Bath Festivals wishes to thank Evelyn Strasburger, William and Wera Hobhouse and Morny Hay-Davison for their sponsorship of music events.
Many thanks also to all of our Patrons and Friends, and especially to our Funding Partners for their generous support across all our festivals:
The Coles-Medlock Foundation
David & Karin Embleton
Andrew Fletcher
Elaine Marson
Mayden
And a big thank you to all our volunteers who give their time so generously.
Trevor Osborne
The Roper Rhodes Family Charitable Trust
Jimmy & Hiroko Sherwin
Colin & Theresa Skellett
Ian Tarr
Cover art credit: Valérie Pirlot | valeriepirlot.com booking fees
Charity reg no 801617
How to book Phone Online Visit
Bath Box Office: 01225 463362
bathfestivals.org.uk
Bath Box Office Counter 1a Forum Buildings, St James’ Parade, BA1 1UG
Open Monday–Friday, 10am–5pm
*Concession prices are available to under 26s, fulltime students, Jobseeker’s Allowance Receivers, Pension Credit Receivers and visitors with a disability.
Concession seating will be in balcony, rear and sides of the venue. Only one concession may apply per ticket.
All tickets are subject to a fee of 10%
All orders are subject to a booking fee of £1.50
An Essential Companion (carer) ticket will be available to those who require one. This will be across all prices and is a free ticket.
Group Discounts: We offer one free seat for every ten purchased for the same event when booked at the same time.
Welcome
The 2025 Bath Music Festival has something for everyone.
At its core are two concerts of fabulous Renaissance choral music by Palestrina and Byrd from Stile Antico and The Marian Consort performed in Bath’s great Abbey. Our chamber music from the Marmen and Fibonacci String Quartets offers music by Mozart, Smetana, Haydn and Beethoven among others. We also have three terrific soloists. Artist in Residence Sean Shibe gives three performances, Guy Johnston performs all of Bach’s unforgettable cello suites over three lunchtime concerts and the Forum hosts a star piano recital by Jeneba Kanneh-Mason. Add to this a performance of Mendelssohn’s stunning effervescent Octet and Elena Urioste and Tom Poster’s charming and quirky Juke Box and beautiful baroque music from Ensemble Molière and we have a programme of fabulous musicmaking performed by great artists.
We look forward to seeing you in May.
James Waters
Bath Music Festival Artistic Director
MUSICAL DISCOVERY
Opportunity to hear live music with professional musicians, and experience the instruments up close
St Swithin’s Church, Walcot | 45 minutes
• Sat 5 April, 2.30pm. Strings, for children 4-11+
• Sat 17 May, 10:30am. Baby-friendly (£5.50 adults, £4.50 children)
• Sat 24 May, 2:30pm. Brass, for children 4-11+
Tickets available from musicforminiatures.co.uk Adults -
The Marian Consort, with director Rory McCleery. Music by William Byrd including his Mass in 4 parts.
William Byrd, a master of English Renaissance music, composed extensively for the Catholic liturgy despite the dangers of living as a Catholic in England. This programme features his renowned four-part mass, performed by The Marian Consort, one of today’s leading choral ensembles.
‘Singing one person to a part, The Marian Consort gives sublimely refined, spacious and impeccably tuned performances.’ The Sunday Times
Sunday 18 may
MARMEN STRING QUARTET
2:30–4:15pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM2
Monday 19 may
Haydn String Quartet Op 33 No 2 in E flat ‘Joke’ Mozart String Quartet in C major K465 ‘Dissonance’ Ravel String Quartet
Three timeless masterpieces of the string quartet repertoire are performed by this dynamic young ensemble. Haydn’s playful ‘Joke’ quartet is followed by Mozart’s exquisite quartet dedicated to Haydn. The programme is completed by utterly gorgeous music by Ravel in his 150th anniversary year.
GUY JOHNSTON PLAYS THE BACH CELLO SUITES I
1–2pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £20 unreserved | £10 conc.* | BFM3
Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007
Suite No. 5 in C minor, BWV 1011
Bach’s Cello Suites are among his very finest compositions. The achievement of creating a huge variety of emotions and virtuoso techniques on one solo instrument is quite extraordinary. One of today’s leading cellists Guy Johnston will play all six suites over three concerts on 19, 21 and 23 May, taking us on a wonderful musical journey.
‘Guy Johnston gives a towering performance that responds to the score’s every shift in mood with complete assurance.’ BBC Music Magazine
* Excluding fees
Monday 19 may
7.30–9pm | Upstairs at Bath Pizza Co | £35 | £10 conc* | BFM4
Sean Shibe, guitar Ben Johnson, tenor
Raucous drinking songs and heartbreak blend in lively lute-song and folk arrangements. Elizabethan lutenist-composers demonstrate vocal melody and laconic affect, while 20th and 21st-century composers allude to Baroque masters with homage and spectacle, culminating in Adès’s beautiful rendition of Purcell’s Evening Hymn.
‘Shibe’s music-making is masterful, beautiful and convincing in every way.’
The Times
This concert is kindly sponsored by William and Wera Hobhouse. NB Please be aware this event is not wheelchair accessible.
tuesday 20 may
SEAN SHIBE IN RECITAL BAWDY SONG: SEAN SHIBE AND BEN JOHNSON
Frank Martin Quatre pièces brèves Adès Forgotten Dances
One of the world’s major guitarists performs three suites that explore relationships to baroque dance, each ‘forgotten’ in its time. Martin’s Quatre pièces brèves went un-played until Julian Bream championed the suite in the 1960s, Bach’s Cello Suites were recorded a century after they were likely written and Adès’s Forgotten Dances invokes a range of past composers. Bach is at his most futuristic, while the modern composers allude to Baroque masters offering both homage and spectacle. This concert is kindly sponsored by Evelyn Strasburger.
