Tag Archives: reading

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Programme for September 2026 Event: Mysterious Ways

Like to know a little more about the programme for our “Mysterious Ways” Festival event on Saturday 26th September? Here’s a handy guide.


11am Welcome & Introductions – Debbie Young

11:10 am The Woman In White – A reading from Wilkie Collins’ seminal mystery novel – Gerard Boyce

11:25am The Extraordinary Marriage of Charles Dickens – a performance – Annie Elliot

11:45am Flannen Isle – Wilfrid Wilson Gibson’s poem about a lighthouse mystery – read by Gerard Boyce


12noon Comfort Break


12:15pm A Miraculous Coincidence – A Reading from The MichMash Miracle – by its author Nigel Messenger

12:25pm Suffragettes, Spiritualists & The Occult – an interview – with historian Lucienne Boyce

12:40pm Revelations: A Secret Book Revealed – insights from a retired vicar – Trevor Stubbs

12:55pm “An August Midnight” – a reading of Thomas Hardy’s poem – Gerard Boyce


1pm Lunch Break


1.30pm Gifts – a saga about genetics – an interview with its author – Lesley Bootiman

1.45pm One Foot in Front of the Other – an interview about the last taboo with its author- Judy Heminsley

2pm This is Not My Land – a travel writer talks about her Cotswold farm – Caroline Mills

2.15pm A Kind of Alchemy – a Gloucestershire poet reads from her latest collection – Josephine Lay

2.25pm “Fabulous Fungus” – a local poet reveals a mystery of nature – Hugh O’Connell


2.35pm Comfort Break


2.50pm Why do crimewriters write about crime writers? – a panel discussion – with Jayne Chard, Nicola Kelsall, Fiona Walker & Debbie Young

3.20pm How to tell a story with photos – a photographer shares the mystery of his art – Peter Salenieks

3.40pm A short story written especially for this event – perfomed by a HULF favourite – Mark Rutterford

3.55 pm Thanks and Closing Remarks – Debbie Young


To book your tickets now, please visit our online Box Office page hosted at Eventbrite. Tickets are £10 per head (pluss £1.55 booking charge), to include tea, coffee and cake, and a £2 book voucher valid on the day.

A full list of speakers will be shared in our next blog post.


Authors Frances Evesham, Debbie Young & Lorna Fergusson at the September 2025 event
A fun conversation at last September’s HULF event, with (from left to right) Frances Evesham, Debbie Young, and Lorna Fergusson (Photo credit: Peter Salenieks)

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PROGRAMME FOR SEPTEMBER 2025 EVENT

Like to know a little more about the programme for our “Strength of Character” Festival event on Saturday 27th September? Here’s a handy guide.

11.00 Welcome and introductions

11.10 Two Shakespeare Characters for the Price of OneGerard Boyce

11.30 Robert Louis Stevenson’s First Love: A Study in Quiet DeterminationAli Bacon, author of The Absent Heart

11.50 Writing Villains You Love to Hate – thriller writer AA Abbott, author of Run for Your Lies

12.10 The Human Interest Brothers: Dickens & CharacterLucienne Boyce, author of Bloodie Bones

12.30 Shedding the Shadow SelfHelen Idris-Jones author of Missing Ella

12.50 Story Time #1: Mark Rutterford performs “No Help at All”, a short story written especially for this event

1-2pm Lunch Break, Book Sales, and Viewing of Philip Ringland’s sculpture entitled “Don Quixote”

2.00 Story Time #2: Stefania Hartley reads a short story from her Sicilian collection, “Drive Me Crazy”

2.10 To Travel is To Meet Yourself: Stories of Self-Discovery – Lorna Fergusson, author of “One Morning in Provence”

2.35 The Lively Character of Rivers – Sarah Siân Chave, author of Hafren: The Wisdom of the River Severn

2.55 The Global Portrait Project: Telling the Story of Environmentalists Changing the World for the Better James Nickells, medical professional and local portrait artist painting the world

3.20 The Strength of Character Required to be an Author – panel discussion with Frances Evesham, author of 11 mystery novels, and Lorna Fergusson, writing coach, editor and author, chaired by Debbie Young, HULF Founder & Director

3.55 Time for a Poem: Author Trevor Stubbs reads “Manning the Bookstall”

4.00 Closing Remarks & Thanks

For more infomation about the guest speakers, click here.

As ever, this will be a quick-fire day that keeps you on your toes – and thankfully also supplies you with tea, coffee and cake to help you keep up with it all!

BOOK NOW TO ENSURE WE HAVE ENOUGH CAKE TO GO AROUND!

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