Come along to enjoy the fun of our traditional village show, where various HULF authors will be signing and selling books on Stall B19. Do come and say hello – we’d love to hear about your experience of HULF, and to collect your suggestions for future HULF events! There is an admission charge to the showground, but it’s a terrific event and it’s totally worth it! Find out about the entry fee, parking, and other details at the event website, www.hawkesburyshow.org.
The first Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival event will take place on Saturday 27t April from 10.30am until pm in the beautiful, historic parish church of St Mary the Virgin – a highly atmospheric setting for this event’s theme, A Sense of Place.
The programme will address the theme from many different angles, with talks by the following authors:
Plus there’ll be readings of poetry and prose by the ever-popular Gerard Boyce.
The event will be chaired by HULF Founder and Director Debbie Young, who will combine this fascinating line-up into a coherent whole.
Our venue, the beautiful ancient parish church of St Mary the Virgin, may be chilly, so please wrap up warm. Seating is on antique wooden church pews – feel free to bring a cushion! Free parking available in the adjacent field. Please leave the hardstanding in front of the church free for those with limited mobility.
Tea, coffee and cake are included in the ticket price. Savoury food such as soup and sandwiches will be on sale for lunch during the break at 1pm.
A £2 book voucher is included with the ticket, valid at the event. All our speakers give their time for free, so please make the most of your voucher to support them by buying their books! A book stall manned by the authors will be open before and after the talks and during the breaks.
Click here to book your tickets in advance via our box office hosted by Eventbrite.
Please note advance booking is essential to ensure we have plenty of cake for all!
This event will be dedicated to the memory of Clare Weiner, who wrote as Mari Howard, a fervent supporter of HULF from its founding in 2015, and a frequent speaker and reader at past events.
Our next HULF Talk will be a celebration of Christmas stories and poems, with
The event will include a pop-up shop selling signed copies of the guest authors’ books, which make great Christmas presents for all the family!
As ever, the ticket price of £5 includes coffee, tea and cake, plus a £2 book voucher valid at the event.
Our next HULF Talk will examine how authors research their books and will include:
Guest speakers will include:
Tickets will be for sale via Eventbrite from 30th May.
Click here to receive an alert as soon as bookings open.
Full details of the programme will follow nearer the time.
The first HULF Talk of 2023 will be a new departure for us: an all-day event at the parish church of St Mary the Virgin, Hawkesbury, situated in the delightful ancient hamlet just down the hill from Farm Pool, Hawkesbury Upton.
All profits from the day will be donated to the Friends of St Mary’s, which exists to maintain this beautiful part of our local heritage for the enjoyment of present and future generations.
The event will be provide a wonderful assortment of talks and readings to celebrate the rich delights of English language and literature, including:
Chairing the afternoon will be HULF Director and local author Debbie Young.
REFRESHMENTS
As ever, tea, coffee, cake and biscuits will be included in the ticket price of £5 per head.
There will be a one-hour break for lunch when guests are welcome to picnic in the church and its grounds, and to enjoy the calligraphy exhibition.
An optional sit-down lunch of home-made quiche, salad, and fruit, served in the historic setting of the ancient Malthouse opposite the church, by kind courtesy of Lisa and Christopher Overton, will be bookable in advance for £10 per head. Wine and soft drinks will be available to buy on the day for a small extra charge. With just 30 seats available, early booking is advised.
PARKING
There will be ample free on-site parking in the adjacent field on the day.
Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival is a series of not-for-profit book-related events run by Debbie Young. This is a HULF Mini event. For more information about HULF, please visit www.hulitfest.com.
CLICK HERE TO BOOK YOUR TICKETS NOW
The final HULF Talk of 2022 will be a lighthearted Christmas special, featuring guest authors of books that make great Christmas presents for all the family, such as:
There will also be heartwarming readings from Christmas classics by our guest readers Gerard Boyce and Michael Macmahon.
Chairing the afternoon will be HULF Director Debbie Young.
Once the formal part of the programme is over, the authors will be pleased to sign and sell copies of books and to chat informally to members of the audience.
The ticket price of £5 includes coffee, tea, cakes and biscuits, plus a £2 discount voucher valid against a book bought at the event.
CLICK HERE TO BOOK YOUR TICKETS NOW
IMPORTANT NOTE: Capacity of our beautiful historic venue is limited, so advance booking is essential to avoid disappointment.
Hawkesbury Upton Literature Festival is a series of not-for-profit book-related events run by Debbie Young. This is a HULF Mini event. For more information about HULF, please visit www.hulitfest.com.
The ticket price of £5 includes coffee, tea, cakes and biscuits, plus a £2 discount voucher valid against a book bought at the event.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Capacity of our beautiful historic venue is limited, so advance booking is essential to avoid disappointment.
