Literary Leicester

Literary Leicester is the University’s annual free book festival, open to all. This year's festival takes place between Wednesday 18 and Saturday 21 March 2026.

Working in partnership with the National Year of Reading, our 2026 festival features international crime-writing superstar Sophie Hannah, bestselling novelist and screenwriter Louise Doughty, one of Britain’s pre-eminent authors and satirists, Jonathan Coe, and a full four-day programme of talks, performances, workshops, kids events, and more! Browse the programme and book your free tickets!

Since 2008, up to 5,000 attendees a year join us to participate in events with Booker Prize winners, celebrated cultural commentators, novelists, poets, historians, biographers and much more. We discuss important, fun and fascinating contemporary topics across a wide range of subjects. In our multicultural city, our ongoing themes include inclusivity, diversity and accessibility. We are a festival for everyone.

Literary Leicester is brought to you by the School of Arts, Media and Communication and the Centre for New Writing.

In addition to our annual festival, we also host a variety of events throughout the year. Check out our events page for details.