Firstsite are excited to present a talk with Matt Lodder, author of a new book entitled, Tattoos, published by Yale University Press. This important book is the first to examine the history of tattoo in the west as both a serious profession and an art form. Read more
- FREE
- Workshop
- Young Essex
Celebrating Collecting Dreams, Shifting Futures
Join in the fun at the finale of Essex Book Festival and Kinetika's collaborative story-gathering project, Collecting Dreams, Shifting Futures: a community celebration of Harwich’s fascinating heritage and coastline. Lots of family-friendly activities including beach workshop, silk-flag procession, writing, film-making and eco-podcast workshops, and more... Read more
- Partner Event
- Performance
The Wizard of Oz
Fly over the rainbow with this exciting adaptation of The Wizard of Oz. Starring the fabulous Fanny Galore as Glinda Galore, alongside a professional cast of West End performers, this spectacular, panto-like, colourful story is packed with hilarious jokes, dazzling dance routines, glittering scenery and plenty more for all the family. Read more
- For Writers
- FREE
- Partner Event
Weekly Community Writing Surgery
It is no secret that writing is the best thing for writing – but sometimes you need some advice, or just to feel part of a community of writers. With other experienced tutors, Dr Adrian May, Community Fellow and former Deputy Director of Creative Writing at Essex University will be there on call. Read more
- Music
- Partner Event
ABC: An Intimate Evening with Martin Fry
Coinciding with the publication of his autobiography, A Lexicon Of Life, join Martin Fry for an intimate evening of stripped-back music and conversation following a sold out tour of the UK. Frontman of iconic British pop band ABC, the band that redefined glamour and cool, Fry will take you on a journey through their well deserved place in pop history. Read more
- Politics
- History
Human Rights
Join leading British human rights lawyer and campaigner, Shami Chakrabarti for a powerful discussion on Human Rights: The Case for the Defence. This urgent, powerful book demonstrates why human rights matter and why we need to secure further rights to deal with challenges of the present and future. Read more
- Fiction
Passiontide
Costa-winning author of The Mermaid of Black Conch, Monique Roffey, will discuss her electrifying new novel about four women who spark a revolution on a Caribbean island. In a community in which women’s voices are often silenced, a group soon find themselves compelled to speak out when a young female steel-pan player is found dead beneath a cannonball tree. Read more