JUKE BOX with ELENA URIOSTE and TOM POSTER
7.30–9:30pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM6
Mozart Violin Sonata in A major, K. 305
Lekeu Violin Sonata in G major, and Selections from UriPoste JukeBox
Juke Box was the self-isolation brainchild of these two fabulous musicians, devised to keep their minds sharp, their fingers busy and the online community smiling during the first pandemic lockdown. They posted a new performance each day, which included music ranging from Fauré to Cole Porter, and from the Baroque to Jerome Kern and Mark Simpson. Their eclectic, barrier-breaking choice of music, including new commissions, lives on.
wednesday 21 may
GUY JOHNSTON PLAYS THE BACH CELLO SUITES II
1-2pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £20 unreserved | £10 conc* | BFM7
The second of Guy Johnston’s traversal of Bach’s great cello suites.
Suite No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009
Suite No. 4 in E flat major, BWV 1010
‘Each day I must begin again. For the past 80 years I have started each day in the same manner. When we play an unaccompanied Bach suite, we may compare ourselves to an actor in Shakespeare’s day, creating scenery which did not exist at all, through the power of declamation and suggestion. So, in Bach!’ Pablo Casals
Music by Palestrina including his timeless ‘Papae Marcelli’ mass, with works by Victoria, Josquin, Arcadelt and Lassus.
Stile Antico make a welcome return to Bath after last year’s stellar performance, this time exploring the sumptuous music of Renaissance composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. This programme explores the music he would have sung at the Sistine Chapel and his influence on his successors.
This concert is kindly sponsored by Heritage Events Ltd.
Thursday 22 may
MENDELSSOHN’S OCTET
4:30–6:30pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM9
Hildegard von Bingen: O Virtus Sapientiae (arr. Jackie Shave)
Glass: String Quartet No 2 ‘Company’
Brahms: String Sextet No 1 in B flat Op 18
Mendelssohn: Octet in E flat major Op 20
Elena Urioste, violin Chamber Orchestra of the West Jackie Shave, director
Mendelssohn’s Octet is a piece of sparkling charm and virtuosity written when the composer was only 16 years old. Brahms’s B flat Sextet is quite simply one of the most irresistible of all chamber works.
* Excluding fees
Friday 23 may
GUY JOHNSTON PLAYS THE BACH CELLO SUITES III
1–2pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £20 unreserved | £10 conc* | BFM10
Guy Johnston completes our voyage through Bach’s masterpieces for solo cello.
Suite No. 2 in D minor, BWV 1008
Suite No. 6 in D major, BWV 1012
Yo-yo Ma, one of today’s greatest cellists comments:
‘Bach has been my teacher all throughout my life. Every stage, he’s taught me something new about something that I didn’t know before, but I can find resonance with.’
JENEBA KANNEH-MASON: PIANO RECITAL
7.30–9:30pm | The Bath Forum | £41 / £31 / £21 / £11 (£11 student/U18 in Band B/C)* | BFM11
Bach Partita No. 5
Beethoven Sonata No. 17 in D minor ‘Tempest’
Chopin Nocturnes Nos 7 and 8
Still Summerland
Debussy La fille aux cheveux de lin
Debussy Bruyères
Price Fantasie Nègre
Jeneba Kanneh-Mason, a member of the renowned Kanneh-Mason family who last performed at The Bath Festival in 2018, made her international debut at the BBC Proms playing the Florence Price Concerto. Now an exclusive Sony Classical Artist, she performs worldwide both in recital and with major orchestras and releases her debut solo album in March 2025. Her programme is a fantastic combination of Bach, Beethoven and Debussy, with a dash of American flavour.
This concert is kindly supported by Wessex Water. Ticket price includes a £1 venue restoration and improvement levy.
Steve Reich wrote amazing solo works for guitar (Electric Counterpoint), clarinet (New York Counterpoint) and flute (Vermont Counterpoint). Sean has invited flautist Adam Walker and clarinettist Yann Ghiro to join him for three of these miniature minimalist masterpieces, and other works involving flute, clarinet and guitar.
‘Shibe’s music-making is masterful, beautiful and convincing in every way.’ The Times
Saturday 24 may
FIBONACCI STRING QUARTET
7:30-9:30pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM13
Haydn: String Quartet in B flat, Op.76 No.4 ‘Sunrise’
Smetana: String Quartet in E minor, ‘From My Life’
Beethoven: String Quartet No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 131
It is hard to imagine a richer quartet programme. Haydn’s great ‘Sunrise’ quartet is coupled with the unashamed Bohemian romanticism of Smetana’s ‘From My Life’ and Beethoven’s Op 131 quartet is simply unforgettable. Schumann said of Beethoven’s late quartets, ‘They seem to me to stand...on the extreme boundary of all that has hitherto been attained by human art and imagination.’
This concert is kindly sponsored by Jimmy and Hiroko Sherwin.
Sunday 25 may
Baroque
at its best:
ENSEMBLE MOLIERE – THE DANCING STAR
3–4:45pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM14
Campra: Ouverture from Tancrède
Handel: Entrée des songes from Alcina
Rameau: Suites from Dardanus
Handel: Suites from Terpsicore
Rameau: Les Fleurs Suites from Les Indes Galantes
Rebel: Les Caractères de la danse
Ensemble Molière, a brilliant period ensemble who have been BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists, bring a delectable programme of dance music by two very different geniuses, Handel and Rameau, with some treats from Campra and Rebel. The juxtaposition of German and French high Baroque music with a bit of Italian music thrown in for good measure means that the festival will end in toe-tapping style.
