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Oldie Review of Books

 

 

 

 

In 1973 J B Priestley attended the first Ilkley Literary Festival and remarked that: ‘Ilkley is the right size for a festival town… Large enough to provide various amenities and small enough to stroll around and run into everybody.’ His sentiment holds good today, and for the ten I’ve picked out here, going to any one of them will take you either to a lovely town or a lovely part of Britain – with the added advantage of hearing favourite writers and meeting kindred spirits.

 

I’ve been going to Hay since 1993 and it’s one of the highlights of my year. The festival hums with ideas, debates and interesting people, both the speakers and those who regularly turn up to what Bill Clinton described as ‘the Woodstock of the mind’. Hay is a lovely town, with its crammed bookshops, excellent pubs and wonderful walks on the nearby Black Hills. Over the ten days of festival, there is a huge choice of whom to see and what to do: this year Gene Robinson (the gay Bishop of New Hampshire) will find himself starring alongside the likes of Jeremy Clarkson and an impressive line-up of environmentalists. Accommodation is tight and festival-goers now regularly drive for up to an hour to reach the tented city that gets put up every year to welcome some 140,000 visitors. For details of the programme and where to stay visit www.hayfestival.com.

 

 

 

Last year Michael Portillo and Valerie Grove with John Mortimer were stars at this hugely enjoyable seaside festival. The events take place in a park at the top of the hill above Fowey, one of the most delightful towns in Cornwall, with its tiny streets and bustling river waterfront at the mouth of the Fowey river. It’s a great place for visiting Heligan and the Eden Project, and the short ferry across the harbour is a treat in itself, as you mingle with coast-path walkers, locals doing their shopping and folk just wanting to get to the other side. I stayed on the water-front in the Old Quay House Hotel, a comfy old hotel with a terrace jutting out onto the river from where you can watch fishing boats, yachts and youngsters messing about in boats.
Full details available from the website (www.dumaurierfestival.co.uk) or the box office on 01726 879 500. The Old Quay House is at 28 Fore Street, Fowey PL23 1AQ and prices range from £80 to £150 a night. The festival website gives plenty of other accommodation suggestions.

 

 

The Charleston Festival takes place at the former rural home of the Bloomsbury artists Vanessa Bell (sister of Virginia Woolf) and Duncan Grant at the foot of the Sussex Downs, close to Glyndebourne – so it’s not just the talks that visitors come for. I loved the house, which is richly decorated in a unique post-Impressionist style and the walled garden provides a relaxed place in which to stroll and picnic between events. Its original inhabitants were at the epicentre of progressive movements in art, literature and politics between the wars and the festival was established nineteen years ago in order to ensure that the ethos of Charleston – creativity and openness to new ideas – would be perpetuated. Over the years it has morphed from a few talks held in a small apple-shed in the grounds, to a high profile festival consisting of 25 events, held over ten days. The current venue is a traditional marquee with a capacity that produces a buzz, whilst preserving a sense of intimacy.
This year’s highlights include fiction ranging from Salman Rushdie to Lloyd Jones, author of Mister Pip, and Lorrie Moore, one of America’s most admired writers; and Lady Antonia Fraser, Tristram Hunt and Geoffrey Robertson QC analysing British democracy. Festival brochure: 01323 811 626 or visit www.charleston.org.uk

Wells is a relatively new festival, but in no way the poorer for its infancy. I think Wells is the most beautiful small city in England, home of the great cathedral and the magnificent Bishop’s Palace in which many of the events are held. Water from the springs which gave Wells its name still bubble up and flow in tiny rivulets down the high street. The Market Place, the Bishop’s Eye and the Chapter House are all unchanged. There are only a few talks every day, which leaves plenty of time to explore the town and the surrounding countryside. Last year Charlie and I found a wonderful walk through a gorge near Wookey Hole (it involved a lot of scrambling) or try the old pilgrims’ way across the Levels to Glastonbury. It’s seven miles, but the ground is flat and the views spectacular. For details go to www.wlitf.co.uk

