Ipswich Book Festival returns with new events at the library

By Lucy Neill | 22 September 2026

Suffolk Community Libraries is proud to support the second ever Ipswich Book Festival taking place from 2 to 4 October, celebrating literature and culture across the town.

First taking place in 2025, the festival has since expanded its reach with even more author talks, panels, workshops and more for all ages.

More information about Ipswich Book Festival, including other events, can be found on the Ipswich Book Festival website.

Ipswich County Library on Northgate Street will be hosting a number of events for all ages as part of this year’s festival. The full list of library events is as follows:

Thomas Taylor: Eerie-on-Sea

Saturday 3 October – 10:00 to 11:00 in the downstairs corner space

Join our amazing friend and patron Thomas Taylor, as he lifts the lid on the wonderful world he has created through his five books – Malamander, Gargantis, Shadowghast, Festergrimm ir Mermedusa, and the friends we all wish we had, Herbert and Violet.

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.

Bringing Books to Life with The Dyslexia Project

Saturday 3 October – 10:30 to 11:30 and 14:00 to 15:00 in the Lecture Hall

Join us for a joyful, imagination-fuelled storytelling workshop celebrating the many ways children think, communicate, and create. These sensory workshop sessions will bring books to life through a playful mix of drama, music, and the arts activities, inviting families to explore stories together in fun and accessible ways.

Bookings can be made on TicketTailor for the 10:30 – 11:30 workshop and the 14:00 – 15:00 workshop.

Ruth Dugdall: The Cate Austin Series

Saturday 3 October – 12:00 to 13:00 in the Northgate Room

Join the brilliant Ruth Dugdall for a lively conversation about her brilliant Cate Austin series of books. The first four were all recently re-published on the same day, with a brand new title published in September, just before the festival!

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.

Inky and the Bears: Bookmark Workshop

Saturday 3 October – 13:00 to 15:00 in the downstairs corner space

Thaksala Haylock will lead this free drop-in workshop and show you how to use the art of collage to make your own bookmarks. Use precut shapes or stickers or create your own. Suitable for all ages and no experience needed. All materials provided.

Bookings can be made on TicketTailor.

Matson Taylor: Author of Roman Mornings

Saturday 3 October – 14:00 to 15:00 in the Northgate Room

Join our darling friend and patron (and Dial Lane Books royalty) Matson Taylor as he talks about his eagerly awaited third novel, Roman Mornings. A novel set in Rome during the ’70s, covering youthful dreams, friendship, a speeding mint green Vespa, and the deliciously named Montgomery Marsh.

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.

Josh Grindod: Tales of the Suburbs

Saturday 3 October – 16:00 to 17:00 in the Northgate Room

Tales of the Suburbs: LGBTQ+ Lives Behind Net Curtains is an exceptional slice of social and cultural history that explores the relatively untold twentieth century tale of LGBTQ people in small towns and suburbia.

Social historian John Grindrod looks at stories that are messy and moving, dark and funny, uplifting and extraordinary, though wonderful archive material and original interviews. Interviewed by Matson Taylor.

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.

Jon-Paul Stonard: Art Since the Beginning

Saturday 3 October – 17:00 to 18:00 in the Lecture Hall

Author and art historian John-Paul Stonard will be talking about his 2021 Sunday Times Art Book of the Year Creation: Art Since the Beginning, described as “a fully illustrated, panoramic world history of art from ancient civilisation to the present day”.

John-Paul will also be reflecting on writing a ‘monumental history of art’ five years on. Hosted by The Arts Society (South East Suffolk).

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.

Jamie Gregory: Bone Head Stories

Sunday 4 October – 10:00 to 11:00 in the downstairs corner space

Prisijungti Bone Head creator Jamie Gregory for a wild mix of chaos and comedy, featuring live drawing and a chance to create your own characters of the underworld. There will also be a chance to meet Demise – AKA Bone Head for photo opportunities and high fives! Suitable for children 8-12 and their adults.

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.

Amy Wragg: Zine Workshop

Sunday 4 October – 10:00 to 12:00 in the Lecture Hall

Make your own (mini-maga) zine with New Wolsey Theatre Associate Artist, Amy Wragg, the region’s most prolific DIY publisher. Find out about the weird history of zines, why they are currently enjoying a resurgence in popularity, and have a go at making one yourself with a tasty selection of craft materials and print media.

An entertaining talk and crafty workshop rolled into one. All ages welcome. All materials provided.

Bookings can be made on TicketTailor.

Robert Holtom: The Selby Bigge Mysteries

Sunday 4 October – 12:00 to 13:00 in the Northgate Room

Join Robert Holtom as they talk about their two (hopefully more are planned) brilliant Selby Bigge Mystery titles: A Queer Caseir A Morbid Passion.

A Queer Case is a beautifully written story, set in the 1920s, about a murder in a mansion on Hampstead Heath. A Morbid Passion finds Selby and his sidekick Theodora at a servants’ ball at the Royal Albert Hall, with another murder for them to solve…

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.

Inky and the Bears: Brush Lettering Workshop

Sunday 4 October – 13:00 to 15:00 in the downstairs corner space

Learn the skills of brush lettering using a paintbrush and ink, with ideas on how to use these for future projects, or lettering your favourite book quote. Suitable for 14+, no experience is necessary and all materials will be provided.

At the end of the session you will be able to take away a small pot of ink and your brush to continue your brush lettering journey at home.

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.

Lori Inglis Hall: The Shock of the Light

Sunday 4 October – 14:00 to 15:00 in the Northgate Room

Join Lori Inglis Hall as she talks about her exquisitely written debut novel The Shock of the Light which brings to life the shattering emotional impact of WWII on ordinary people, mainly twins Tessa and Theo.

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.

Jacky Colliss Harvey: Walking in Writers’ Suffolk

Sunday 4 October – 15:00 to 16:00 in the Lecture Hall

Join author Jacky Colliss Harvey for a talk about her book Thoughtlands: Walking in Writers’ Suffolk, a delightful book on Suffolk’s landscapes and its literary heritage. A book about walking and writing; about walkers who write, and writers who walk.

Bookings can be made on the New Wolsey Theatre website.