Celebrate Bath Phil’s 25th Anniversary at a gala concert full of orchestral classics and celebrity fizz. www.bathphil.co.uk
Box Office Counter 1a Forum Buildings, St James’ Parade, BA1 1UG
Monday–Friday, 10am–5pm
You’re invited to join Bath’s biggest FREE party
as the city centre bursts into life for one night only on Friday 16 May. Join the fun and follow the Party in the City trail from park to pub, from church to museum, to hear the best from the local creative scene.
Musicians, poets, bands and choirs will perform in over 40 venues across the city including Bath Abbey, Komedia, Green Park Station and Parade Gardens. Help us keep it green by bringing your own reusable cups, bowls and cutlery, and make use of the recycling available on site!
This year we end the festival with a fundraising afterparty in Komedia on Bank Holiday Monday 26th May, featuring Reverend and the Makers, The Ramona Flowers plus Alex Lipinski and The Crown Electric. Tickets from www.komediabath.co.uk.
The full programme of events will be available online, and you’ll be able to pick up a programme flyer in venues across the city. Look out for our Party in the City app!
KEEP PARTY IN THE CITY FREE
Help us keep Party in The City free by looking out for donation pots during the night - or donate online at bathfestivals.org.uk/support/make-a-donation/
THANK YOU
A big thank you to all the venues who take part in Party in the City and to all the musicians, singers and performers who give their time and talent. Generously supported by
Walking Tours
We are delighted to be working with Fred Mawer Tours and the Bath Urban Treescape team to bring you a programme of seven fascinating walks in and around Bath. Each walk is approximately 2 hours, is priced at £20 and takes place multiple times throughout the festival week. The walks are gently paced on pavements, with frequent stops and - with the exception of Less Discovered Bath: Five Georgian Crescents - are suitable for wheelchair users. All tours are led by Blue Badge qualified tour guides.
Fred Mawer Tours offers entertaining and informative guided tours of Bath and the South West of England, for individuals and groups. The tours are led by Fred, a Bath resident and award-winning, professional Blue Badge-qualified tour guide, or by another expert local guide. In Bath, tours range from introductory explorations that are ideal for first timers to the city, to off-the-beaten-track itineraries, and thematic tours such as looking at the city’s all-important spa history, its Jane Austen associations and TV and film locations.
For more information: fredmawertours.co.uk
Contact: +44(0)7941 371439 or fred.mawer@btinternet.com
The Bath Urban Treescape project draws attention to the wealth of trees on the streets of the city and encourages people to consider their importance. The team have published ten popular trails in eight locations and run sell-out, guided versions of each tree trail. Free paper maps are available at Bath Leisure Centre, the Urban Garden in Royal Victoria Park and from the Secret Garden Café at Prior Park Garden Centre.
For more information: bathurbantreescape.com
Contact: hello@bathurbantreescape.com
For more information please visit our website: bathfestivals.org.uk
Sunday 18 May
Thursday 22 May
Friday 23 May 2–4pm 5–7pm 5–7pm
Around 1.5 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT1
Start: outside No1 Royal Crescent (BA1 2LR)
Finish: outside the Holburne Museum (BA2 4DB)
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
Organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
Bath on screen The other star of the show * Excluding fees
Bath is frequently used as a backdrop for films and TV shows. This entertaining tour, led by a qualified Blue Badge tour guide, takes in many filming locations, provides behind-the-scenes insights and sheds light on Bath’s popularity with production companies. The tour covers filming for everything from Bridgerton and Jane Austen adaptations, to Wonka, McDonald and Dodds and Agatha Christie’s The Seven Dials Mystery, expected to be released on Netflix this year.
A Story of Destruction and Rebuilding
Monday 19 May
Tuesday 20 May
Wednesday 21 May
Saturday 24 May 10am–12pm 2–4pm 5–7pm 5–7pm
Around 2 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT2
Start: Orange Grove, by the obelisk (BA1 1LP)
Finish: Bath War Memorial, entrance to Royal Victoria Park, Queen’s Parade (BA1 2NJ)
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
Bath suffered from devastating air raids in World War Two. On two nights in April 1942, over 400 people lost their lives and thousands of buildings were damaged. Join this walk led by an expert Blue Badge-qualified guide to discover why the city was targeted by the Luftwaffe. See reconstructed and restored buildings, bomb craters and shrapnel damage, and learn about now-vanished churches, air raid shelters and evacuees.
Delivered by Sulis Guides (sulisguides.com) and organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
"well, here we are at Bath"
Saturday 17 May
Sunday 18 May
Tuesday 20 May
Thursday 22 May
Saturday 24 May
Celebrating the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen's Birth
Sunday 25 May 10am–12pm 5–7pm 5–7pm 10am–12pm 2–4pm 2–4pm
Around 1.5 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT3
Start: Centre of Queen Square by obelisk (BA1 2HA)
Finish: Trim Street (BA1 1HD)
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
Jane Austen’s five years in Bath shaped her writing for life. Where are the locations that really matter and what do they tell us about her characters? Did Austen genuinely dislike Bath? Why do thousands of readers flock here to walk in her footsteps and what would she have thought about it? Using Jane’s own words, explore all this and more on a walking tour of the city with a qualified Blue Badge tour guide.
Organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
Less Discovered Bath
Five Georgian Crescents
Saturday 17 May
Monday 19 May
Friday 23 May
Sunday 25 May 5–7pm 5–7pm 10am–12pm 10am–12pm
Around 2 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT4
Start: in the centre of The Circus, near the trees (BA1 2ET)Finish: outside Bath Assembly Rooms (BA1 2QH) Not suitable for wheelchair users.
