Rob Rinder will be back in Guernsey this spring, as a guest speaker at the 2026 Literary Festival.
Sophie Raworth, Rory Cellan-Jones, Brian Bilston, and Jono Lancaster are among the other writers involved this year as the event continues to go from strength to strength.
Tickets are available to purchase now by Guernsey Literary Festival members, with non-members able to book their seats at the multiple events being staged between 23 April and 7 May from this Saturday.
As usual, the line-up features talks on all forms of literature including fiction, factual, memoirs, and poetry, as well as writing workshops, family friendly events, children’s activities, a lunch, and a church service which will be led by Festival Honorary Chairman, Sir Terry Waite.
“The Guernsey Literary Festival has gone from strength to strength, and this year’s programme reflects both its growing ambition and its deep roots in the island’s community,” he said.
“Guernsey, renowned for its friendly atmosphere and rich cultural heritage, looks forward to welcoming you, as do I.”
Festival Director Claire Allen said “this year’s Festival reflects such a broad range of interests across our audience, while staying true to our core purpose of celebrating books, ideas and the power of reading”.
2026 is also the ‘National Year of Reading’, and Mrs Allen said the Literary Festival has used that as a “guiding theme”.
“We’re excited to be creating opportunities for people of all ages to discover stories, share experiences and connect through reading,” she said. “That work wouldn’t be possible without the generosity of our sponsors and partners, and we’re incredibly grateful for their continued support.
“We can’t wait to welcome audiences to this year’s Festival, and based on recent years, we expect tickets to sell out quickly.”
The Festival line up includes “authors, thinkers and performers spanning literature, history, science, politics, health, nature, business, poetry, music, food writing and comedy”, said Mrs Allen.
Among the multitude of speakers are barrister and author Rob Rinder (pictured top), who has previously hosted the Liberation tea dances and hangar balls, sharing his own family’s experiences of the Holocaust with people who lived through the Evacuation and Occupation or served during the Second World War.
Other guests who have recently been announced include filmmaker and environmental storyteller Colin Butfield, behavioural scientist Paul Dolan, and journalist and historian Helen Lewis.
Also on the line up are disaster recovery expert Lucy Easthope, award-winning scientist Daisy Fancourt, former BBC journalist and now Bloomberg Editor-at-Large Mishal Husain (pictured right), and veteran broadcaster Edward Stourton.
The 2026 Festival will include a specially curated lunch at the Old Government House Hotel with chef and food writer Georgina Hayden, while Ben Chu; Policy and Analysis correspondent at BBC Verify, will host a Business Breakfast event.
Lauren Child; who wrote the Charlie and Lola series, will host the Family Tea Party, with award winning illustrator Ramzee putting on a ‘How to draw cartoons’ workshop.
A ‘Craftivism’ workshop led by Sarah Corbett, a short story workshop with acclaimed novelist Ross Raisin, and a creative writing workshop led by Joanne Harris, also feature alongside sessions focused on poetry and memoir writing.
Poets Brian Bilston (pictured top) and John Agard will also help judge the annual Poems on the Move competition while in Guernsey for the Literary Festival.
Outreach and community highlights include Tea & Tales events in local care homes and a talk at Les Nicolles Prison.
Festival Chairman Rob Shepherd said he’s really excited about this year’s line up.
“The Guernsey Literary Festival continues to grow in ambition and reach, while remaining deeply rooted in the island and its community. The 2026 programme reflects both the calibre of speakers the Festival now attracts and its commitment to education, access and participation. We’re excited to welcome audiences and authors alike for what will be another brilliant year.”