Cuckfield Bookfest Event Programme
Big Book Group
Emma Healey
SWEAT
The book selected for the Big Book Group on Sunday evening is SWEAT by Emma Healey whose first book Elizabeth is Missing sold many thousands of copies all over the world. SWEAT is a novel exploring obsession, revenge and control and it will provide lots of points for discussion.
Virtual Book Club
TUESDAY 17 JUNE
Our new virtual book club will start on Tuesday 17th June. Join us in conversation with the international bestseller Ellen Alpsten, author of the Tsarina series to talk about her last book The Last Princess.
Literary Quiz
FRIDAY 26 SEPTEMBER
The ever popular literary quiz will be back this year on Friday 26th September at The Talbot!
Supper at Ockenden
FRIDAY 3 OCTOBER
Steve Richards, highly regarded political columnist, journalist, author and presenter, will be joining us for Supper at Ockenden this year, on Friday 3rd October.
When Steve came three years ago he had his audience enthralled with his amusing and pertinent session. Once again, he will be delighting us as he shares political gossip, reveals the plots and intrigues, and throws in in a few choice impressions along the way.
Saturday 4th October
IAIN DALE
Margaret Thatcher
Across British politics – from Rachel Reeves to Kemi Badenoch – people are laying claim to Margaret Thatcher’s legacy. But what is that legacy? No Brits under 53 today will have even been old enough to vote while Thatcher was in power. Many of us didn’t live through the Thatcher years, and will have sketchy knowledge of her premiership.
Accomplished broadcaster and author, Iain Dale aims to introduce a new generation to Margaret Thatcher – exploding many myths along the way.
“A compelling account of a compulsory subject, admiring but always fair minded, and a masterpiece of compression and readability“. Daniel Finkelstein
STEVE RICHARDS
Tony Blair
When Tony Blair became Labour party leader in 1994 aged 41 after the death of John Smith he became the youthful leader of a party still bruised by having lost four elections. Despite this, many viewed him as the next prime minister.
In his new biography, leading political columnist, journalist, author and presenter Steve Richards provides a provocative short biography and casts new light on the man and his legacy.
JONATHAN SUMPTION
Challenges of Democracy
Across the globe, democracy is in crisis – in the UK alone, it has been rocked by Brexit, the pandemic and successive attempts by governments to bypass legal norms. But how did this happen, and where might we go from here?
Jonathan Sumption cuts through the political noise with acute analysis of the state of democracy today – timely, incisive and wholly original, Challenges of Democracy applies the brilliance of ‘the cleverest man in Britain’ to the most urgent and far-reaching political issue of our day.
‘Incisive and eloquent’ The Telegraph
SONIA GRANT, RAY SHELL AND ROY MCFARLANE
Encounters with James Baldwin
Celebrating the centenary of the birth of the trailblazing African American author, Encounters with James Baldwin is a wide-ranging volume of short essays, reflections, interviews and poetry by over 30 contributors.
We are joined on stage by 3 of the contributors, Sonia Grant, historian, scholar and non-fiction writer, actor Ray Shell, poet and playwright, Roy McFarlane, who reveal the influence of Baldwin’s thought, speech and writing to their personal journeys and their awareness of the need for social justice.
“… the words of this remarkable collection are breath blown back to our beloved ancestor James Baldwin, and he to them, to us: air we breathe, air we need, for these troubled times.”
Kevin Powell – GRAMMY-nominated poet and activist
CREATIVE WRITING WORKSHOP
Mick Jackson
Getting Started with Mick Jackson, introduces participants to the basic elements of prose fiction.
Mick is a Booker Prize–shortlisted author of four novels and two collections of short stories. His novels – The Underground Man, Five Boys, The Widow’s Tale and Yuki Chan in Bronte Country – have been shortlisted for the Whitbread First Novel Award, runner-up for the Encore Award and won The Royal Society of Authors First Novel Award and East Anglian Book of the Year.
Start your story today!
VERNON BOGDANOR
Making the Weather
A fascinating study of the six politicians who ‘made the weather’ in post-war British politics and deeply influenced all our lives without achieving his office.
Vernon Bogdanor’s cast includes three from the political Left – Aneurin ‘Nye’ Bevan, Roy Jenkins, and Tony Benn – and three from the Right – Enoch Powell, Keith Joseph, and Nigel Farage. Each study is a fascinating analysis that examines how these men achieved such prominence and influence and how, though very different figures in many ways, they came to dominate the political landscape, often for a period of years.
From immigration to Europe, from the NHS to devolution, the issues and causes that brought these men to prominence are still of considerable contemporary relevance.
Claire Clark
Social Media Story-telling Workshop
Are you an Author struggling with what to post on social media? Are you feeling stuck on how to engage your following and sell more books – without feeling ‘salesy’?