2025 marks the 250th anniversary of the completion of The Royal Crescent, Bath’s most famous Georgian landmark, but the city has other less well-known crescents to discover. This mostly off-the-beaten-tourist-track walk around Bath’s beautiful northern slopes, led by a qualified Blue Badge tour guide, takes in five crescents. Expect eye-catching architectural details, memorable views, and stories about significant former residents who were collectors, artists and writers. Note: the walk involves a steep climb.
Organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
Bath’s rich musical heritage: the venues and the people
Saturday 17 May
Sunday 18 May
Tuesday 20 May
Thursday 22 May
Saturday 24 May
Sunday 25 May 2–4pm 10am–12pm 10am–12pm 2–4pm 10am–12pm 5–7pm
Around 1.5 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT6
Start: outside No1 Royal Crescent (BA1 2LR)
Finish: outside the Holburne Museum (BA2 4DB)
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
When Bath was the most fashionable resort in England in the 18th century, music formed a key part of the entertainment on offer. This walking tour will focus on the places where music filled the air in the city’s Georgian heyday and highlight superstar performers from the era. Led by a qualified Blue Badge tour guide, the tour will also cover contemporary music, including famous venues and household-name musicians with local connections.
Organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
* Excluding fees
Monday 19 May
Wednesday 21 May
Friday 23 May 2–4pm 2–4pm 2–4pm
Around 1.5 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT5
Start: Abbey Churchyard (BA1 1LY), in front of the big doors of Bath Abbey
Finish: Bath Abbey
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
This walking tour explores Bath’s ties to Britain’s 18th-century slave economy, highlighting its transformation from spa town to fashionable city. It examines how wealthy entrepreneurs like James Brydges and Sir William Johnstone Pulteney, who were linked to the Transatlantic Slave Trade, profited from constructing lodgings for affluent visitors. Delivered by qualified Blue Badge tour guide, Rob Collin.
Organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
Bath urban Treescape Walk
250 Years of the Bath urban Treescape
Around 1.5 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT7
Start: Orange Grove (BA1 2LP)
Finish: Royal Avenue (BA1 2DS)
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
Wednesday 21 May 10am–12pm There were trees in Jane Austen’s Bath, but not always in the places we see them today. This walk will reveal the history of the city’s trees and green spaces, the ways they have been appreciated, and how the planting or removal of trees in Bath has excited the passions of its citizens - conkers, student protests, chimney sweeps and women carrying concealed billhooks all play a part in the story of Bath’s trees. Led by Bath’s own urban tree specialists, there will be time to learn about the types of tree that have proved popular in Bath’s streets and the mistakes that were made along the way.
Organised by The Bath Urban Treescape.
to book
tickets are subject to a fee of 10% All orders are subject to a booking
Diary of events
Pre-Festival book events
Walking Tours
Code
TUESDAY 11 MARCH
BFP1
Simon Scarrow
TUESDAY 18 MARCH
BFP2
Claire Douglas
WEDNESDAY 2 APRIL
BFP3
Jessica Bull
WEDNESDAY 9 APRIL
BFP4
John Higgs
TUESDAY 6 MAY
BFP5
Joe Abercrombie
THURSDAY 6 MAY
BFP6
Tom Kerridge
SATURDAY 17 MAY
WT3
BFA1
BFA2
BFA3
WT4
BFA4
BFA5
WT6
BFA6
BFA7
BFA8
BFM1
WT: Jane Austen Walk
Sir Graham Brady
CJ Skuse
Ocean: How to Save the World's Last Wilderness
WT: Bath Rich Musical Heritage, the Venues & the People
The Teacher of Auschwitz
Laura Bates
WT: Five Georgian Crescents
Ben Okri
Raynor Winn
Reeta Chakrabarti
William Byrd: Singing in Secret
SUNDAY 18 MAY
WT6
BFB1
BFB2
WT1
BFM2
BFB3
WT3
BFB4
BFB5
WT: Bath Rich Musical Heritage, the Venues & the People
WT: Bath Rich Musical Heritage, the Venues & the People
Sayeeda Warsi
Daniel Kehlman
Carol Klein
Ivo Graham
WT: Jane Austen Walk
Steve Reich Counterpoints
Susie Dent
Lionel Shriver
WT: Bath Blitz
Chris Chibnall
Madeleine Thien
Ruth Jones
Fibonacci String Quartet
SATURDAY 25 MAY
WT: Five Georgian Crescents
Holly Smale
Nicki Chapman
Michelle de Kretser
WT: Jane Austen Walk
Ensemble Moliere -
The Dancing Star
Richard Coles
Geoff Dyer
WT: Bath Rich Musical Heritage, the Venues & the People
Callie Hart
Emma Barnett
Stuart Maconie
MONDAY 27 MAY
Joanne Harris Code Title
10am–12pm 11am–12pm 12–1pm 1:30–2:30pm 2–3pm
2–4pm 3–4:45pm
4–5pm
5–6pm
5–7pm 6:30–7:30pm 7–8pm
7:30–8:30pm 7:30–9:30pm
10am–12pm 12–1pm
1:30–2:30pm
2–3pm
2–4pm
3–4:45pm
4–5pm
4–5pm 5–7pm
6:30–7:30pm 6:30–7:30pm 6:30–7:30pm
No 1 Royal Crescent (outside)
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Mission Theatre
Guildhall - Banqueting
Christchurch
Queen's Square by obelisk St Mary's Church, Bathwick
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Mission Theatre
Orange Grove - at the obelisk Guildhall - Banqueting
Waterstones
The Forum
St. Swithin’s Church
The Circus
The Mission Theatre
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Mission Theatre
Queen's Square by obelisk
St. Swithin’s Church
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Mission Theatre
No 1 Royal Crescent (outside)
The Mission Theatre
Guildhall - Banqueting
Waterstones
Bath literature festival
17–25 May 2025
Our Partners and Sponsors
Thank you for your support:
Bath Festivals wishes to thank Evelyn Strasburger, William and Wera Hobhouse and Morny Hay-Davison for their sponsorship of music events.