The Buxton Festival is a must for those who want to mix a nightly opera with a morning’s literary event, all in the lovely surroundings of the Peak District. This year’s opera programme includes The Poacher by Lortzing, Handel’s Samson and Riders to the Sea by Vaughan Williams. Roy Hattersley used to be the chairman, a post which Dame Janet Smith has just taken on. The ticket prices are the most reasonable in the country for opera – starting at just £7 (up to £45) – and they always receive excellent reviews. According to the Times: ‘The true opera lover only has one option... to mortgage the house and beg, bribe or steal a ticket.’ Details online at www.buxtonfestival.co.uk

Ludlow is my old home and I’ve been going to Shakespeare plays in Ludlow Castle since I was a child. It’s a treat, especially on the years when they stage the historical dramas and the soldiers run along the battlements, silhouetted against the night sky, while down below the kings and queens make their stately processions in and out of the castle’s arches. This year they are performing Richard III, which will no doubt be a splendid production. But there’s much more than simply the play to take you there: firstly, Ludlow itself, which, if you’ve never visited, is a magnificent town. It’s set on a bend in the River Teme and the grand streets stretch away from the castle, lined by impressive houses, each an architectural gem. As well as the nightly play, the festival lays on walks, talks, debates and music. The organ recitals in St Lawrence’s Church (where my sister got married) are always a big hit. Details: www.ludlowfestival.co.uk

Ilkley is the north’s liveliest and most prestigious festival. They stage 140 events over 17 days and, as well as author events, there are workshops, literary walks, poetry and discussions. Last year Alan Bennett, Germaine Greer, Alastair Campbell and Jim Naughtie all made the trek north to the moors and onto the stage. Apart from my killer hotel experience (see Oldies passim) I loved Ilkley. This miniature Victorian spa town at the foot of Ilkley Moor exerts a fierce charm. A five-minute drive from the theatre, where the festival stages its events, and I was out on the open, high moor, with staggering views in all directions. There are good restaurants and a lively shopping street, all within a few steps of the theatre. I went up there for the night, but hugely regretted that I hadn’t brought Charlie and the car and used the festival as an excuse to go exploring. Details from www.ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk

The Ways With Words festival is hugely worth a visit. Perhaps it is the lure of a night or two sleeping in a room in the old monastic buildings, or perhaps it’s the lure of the lovely gardens, the river rolling by, and the proximity to Totnes, the sea and the Schumacher Centre (which is always worth checking out to see who is talking). Whatever the reason, Dartington always fields a really impressive line-up of writers: Will Self, Fergal Keane, John Pilger, Fay Weldon, David Lodge and Ben Okri are just a few who made the pilgrimage last year. The lush lawns make an ideal place for lazing on a deck chair or settling down to some serious conversation. Book early if you want a room in the Hall, which means you can stay up late talking without worrying about negotiating the lanes back to your B&B. The food – served up in the old refectory – is extremely good as well as being good value. Details: www.wayswithwords.co.uk/dartington.html

 

 

The book festival started in 1983 as an adjunct to the film and theatrical festival, but it has grown in size and stature every year since. Last year there were 650 author events. Edinburgh is well known for staging brilliant debates and I particularly liked the intimate atmosphere generated by the closeness of the tents – which are all inside the fence of Charlotte Square Gardens. The coffee shop, bar and restaurant were always full of people, deep in animated discussion, and if there’s nothing you fancy on at the lit fest, then there’s plenty to chose from in the rest of the festival (films, comedians and plays). Most festivals set up a temporary bookshop for the duration: the one in Edinburgh was by far the most impressive, with lots of space and imaginative displays. I ended up spending over an hour there. Details from www.edbookfest.co.uk

Cheltenham is the oldest and the grandest of the festivals. It is more formal than many others, and most events take place either in the town hall or in attached tents (and there are some at the racecourse). I went to school in Cheltenham, an experience I’ve spent most of my life trying to forget, so I approached the festival with a degree of suspicion. I’m not sure that I like the degree of formality, but what can’t be disputed is that Cheltenham boasts a tremendous annual line-up of writers and thinkers. For details visit the website at www.cheltenhamfestivals.com

 

 

 

Sadly, the Port Eliot Literary festival in Cornwall is taking a year off. I went last year and camped in a tee-pee in front of the old house and loved every minute of it. Port Eliot is the rock and roll of festivals: there’s dancing all night, flopping around in tents on huge cushions and walking under the arboretum beside the twisting tidal creek leading down to the sea. I’m looking forward to going again in 2009. Thoroughly recommended.