The Bath Festival 2023 focuses on the theme Opening Up for its internationally renowned annual celebration of music and books from 12 – 21 May. Delve into the full programme here or read on for our top four picks.
MAX PORTER PRESENTS SHY
Date: Thursday 18 May 2023 | Time7:30 PM – 9:30PM | Price£9 – £22.50
Join multi-award-winning author Max Porter as he brings his latest book alive in Bath for one night only. An unmissable audio and literary bombardment like no other.
Shy is a journey into the mind of a troubled teenager in 1995 who wanders into the night with the voices in his head and realises he isn’t alone.
This special evening starts with an exclusive dramatic reading of Shy, abridged for The Bath Festival and performed by the author with a live electronic score by Roly Porter. After the interval, writer and performer Vanessa Kisuule talks to Max about the story behind Shy before this amazing night ends with a Back to 95 Drum ‘n’ Bass & Jungle set by local DJ Nicho.
KIT DE WAAL TALKS TO CATHY RENTZENBRINK
Date: Sunday 14 May 2023 | Time: 1:30 PM – 2:30PM | Price£5 – £15
From a mother who banned Christmas and birthdays to a father who splurged money he didn’t have on cars and fancy shoes, award-winning author Kit de Waal’s childhood in 1960’s Birmingham was anything but ordinary. Caught between three worlds, Irish, Caribbean and British, she reflects on a chaotic upbringing of opposites and extremes in her new book, Without Warning and Only Sometimes, with fellow memoirist Cathy Rentzenbrink.
WRITING ABOUT PLACE WITH GAIL SIMMONS
Date: Friday 19 May 2023 | Time 10:30 AM – 12:30PM | Price £10 – £25
Do you have a passion for places and words? Using a combination of presentation, classroom discussion, a practical exercise and feedback on your work, this two-hour workshop with author and ‘walking writer’ Gail Simmons will introduce you to the skills and concepts needed to turn your enthusiasm into writing that brings places to life. All welcome – from beginners to experienced writers.
JOANNA QUINN AND BATH NOVEL AWARD WINNER KIM SHERWOOD
Date: Saturday 13 May 2023 | Time: 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM | Price £5 – £15
Join two exceptional voices in contemporary historical fiction as they talk to the Guardian journalist and editor Claire Armistead. Joanna Quinn’s captivating debut The Whalebone Theatre was the breakout hit of last year, going straight into the bestseller lists in both the UK and US. Kim Sherwood’s A Wild and True Relation is a Sunday Times 2023 Historical Novel of the month and remaking of the 18th-century Heroical novel, challenging women’s roles throughout history. ‘This book is a rarity – a novel as remarkable for the vigour of the storytelling as for its literary ambition. Kim Sherwood is a writer of capacity, potency and sophistication’ HILARY MANTEL.