Many thanks also to all of our Patrons and Friends, and especially to our Funding Partners for their generous support across all our festivals:
The Coles-Medlock Foundation
David & Karin Embleton
Andrew Fletcher
Elaine Marson
Mayden
And a big thank you to all our volunteers who give their time so generously.
Trevor Osborne
The Roper Rhodes Family Charitable Trust
Jimmy & Hiroko Sherwin
Colin & Theresa Skellett
Ian Tarr
Cover art credit: Steve Rawlings | steverawlingsart.com
Charity reg no 801617
Bath Box Office: 01225 463362
bathfestivals.org.uk
Bath Box Office Counter
1a Forum Buildings, St James’ Parade, BA1 1UG
Open Monday–Friday, 10am–5pm
*Concession prices are available to under 26s, fulltime students, Jobseeker’s Allowance Receivers, Pension Credit Receivers and visitors with a disability.
Concession seating will be in balcony, rear and sides of the venue. Only one concession may apply per ticket.
All tickets are subject to a fee of 10%
All orders are subject to a booking fee of £1.50
An Essential Companion (carer) ticket will be available to those who require one. This will be across all prices and is a free ticket.
Group Discounts: We offer one free seat for every ten purchased for the same event when booked at the same time.
Welcome
There’s something for everyone this year: from cookery to crime, politics to poetry, history to humour, and from nature to the '90s music scene. As a rugby fan, I’m thrilled that The Good, The Bad And The Rugby are joining us for what will be, no doubt, a night of japery. We have a run of great crime fiction events on the first Sunday of the festival, and I’m particularly delighted to welcome Ann Cleeves back to Bath.
Having bawled my eyes out at the Gavin & Stacey Christmas special like everyone else, we’re very excited that Ruth Jones - yes, Nessa Jenkins herself - will be coming to say hello and tell us all about her new novel. And, as I’m always up for learning, I can’t wait for the Lunchtime Lecture Series on art, science, travel, photography and George Orwell, that will be running throughout the week at 1pm.
Bath Literature Festival has always been a huge champion of debut authors and new writing, so it is with special pleasure that we welcome Reeta Chakrabarti, Jeremy Vine and Susie Dent, who will be sharing their debut novels and author journeys with us. We are also extremely proud to present some of our most respected and established authors, including Booker Prize winner Ben Okri, Orange Prize winner Lionel Shriver and Costa Winner Kit de Waal, as well as Jojo Moyes, Joanne Harris, Xiaolu Guo, Chris Chibnall, Reverend Richard Coles, Robert Macfarlane and many more.
We’ll be getting personal with David Baddiel and his extraordinary family and we’ll be stepping into the private realm of Westminster with Sir Graham Brady to learn some of the secrets and truths about five past Prime Ministers.
We look forward to welcoming you to our Festival in May.
Joe Haddow
Guest Curator
Bath festivals Presents
Claire Douglas Crime
Tues 18 March | 7pm | Waterstones | £20 inc. book/£12
Join us for this exclusive Bath event with bestselling local thriller writer, Claire Douglas in-conversation with Bath Festivals' Gill McLay about her latest book, The New Neighbours.
An evening with Jessica Bull
Jane Austen 250th anniversary event
2 April | 7pm |
Jessica Bull, author of the Miss Austen Investigates, launches the second in her Regency inspired series, A Fortune Most Fatal.
Doctor Who with John Higgs
Weds 9 April | 7pm |
Exterminate, Regenerate
Writer and cultural historian John Higgs talks about his biography of the iconic Time Lord from Doctor Who.
Joe Abercrombie
Fantasy fiction
Join best-selling fantasy writer Joe Abercrombie as he launches The Devils, the first in a thrilling new series.
Tom Kerridge
Cookery
Thurs 8 May | 7pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £30 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFP6
It’s all about barbeques in this special event with Britain’s bestloved Michelin-starred chef, and local food hero, Tom Kerridge.
Joanne Harris fiction
We are delighted to welcome the bestselling author Joanne Harris with Vianne, the long awaited prequel to her bestselling novel, Chocolat. Six years before Vianne opens her scandalous chocolaterie in the small French village of Lansquenet, she is in Marseille, trying to charm her way into a job as a waitress.
Hear Sir Graham Brady’s account of his time at the heart of government during some of the most turbulent years in British political history. Prime Ministers came and went, and as the Chairman of the 1922 committee Brady was at the heart of every leadership challenge.
CJ Skuse
Fiction
1–2pm | Bath Library | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFA2
The critically acclaimed Sweetpea series about ex-serial killer Rhiannon Lewis has been described as Fleabag meets American Psycho. So, if you like your anti-heroes dark, dirty-mouthed, sexually voracious and incredibly funny, join us for this fabulous in-conversation event with Sweatpea's creator, author CJ Skuse.
OCEAN: HOW TO SAVE THE WORLD’S LAST WILDERNESS
Natural History
2–3pm | Guildhall | £30 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFA3
From the icy oceans of our poles to remote coral islands Sir David Attenborough, the greatest natural history broadcaster of our times, has filmed in every ocean habitat on planet earth. We are delighted to welcome Colin Butfield, Attenborough’s long-term collaborator and co-author, to talk about their latest book together.
