SUE MCQUEENIE discovers a double dose of literary loveliness by the sea in Devon, exploring their coastal literary festivals.
Visit the north and south coastlines of Devon and you’ll have two very different experiences. First, there’s the north with its wide, expansive beaches and rugged coastlines, so beloved of surfers; travel about 70 miles across the heart of the county and you’ll discover a very different, but equally beautiful coastline on the south with its sheltered coves and Jurassic Coast heritage.
As well as being world class beach destinations, the coasts are also home to established and well-respected literary festivals – Budleigh Salterton in the south and Appledore in the north. Both take place this September.
This year, authors who will be heading to the two towns include celebrity chef and restaurateur Rick Stein from just down the road in Cornwall; the Rev Richard Coles, cleric, broadcaster, author and former member of The Communards; Patrick Grant, fashion designer and judge on The Great British Sewing Bee and award-winning novelist Robert Harris.
The festivals also provide opportunities for local authors. This year thatcher Tom Allan and BBC Gardeners World’s Carol Klein are at both festivals, Exeter-based Orlando Murrin is appearing at Appledore and historian Andrew Chatterton is heading to Budleigh.
It can sometimes be challenging to lure authors to the south west, so the festivals’ artistic directors, Annie Ashworth from Budleigh Salterton, and Jane Beaton from Appledore, have collaborated to pitch to authors.
Annie says: “Devon has a thriving literary scene, and our festivals are a really positive thing for the area. They each offer something unique – as unique as their respective coastlines – and we believe that joining forces to bring authors to this wonderful part of the country can only benefit festivalgoers.”
Both festivals are run by teams of volunteers. Appledore Book Festival, which is in its 18th year, boasts an illustrious list of patrons including the award-winning crime author, Ann Cleeves, broadcaster Jeremy Vine and festival founder and children’s author, Nick Arnold. As well as author talks, Appledore will again play host to its popular Family Day with a range of free activities and storytelling for children of all ages.
Appledore Festival director, Jane Beaton says: “It’s fantastic that so many leading writers are heading to Devon this September. The county has a wealth of talented writers and in collaborating with Annie at Budleigh we have been able to attract even more top names to speak at the two festivals. I am very excited about the line-up this year and can’t wait for it to begin.”
Wolf Hall author, the late Dame Hilary Mantel, who lived in the town, was president of Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival for many years until her death in 2022. Now in its 16th year the festival, whose new president is Cathy Rentzenbrink, takes place in several venues across the seaside town.
As well as author talks and a weekend of family activities, Budleigh stages a popular Festival Read – a twist on the traditional book group, and invites the author along to be part of the readers’ discussions. This year’s chosen title is A Game of Lies, a gripping thriller about the dark side of reality TV by police officer-turned multi-award winning author Clare Mackintosh.
The festivals also have well established educational outreach programmes, taking authors into local schools, staging events for schoolchildren, students and families and buying books for school libraries by visiting authors.
So, whether your sat nav is set for the north or south, there’s a bookish event just for you this September.
Appledore Book Festival takes place from September 13 to 22 – appledorebookfestival.co.uk; Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival takes place from September 18 to 22 – budlitfest.org.uk.