ADVANCE BOOKING REQUIRED – BOOK YOUR TICKETS HERE!
This event is kindly sponsored by Hawkesbury Parish News
The keynote address on the impact of World War will be made by Simon Bendry, now Head of Education and Engagement at the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Bringing our conversation into the 21st century, Svitlana Rotayenko, who works for NATO, will speak on the context and effect of the current war in her home country, Ukraine.
Lucienne Boyce, author of The Bristol Suffragettes, will answer the question “To what extent did the First World War play a part in bringing universal suffrage to women in the UK?”
Nigel Messenger, who has done extensive voluntary work with the Royal British Legion, will talk about his fact-based novel, The MichMash Miracles, set in two different eras, about an extraordinary case of First World War battle won using techniques learned from an Old Testament story.
Also blending fact with fiction, Hawkesbury author Will Fenn (aka Bill Fairney), will talk about the inspiration for his novel Uncle Walter’s Secret, a story of espionage.
Addressing the impact of the Second World War on civilians, and in particular on women, will be two best-selling historical novelists, Clare Flynn, whose The Chalky Sea is set in Eastbourne, and Lizzie Lane, whose Tobacco Girls series features workers at the famous Wills tobacco factory in Bristol.
There will follow ample time for questions for the audience, after which the authors will be pleased to sign and sell copies of books and to chat informally to members of the audience over coffee and cake.
Whether or not you’re planning to go away on holiday this summer, our next HULF Talk on 25th June will make you feel like you’ve travelled the world, as our three guest authors taking us through the pages of their novels to an A-Z of colourful destinations, from A(msterdam) to Z(anzibar).
Carol Cooper already had a string of non-fiction books to her name before turning to writing novels with vibrant settings and characters who don’t always do what they should. In her latest book, The Girls from Alexandria, Carol draws on her childhood in Egypt to recreate the bygone world of cosmopolitan Alexandria.
Kate Frost is the author of several bestselling romantic escape novels including The Baobab Beach Retreat, The Greek Heart and The Amsterdam Affair. In 2021, she signed a six-book deal with Boldwood and has continued to write escapist fiction for them. One Greek Summer was published in March and An Italian Dream will be out on the 7th July.
Helena Halme writes Nordic fiction with a hint of both Romance and Noir. Her latest series, Love on the Island, is set on the quirky and serenely beautiful Aland Islands, which lie in the Baltic Sea between Finland and Sweden.
Tickets are now on sale via Eventbrite booking form here.
Tickets are limited to just 60, so book early to avoid disappointment!
We’re pleased to announce that tickets are now on sale for our next HULF Talk on Holiday Reads on Saturday 25th June, when Debbie Young will be chairing a panel of three guest authors, Carol Cooper, Kate Frost and Helena Halme, whose novels are set around the world from A(msterdam) to Z(anzibar)! Who better to help you find your next best holiday read?
More details to follow soon, but as always, our venue capacity is just 60, so book early to secure a ticket! Here is the booking form to order yours now via Eventbrite, or open this link in a new browser window:
In the meantime, here are some photos from our April HULF Talk on Crime, Mystery & Thriller writing with AA Abbott, Lucienne Boyce, Valerie Keogh and Debbie Young. Below the photos are links to read the transcripts of Lucienne and Debbie’s talks on aspects of the history of crime writing on their respective author websites.
Follow the links below to read the talks by Lucienne Boyce and Debbie Young, who have now posted the transcripts on their websites:
The Victorian Origins of Crime Writing by Lucienne Boyce
ADVANCE BOOKING REQUIRED – BOOK YOUR TICKETS HERE!
An entertaining afternoon of author talks, readings & discussions exploring the past, present & future of Crime, Thriller & Mystery books
Kindly sponsored by Hawkesbury Parish News
In the peaceful setting of Bethesda Chapel, spend a fascinating afternoon in the company of four authors of Crime, Thriller and Mystery novels.
Author and historian Lucienne Boyce will set the scene with a brief talk about the nine-teenth-century origins of the modern detective novel, including Wilkie Collins‘ trailblazing The Woman in White .
Debbie Young will provide insights into the Golden Age of Detective Fiction in the inter-war years, including Dorothy L Sayers and Agatha Christie, who inspired her contemporary English village mysteries.
Fast forward to the present day, and A A Abbott and Valerie Keogh will discuss the development of the modern crime novel and the psychological thriller.
After the panel discussion of current trends and predictions for the future of this broad genre, there will be ample time for questions for the audience.
Once the formal part of the programme is over, the authors will be pleased to sign and sell copies of books and to chat informally to members of the audience over coffee and cake.
The ticket price of £5 includes coffee, tea, cakes and biscuits, plus a £2 discount voucher valid against a book bought at the event.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Capacity of our beautiful historic venue is limited, so advance booking is essential to avoid disappointment.