Historian and biographer Wendy Holden talks to Literature Festival Guest Curator, Joe Haddow, about The Teacher of Auschwitz, her novel based on the life of Fredy Hirsch, a young gay man who risked his life to protect the children in the death camp from mortal danger. Followed by a screening of Dear Fredy, a documentary about the life of Fredy Hirsch.
SEXISM AND GENDER EQUALITY
4:30–5:30pm | Guildhall | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFA5
Activist and writer Laura Bates exposes the dark side of AI: a world in which little girls dress up as women and dance for adult men, and where a pornographic deepfake image of you exists on the internet - you just don’t know it yet. What are the dangerous implications of the AI revolution?
Ben Okri
Fiction
6–7pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £20 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFA6
Raynor Winn
Booker prize-winning author Ben Okri’s books contemplate and refract the mystery, tragedy, and beauty of what it means to be human. He joins us to talk about his new novel Madame Sosostris and the Festival for the Broken Hearted, a modern fable about love, power, and our many selves - past and future, public and private.
Raynor Winn talks about her million-copy bestselling memoir, The Salt Path, now a British film starring Gillian Anderson and Jason Isaacs. Winn’s brave and impulsive decision to walk the 630 miles of the seaswept South West Coast Path, with her terminally ill husband, Moth, resulted in one of the most talked about books of the decade.
Saturday 17 may
Sunday 18 may
REETA CHAKRABARTI Fiction
7–8pm | Waterstones | £20 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFA8
Journalist and BBC News presenter Reeta Chakrabarti’s debut novel Finding Belle takes us from the beaches of Mombasa to the English suburbs and the teeming streets of Kolkata, with a powerful story of mothers and daughters, betrayal and madness. In conversation with documentary filmmaker Marion Milne.
Charlotte Proudman
Gender Equality and the Law
11–12pm | Guildhall | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFB1
He Said, She Said: Truth, Trauma and the Struggle for Justice in Family Court, is a searing indictment of the UK’s family courts, by award-winning barrister Charlotte Proudman. Charlotte talks about her campaign to remake the legal system in a way that is fairer for women. In conversation with documentary filmmaker Marion Milne.
Ann Cleeves
Lucy Foley Crime
1:30–2:30pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFB2
Lucy Foley, author of bestselling murder mysteries The Guest List and The Hunting Party, brings us The Midnight Feast, a deliciously dark thriller. As guests gather for a glamorous gathering at a countryside resort, so the tension rises and the bodies fall. Lucy will be in conversation with Georgina Moore, author of the best-selling novel The Garnett Girls.
Crime
4-5pm | Guildhall | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFB3
* Excluding fees
Join us for this special in-conversation event with bestselling crime writer Ann Cleeves who talks to Guest Curator Joe Haddow about The Dark Wives, the latest novel in her ‘expertly plotted and mesmerising’ Vera Stanhope series.
Sunday 18 may
XIAOLU GUO Fiction
6-7pm | Waterstones | £20 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFB4
Join Chinese-born British author, Xiaolu Guo as she talks about her new novel Call me Ishmaelle, a reimagining of the epic battle between man and nature in Herman Melville’s Moby Dick – told from a female perspective. Crime
CLAIRE MACKINTOSH and TM LOGAN
6:30–7:30pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFB5
Monday 19 may
Lunchtime lecture
Join us for a crime fiction double bill with authors Claire Mackintosh and T.M. Logan - because when two thriller writers get together it can be murder! Prepare to have your pulse raised as these multi-million bestselling authors share insights into the dark arts of fast-paced, twisty storytelling.
Turner and Constable were seen as opposites, but in many ways they were fellow travellers. For although their contrasting works reflected their distinct personalities, both fought for the recognition and appreciation of landscape painting. Art historian Nicola Moorby uncovers the layers of fiction that have disguised their greatest achievements.
The Lunchtime Lecture Series is sponsored by The Norie Trust.
Emma Gannon Fiction
7–8pm | The Mission Theatre | £20 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFC2
Join us for this in-conversation event with award-winning author Emma Gannon, whose latest novel Table for One explores the pressures on modern women to ‘have it all’, and asks questions about relationships that we often think, but don’t voice.
Monday 19 may
Alan Johnson Fiction
7–8pm | Waterstones | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFC3
Join us for this special event with festival favourite, Alan Johnson, in conversation with Festival Director John McLay. Alan’s latest novel Death on The Thames is the latest in his page turning murder mystery series featuring DCI Louise Mangan.
William Hanson Etiquette
7:30–8:30pm | Guildhall | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFC4
William Hanson, Britain’s leading etiquette expert, has worked with Royal households, diplomats, and global brands through his institute, The English Manner. A popular media guest on BBC and ITV, he believes good manners are timeless and strives to make them accessible, ensuring they remain relevant in today’s world.
Photographer Quintin Lake embarked on a five-year journey around Britain’s coastline, walking 11,000 km in 454 days. The result: The Perimeter, an immersive visual experience that takes us from Yorkshire to Kent, and from the desolation of Scotland’s Knoydart Peninsula to Worm’s Head on the Gower Peninsula.
The Lunchtime Lecture Series is sponsored by The Norie Trust.
Join broadcaster and conservationist Philippa Forrester (Wild Woman: Empowering Stories from Women Who Work in Nature) to hear about the women who live and work in the wild: from the 16th-century botanist who circumnavigated the globe, to the modern-day women dealing with bears in Yellowstone, and those photographing caribou in the Arctic.