Join Claire for “How to create content that hooks your readers and sells your book”, a packed workshop designed specifically for authors of both fiction and non fiction.
In just one hour you’ll learn exactly what to post, how to create the content your followers want to engage with and how to create content that builds a loyal community – all while promoting your book in an authentic, engaging way.
You’ll walk away with a clear content strategy, a bank of post ideas bespoke to you, and a 30 day posting plan so you never have to wonder ‘what should I post today’ again. Plus you’ll get my exclusive bonus: ’30 days of social media posts for Authors’ – a ready made content guide to help you show up consistently and confidently.
Steve Rawlings
Story-telling with Debutots
For preschoolers
A lively and engaging storytelling and dramatic play experience for preschoolers with Steve Rawlings. Using dramatic play, music, games and wrap-around sensory activities to exercise imaginations and develop confidence, build a foundation for literacy, strengthen awareness of others, problem solve and, above all, do all this while having lots of fun!
Debutots’ award-winning sessions have been shared with settings for more than 20 years and their programmes are delivered in nursery and primary schools, care homes, at weddings as well as providing custom-built story-themed solutions for birthday boys and girls.
Steve has more than 30 years’ experience in language-related education, working at primary, secondary and tertiary levels. He is a keen and active ‘live’ musician and combines his love of performance with his passion for education to ensure that every session he delivers is an experience for children to remember.
BARONESS LOLA YOUNG
Eight Weeks
In 2004, Baroness Lola Young became one of the first Black women members of the House of Lords. Eight Weeks tells the powerful story of her determination to defy the odds; she has been an actress, an academic, an activist and campaigner for social justice and a crossbench peer. She is also a very beguiling speaker.
ISABEL LOSADA
The Joyful Environmentalist
The Joyful Environmentalist by Isabel Losada is an engaging and uplifting guide to sustainable living that approaches environmental activism with humour and practicality.
Unlike many doom-laden climate books, Losada presents a positive approach to tackling environmental challenges, sharing personal anecdotes and practical tips that readers can implement in their daily lives. Her core message is that making eco-friendly choices can be joyful rather than sacrificial, encouraging readers to take small, meaningful actions without guilt or perfectionism.
ANDREW ZIMINSKI
Church Going
Churches are many things to us – they are places of worship, vibrant community hubs and oases of calm reflection. To know a church is to hold a key to the past that unlocks an understanding of our shared history.
Andrew Ziminski has spent decades as a stonemason and church conservator, acting as an informal guide to curious visitors. Church Going is his handbook to the medieval churches of the British Isles, in which he reveals their fascinating histories, features and furnishings, from flying buttresses to rood screens, lichgates to chancels.
Beautifully written and richly illustrated, this book is a celebration of Britain’s most important and iconic buildings and the historic Holy Trinity Church is the perfect place for this session.
JESSICA BULL & Ciar Byrne
A Fortune Most Fatal and A Lethal Cocktail
In Jessica Bull’s A Fortune Most Fatal, the nation’s favourite amateur sleuth is back! Jane Austen returns to solve another devilish mystery, in the compelling follow-up to Miss Austen Investigates.
In this witty, engaging murder mystery, Jane Austen is set to spend the summer with her estranged brother, Neddy. As heir to wealthy widow Mrs Knight’s fortune, it is imperative that Neddy stays in his benefactor’s good graces but a mysterious young woman threatens to swindle the inheritance for herself. Jane must uncover who this imposter is, to protect the fortunes – and fate – of her entire family.
Joining on stage is local author Ciar Byrne, with her Golden Age murder mystery, A Lethal Cocktail, her second book in the Woolf & Bell Mysteries.
Starring Virginia Woolf and her sister Vanessa Bell as a pair of unlikely sleuths about a society wedding gone wrong in the Sussex seaside town of Rottingdean, the sisters are drawn into a new case to solve a murder.
Sunday 5th October
ANNE SEBBA
The Women’s Orchestra of Auschwitz
In her new book, The Women’s Orchestra of Auschwitz, historian and an award-winning biographer, Anne Sebba draws on meticulous archival research and exclusive first-hand accounts to tell the full and astonishing story of the women who played in the orchestra.
What role could music play in a death camp and what was the effect on those women who owed their survival to their participation? Anne traces these tangled questions of deep moral complexity with sensitivity and care.
“Anne Sebba brings meticulous research and brilliant writer’s eye to one of the darkest questions of World War Two. What would you do to survive and what might be the price?”
ANTHONY HOROWITZ
LUCY HUGHES-HALLETT
The Scapegoat
From the winner of the Baillie Gifford Prize, Lucy Hughes-Hallett writes an extraordinary story of the meteoric rise and fall of George Villiers, the first Duke of Buckingham.
