Stellar line-up for Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival
Raworths Solicitors are delighted to announce the full programme for the Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival 2026 which brings together a vibrant mix of big names and compelling stories – covering everything from gardens and The Beatles to crime fiction and memoir.
Sharon Canavar, Chief Executive of Harrogate International Festivals, & Rachel Tunnicliffe, Senior Partner at Raworths. (credit Gerard Binks)
The Festival – which runs from 11 – 25 October in the North Yorkshire spa town – features a dazzling and diverse programme that includes national treasures, bestselling authors, fascinating thinkers and exciting new voices.
Rachel Tunnicliffe, Senior Partner at Raworths Solicitors, said: “This is our 14th year sponsoring this fantastic Festival which brings so many incredible storytellers and remarkable stories to our town. This year’s brilliant line-up features famous writers, rising stars and thought-provoking panel events, and we’re proud to be involved with such a world class literary celebration.”
The line-up includes acclaimed novelist Kate Mosse who will discuss her new book, Autumn, a beautifully evocative celebration of the turning of the seasons that is part memoir, part nature writing.
Broadcaster, writer and restaurateur Dame Prue Leith, author of Being Old…and Learning to Love It!, will share her thoughts about ageing well, staying curious and finding joy in later life.
Acclaimed broadcaster and journalist Sophie Raworth is the special guest at this year’s Yorkshire Life Literary Lunch on 22 October, when she will discuss her inspiring memoir, Running on Air.
Crime fiction aficionados will have the opportunity to join bestselling author Vaseem Khan for a Book and Brunch event at Harrogate’s Cedar Court Hotel on 11 October, when he will talk about the inspirations behind his award-winning mystery books.
Fans of literary icon Sir Ben Okri are in for a treat when he appears at the Festival. The Booker Prize-winning author will introduce his new book Waking the Warriors and explore the ideas behind his powerful modern fable of courage, hope and resistance.
Another literary heavyweight joining this year’s line-up is Heather Morris, international bestselling author of The Tattooist of Auschwitz, who will be discussing her new novel, The Piano Teacher of Montparnasse.
Well-known comedian, presenter and novelist Julian Clary will talk about his new murder mystery, The Midmorning Murders, while Sir Alexander McCall Smith, bestselling author of The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, discusses his latest novel, The Isle of Good Karma, which comes out this autumn.
Sir John Curtice, Britain's leading political analyst and a familiar face on our TV screens at election times, will be making sense of British politics at a time when the country’s political landscape has become more fragmented than ever before.
Former Supreme Court Justice Lord Jonathan Sumption, one of Britain’s most distinguished legal minds and provocative public thinkers, will pose the question: Is democracy in danger – and have we become too complacent about the freedoms we take for granted?
From Westminster to the dancefloor of Strictly Come Dancing, John Sergeant has enjoyed one of the most colourful and entertaining careers in British broadcasting. He will discuss his extraordinary life in journalism and television, including some of his memorable political encounters.
This year’s line-up also puts the spotlight on great non-fiction writing. Journalist and author Samira Ahmed’s new book A Hard Day's Night, examines the Beatles’ iconic first film, and its lasting influence on film, music and popular culture.
Award-winning journalist Paul Brand explores one of the most profound and divisive questions of our time: who should decide how a life ends? Drawing on deeply personal stories from people on all sides of the assisted dying debate, Fight to the Death moves beyond politics to reveal the human experiences behind the headlines.
Fellow author and broadcaster Victoria Tomlinson, co-author of Expiry Date Never, will explore how longer lives are reshaping the way we think about ageing and work and why skills and experience are becoming increasingly important.
Bestselling author and world-leading emergency planner Lucy Easthope will discuss her extraordinary new book, Come What May. For decades, Lucy has helped communities recover from major disasters and tragedies, offering a new way of thinking about recovery – what really helps, what doesn’t, and how we find the strength to carry on when life doesn’t go to plan.
Historical stories have long been a feature of Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival and this year includes the remarkable tale of one of the Nazi regime's most senior figures who saved the life of a British prisoner of war. David Lascelles, author of Out of Colditz: My Father, the POW and the Nazi Who Controlled His Fate, charts the extraordinary true story of Gottlob Berger, whose unexpected intervention spared the life of Lascelles's father during the final days of the Second World War.
Jonny Hincks, better known as @gardenwithjonny to his millions of social media followers, has just written his debut book, Garden Yourself Happy, and will be sharing simple gardening tips and extolling the many joys of being outdoors.
Another literary debutant at the Festival is Alison Stankard (better known on social media as Totes Inappropes), whose book Are You a Running W*nker? is part memoir, part comedy, and part love letter to the chaos of modern running culture.
Elsewhere, film buffs are in for a treat with writer, director and storyteller Greg Mosse, whose illustrated talk – The Shape of Suspense – will show how tension is created in films.
In terms of suspense, they don’t come much bigger than Agatha Christie and the much-loved Queen of Crime is the focus of a special panel event at the Festival. Agatha Christie: The Woman Behind the Words marks the 50th anniversary of her death and a century since her famous Harrogate ‘disappearance’.
Dr Loukia Drosopoulou, Project Curator of the Agatha Christie exhibition at the British Library, will be joined by author Susan Brownrigg, whose novel The Secret of Abney Hall was inspired by Christie’s life, and writer and biographer Laura Thompson, whose new book 11 Days examines the story behind Agatha Christie's mysterious Harrogate “disappearance”. Together they will reflect on Christie’s extraordinary body of work and its enduring appeal.
Sharon Canavar, Chief Executive of Harrogate International Festivals, said: “The Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival 2026 really does have something for every kind of reader – from cosy crime and bestselling fiction to inspiring memoirs and a book about The Beatles.
“This year’s diverse programme also brings together a real mix of national treasures and exciting new names – and we can’t wait to welcome them all to Harrogate!”
Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival has been hailed as “One of the UK’s best Literary Festivals” by Harper’s Bazaar and “One of the Top 3 Literary Festivals in the UK” by the Guardian and has long been at the forefront of the literary scene thanks to its bumper line-up of big names in relaxed and intimate settings.
Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival, The Crown Hotel and Cedar Court Hotel, Harrogate, 11-25 October.
Tickets are available from the Harrogate International Festivals website harrogateinternationalfestivals.com or by calling the Box Office on 01423 562 303.