* Excluding fees
Tuesday 20 may
Martin CLunes
Remarkable Animals
7–8pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFD3
Who better to explore the intelligence, loyalty and companionship of animals, and the ways in which they enrich our lives than actor, Martin Clunes. In Meetings With Remarkable Animals, he shares his transformative encounters with dogs, dolphins, horses and pigeons as well as other heart-warming stories to surprise and move you. In conversation with Festival Director John McLay.
Kit De Waal Fiction
7–8pm | Waterstones | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFD4
The Best Of Everything is Kit de Waal’s new novel about what it means to care, how we learn to live in the aftermath of loss and what happens when love steals into our lives in spite of best laid plans.
Seeking solace from the pain of heartbreak and her father's illness, travel writer Laura Coffey (Enchanted Islands) embarks on a sixmonth journey through the Mediterranean, exploring islands tied to ancient Greek myths. As she traces the path of Odysseus, she discovers the healing power of nature, travel, and solitude. The Lunchtime Lecture Series is sponsored by The Norie Trust.
ROBERT MACFARLANE Nature
7–8pm | Guildhall | £30 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFE2
At the heart of Robert Macfarlane’s perspective-shifting new book Is A River Alive? is a single idea: that rivers are not mere matter for human use but living beings who should be recognised as such, in both imagination and law - an idea that has taken on a new urgency as we battle the effects of climate change.
* Excluding fees
Wednesday 21 may
Jeremy Vine Fiction
7-8pm | Waterstones | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFE3
Journalist Jeremy Vine, host of BBC Radio2’s weekday lunchtime show, turns his hand to murder mystery, with the first in a new series. He sets Murder on Line One in Sidmouth, where a sacked radio talk show host turns amateur sleuth when he suspects someone is targeting his loyal listeners.
Saturday 17 may THE GOOD THE BAD AND THE RUGBY: UNLEASHED Sport
7:30–8:30pm | The Forum | £31 inc. book / £21 standard | £16 conc.* | BFE4
Rugby stars Alex Payne, James Haskell and Mike Tindall are live onstage, in conversation with BBC Sports presenter Mike Williams, with some of the most hilarious behind-the-scenes stories from their hugely successful podcast The Good, The Bad & The Rugby. Their first official book shares their outrageous antics - the ups, the downs and the sideways.
This includes a £1 venue restoration and improvement levy.
Why do some people become radicalised? Who is most susceptible to ideological thinking? Dr Leor Zmigrod (The Ideological Brain: The Radical Science Of Susceptible Minds) will argue that knowing what and how we believe will allow us to avoid rigid thinking.
The Lunchtime Lecture Series is sponsored by The Norie Trust.
Max Hastings Talking History
5-6pm | Guildhall | £30 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFF2
Newly uncovered archives have exposed just how unprepared British and American troops were for D Day in 1944. Landing in Normandy, they faced a relentless barrage of machine-gun and mortar fire. In this solo talk, Max Hastings (Sword: D Day Trial by Battle) tells the D-Day story as never before.
As the climate emergency accelerates, the need for higher standards of honesty in our politics, media and business is critical, argues climate and sustainability expert Mike Berners-Lee. By turning our attention to the principle of truth, we can have far more impact on the issues we care about.
Donna Ashworth
7:30-8:30pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFF5
Donna Ashworth rose to fame during the lockdown, offering hope and comfort with her poetry. She is now a Sunday Times bestselling poet with 1.7 million followers. Her latest collection To the Women is a tribute to the beauty, strength, and joy of womanhood, and celebrates our ability to love, rage, fear and rebuild.
Nathan Waddell marks 75 years since the death of George Orwell with a pioneering new biography of the 1984 author. Orwell was never dulled to the routines of living. And in the details of the day, we can understand how power, money, freedom and choice play out, not just for Orwell’s characters, but for us all.
The Lunchtime Lecture Series is sponsored by The Norie Trust.
JOJO MOYES Fiction
7–8pm | The Mission Theatre | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFG2
We are delighted to welcome best-selling author Jojo Moyes with her latest novel, We All Live Here, a moving exploration of family, love and starting again.
* Excluding fees
Friday 23 may
David Baddiel
7–8pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFG4
David Baddiel thought his lower-middle-class Jewish childhood was ordinary, but on deeper investigation, he realised it was anything but! His memoir My Family is a candid and moving look at his parents and family life, that uncovers the absurd and tender moments that shape their complicated, loving relationships.
Saturday 24 may
THE ANATOMY OF PREJUDICE Memoir
SAYEEDA WARSI
11am–12pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFH1
Sayeeda Warsi, Britain’s first Muslim Cabinet Minister, uses her experience in government and in Muslim communities to reflect on the rising tide of Islamophobia. In Muslims Don’t Matter, she looks at recent events and at how the media continues to fuel an anti-Muslim narrative, urging us to unite against it. In conversation with documentary filmmaker Marion Milne.
DANIEL KEHLMANN HISTORICAL FICTION
12–1pm | The Mission Theatre | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFH2
Austrian film director G.W. Pabst was forced to return to Germany when the Nazis seized power, despite plans to emigrate to America. Daniel Kehlmann’s new novel The Director fictionalises the story of Pabst, who made two films under Josef Goebbels, the Nazi minister of propaganda.
“A dazzling performance and a real page turner.” Salman Rushdie
CAROL KLEIN
Gardening
1:30-2:30pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFH3
Writer and broadcaster Carol Klein is one of Britain's best loved horticulturists who has dedicated her life to gardening. Her long awaited memoir Hortobiography explores our relationship with the natural world and tells the story of the people, places and plants that have shaped her life. In conversation with plantswoman Derry Watkins.