‘A delicious, grippingly paced tale of rogues, riotous sex, regicide and realpolitik’ INDEPENDENT BEST BOOKS FOR CHRISTMAS
TIM WIGMORE
Test Cricket: A History
In his new book Test Cricket: A History, award-winning author Tim Wigmore, tells the full, gripping story of the players and stories that have shaped the game’s evolution since 1877.
Featuring over forty exclusive interviews with cricket greats, including Sachin Tendulkar, Pat Cummins, Michael Holding, Muthiah Muralidaran, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Chappell, Dale Steyn and Rahul Dravid – his book brings to life both Test cricket on the pitch and the game’s social significance around the world.
ANDREW LOWNIE
Entitled: the Rise and Fall of the House of York
Packed full of extraordinary revelations, Andrew Lownie’s upcoming book, Entitled, traces the lives of the Duke and Duchess of York through their childhoods, courtship, marriage, divorce, careers and royal and charitable activities.
Investigating the reality of their relationship it also assesses Andrew’s Falklands record, his business dealings and reveals new details of how the couple have been able to financially sustain their extravagant lifestyles. It also delves deeper into links with Jeffrey Epstein, which began earlier, continued longer and were much more frequent than reported.
Chronicling their lives in parallel, the picture that emerges is of a spoilt prince unable to connect and a duchess pushed by her insecurities into a desperate need to maintain the attention her ‘royal’ status brought.
Rigorously researched and packed full of revelations, this is eye-watering biography at its best.
TIFFANY MURRAY
My Family and Other Rock Stars
My Family and Other Rock Stars is Tiff’s remarkable, truly unique story of growing up in a rural idyll, of Cordon Bleu cookery and of a childhood where the chances of bumping into Freddie Mercury playing piano, or a group of Hell’s Angels turning up to record for Lemmy, or even the hope of David Bowie appearing, were as normal as hopscotch and homework.
It’s the late 1970s and Tiff lives with her mum, Joan, at Rockfield, the iconic recording studios. This place of legend, where some of the most famous rock albums of all time were recorded, is the background to a freewheeling, ever-changing whirlwind of a childhood.
PHIL CRAIG
1945: The Reckoning
The latest book by The Scandal Mongers podcaster and TV producer, Phil Craig, looks at the legacy of WW2.
Clearing away the haze of nostalgia, he considers the many uncomfortable truths that emerge about attempts to rekindle empires and the clumsy decisions that have informed the shape of the world today.
LUCY MANGAN
Bookish
Lucy’s highly anticipated sequel to BOOKWORM about how books of all kinds delight, guide, comfort and strengthen us throughout our adult lives.
Revisiting the books of all genres – from thrillers and bonkbusters to historical sagas and apocalyptic zombie stories – that ferried her through each important stage of adult life – falling in love, finding a job, becoming a mother and navigating grief – Bookish is a coming-of-age in books.
LUCY STRANGE
Ghost Stories
for ages 8+
Join multi-award-winning children’s author, Lucy Strange, as she welcomes you into her spookiest stories!
In this interactive author event, we’ll follow Lucy’s writing journey and get a sneaky peek into her creative process – including the inspiration behind her gothic-inspired books The Ghost of Gosswater and The Boy at the Window, and her spooky new series Lockett & Wilde’s Dreadfully Haunting Mysteries too.
There’ll be plenty of storytelling secrets along the way, so bring your imaginations as you’ll be coming up with ideas for your very own GHOST STORY!
ROGER MORGAN-GRENVILLE
The Restless Coast
The Restless Coast: A Journey around the Edge of Britain, is a moving and beautiful account of a journey around the island of Britain, during which the author Roger Morgan-Grenville, travels its length to discover its challenges and opportunities, and to talk to the people trying to protect it.
At once informative, angry and funny, The Restless Coast is a very personal love letter to our island edge.
MICHAEL TAYLOR
Impossible Monsters
Impossible Monsters is the captivating story of the discovery of the dinosaurs and how it upended our understanding of the origins of the world.
Taking us into the lives and minds of the extraordinary men and women whose discovery of the dinosaurs revolutionised our understanding of the world, as well as those who resisted them and those, like Charles Darwin, who took great risks to construct a new account of the earth’s and mankind’s origins. It is the riveting story of a group of people who dared to think impossible things and then showed them to be true.
DR JENNA MACCIOCHI
Immune to Age
In Immune to Age, Immunologist Dr Jenna Macciochi explores the crucial role our immune system plays in longevity and reveals why understanding its impact on our health and how we age is the key to living longer, better.
Blending cutting-edge scientific expertise with beautiful storytelling and actionable advice to explore the importance of good immune health at every stage of life, this is the ultimate preventative care framework that equips readers with the knowledge and tools to reclaim control over their health and ensure every year is a good one.