IVO GRAHAM MEMOIR/COMEDY
2–3pm | Christchurch, Julian Rd | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFH4
Stand-up comedian Ivo Graham lists his hopeless ambitions in his new memoir Yardsticks For Failure. He aims to host the greatest club night of all time, run a sub-three hour marathon while pushing a wheelchair, and put his heart on the line in a show unlike anything he's done before.
Susie Dent Fiction
4–5pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFH6
Join the Queen of Countdown Susie Dent whose debut novel Guilty By Definition is a tale of lexicographical skullduggery that will delight sleuths and crime fans alike. In conversation with Guest Curator Joe Haddow.
In her latest novel, Mania, Lionel Shriver, best-selling author of We Need to Talk About Kevin, turns her piercing gaze on the policing of opinion and intellect, and imagines a world in which intellectual meritocracy is heresy.
* Excluding fees
Saturday 24 may
CHRIS CHIBNALL
Crime
6:30–7:30pm | Guildhall | £20 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFH8
Chris Chibnall, the multi-award winning writer of Broadchurch, The Great Train Robbery, Doctor Who, Torchwood and Life on Mars, talks to author and academic Dr Tim Rideout about his crime fiction debut, Death at the White Hart.
MADELEINE THIEN Fiction
7–8pm | Waterstones | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFH9
The Book of Records, award-winning author Madeleine Thien’s (Do Not Say We Have Nothing) latest novel questions how collective political moments can determine an individual's future.
AN AUDIENCE WITH RUTH JONES
7:30–8:30pm | The Forum | £35 inc. book / £25 standard | £16 conc.* | BFH10
Actress, comedian, screenwriter, novelist and all round national treasure Ruth Jones, best known for her unforgettable role as Nessa Jenkins in Gavin and Stacey, talks about her latest novel, By Your Side - and lots more.
This includes a £1 venue restoration and improvement levy.
Sunday 25 may
Proof party
with Holly Smale
12–1pm | The Mission Theatre | £20 inc. proof & goodie bag* | BFJ2
I Know How This Ends is the second brilliantly uplifting and page-turning novel from the multi-million bestselling author of Geek Girl.
Ticket includes an exclusive proof copy plus an exciting goodie bag.
Nicki Chapman
Memoir
1:30–2:30pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFJ3
Packed with behind-the-scenes stories, TV presenter and speaker Nicki Chapman’s memoir, So Tell Me What You Want, charts her journey to becoming a judge on Pop Idol, going on tour with the Spice Girls and Take That, and smashing glass ceilings and confronting chauvinism along the way. In conversation with Guest Curator Joe Haddow.
Bath welcomes Australian author Michelle de Kretser with her seventh novel Theory and Practice, a mesmerising account of desire and jealousy, truth and shame. It explores the disharmony between our purported ideals and how we live and examines motherhood and the flawed maternal figures who hold onto us, despite our attempts to distance ourselves.
THE REVEREND RICHARD COLES Crime Fiction
4–5pm | Guildhall | £25 inc. book / £15 standard | £10 conc.* | BFJ5
Britain’s most famous vicar, recent finalist in I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Here, and Sunday Times best-selling author Reverend Richard Coles talks about the latest in his Canon Clement Mystery series, A Death on Location.
* Excluding fees
GEOFF DYER Memoir
4–5pm | The Mission Theatre | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFJ6
Homework is Geoff Dyer’s truthful and moving memoir of growing up in provincial England in the 60s and 70s. It tells the story of an eroded but strangely resilient England and captures the essence of a now-vanished time.
Emma Barnett Motherhood
6:30-7:30pm | Guildhall | £14 | £10 conc.* | BFJ8
Maternity leave is often eagerly awaited by expectant mothers but it can be a period of soaring highs and challenging lows. In this new book, broadcaster Emma Barnett offers reassurance and perspective on how to navigate this very special time. Emma will be in conversation with Alex Bollen, author of Motherdom.
Stuart Maconie Music
6:30–7:30pm | Waterstones | £25 inc. book / £14 standard | £10 conc.* | BFJ9
The meteoric rise to fame of John, Paul, George and Ringo was not achieved in isolation. In With A Little Help From Their Friends writer and broadcaster Stuart Maconie talks to Guest Curator Joe Haddow and offers a fresh perspective, exploring The Beatles’ impact on Britain and pop history beyond their songs and albums.
Quicksilver with Callie Hart
fiction
6:30–7:30pm | The Mission Theatre | £10* | BFJ7
Death has a name. It is Kingfisher of the Ajun Gate. His past is murky. His attitude stinks. And he's the only way Saeris is going to make it home. Join USA Today bestselling author of dark romance novels Callie Hart with her new novel Quicksilver.
1a Forum Buildings, St James’ Parade, BA1 1UG Open Monday–Friday, 10am–5pm
booking fees
All tickets are subject to a fee of 10%
All orders are subject to a booking fee of £1.50
Young Adult events
Katherine Webber fiction
Tues 20 May | 7–8pm | Waterstones | £10* | BFD5
An action-packed, adventure-filled swoon fest of a YA book, Katherine Webber’s Captain of Fates is a spin-off from the romantic fantasy Twin Crowns series. Meet Captain Marino Pegasi. Wedded to the sea. Immune to love. Until now . . .
Jason Reynolds
Thur 22 May | 7–8pm | Waterstones | £10* | BFF4
New York Times bestselling YA author Jason Reynolds discusses his first romantic novel, Twenty-Four Seconds From Now, a tender, sweet and wholesome story that shows a refreshingly different side to male sexuality.
Katy Birchall’s Hot Young Royals is a glitzy tale of family, identity and romance filled with steamy, swoony #FakeDating amidst the glamour of London's high society.
