From Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist to Sally Rooney’s Normal peoplethe British Isles have been literary strongholds for centuries. Writers like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Evelyn Waugh, Oscar Wilde, Dylan Thomas and Virginia Woolf paved the way for modern literary giants. Many of the world’s best books are set in Blighty from Hilary Mantel’s epic Wolf Hall to Monica Ali Brick Avenue.
Every May, bibliophiles around the world make a pilgrimage to the Hay Book Festival for endless talks, lectures and workshops. UNESCO’s Creative Cities of Literature program (part of the wider Creative Cities Network that celebrates folk art, design, film, gastronomy, literature, music and media) turns twenty this year, connecting fifty-three cities recognized for their outstanding contribution to the literature. Five of these are in Great Britain and one in Ireland (the most of any global region). This is why…
Edinburgh
Awesome Scott! Even arriving in Waverley by train is a literary adventure. The station is named after Sir Walter Scott’s first novel and is decorated with literary quotes from the author. This is the city that gave us Robert Louis Stevenson, Irvine Welsh and Muriel Spark and will always be synonymous with Harry Potter, as resident JK Rowling wrote the series here (the best-known ideas of which are in The Elephant House Cafe). The city boasts its own poet laureate, known as the Makar (currently poet and playwright Hannah Lavery), and hosts the world’s largest international book festival. Founded in 1983, the Edinburgh International Book Festival takes place in August and is attended by more than 800 writers and 200,000 visitors.
The Radical Book Fair is another annual highlight, as is the Scottish International Storytelling Festival, where writers and poets spin yarns in October. Other fun facts: Scotland’s first book was printed here in 1508; the city has more than 50 bookstores (selling everything from antique books to graphic novels); and the world’s first purpose-built poetry library opened here in 1999. Don’t miss a visit to the Writers’ Museum, just off the Royal Mile, or a literary stroll on the Edinburgh Book Lovers’ Tour. As Edinburgh was the first city to receive the UNESCO City of Literature award, it will host the Cities of Literature Conference in October 2024, to mark the 20e birthday.
Stay
The Roseate Hotel offers double rooms from £139.50, excluding breakfast.
Exeter
The city’s literary history begins in the 10th century with The Exeter Book, an Anglo-Saxon anthology of poetry and riddles (kept in Exeter Cathedral), which contains the largest collection of Old English writing, recognized by UNESCO as one of the world’s most important cultural artifacts. Charles Dickens, Agatha Christie, Michael Morpurgo and Hilary Mantel all found inspiration in and around the city.
The annual Book Market in July brings together a wide range of independent bookstores. For poets, there’s Spork!, a spoken word poetry organization that organizes live poetry events and workshops. Quay Words, an offshoot of Literature Works (the South West’s writing development agency), champions diversity in literature and is a core project in the UNESCO City of Literature programme, hosting regular live performances. Africa Writes Exeter was developed to showcase writing talent from the African continent and its diaspora.
Stay: Hotel du Vin has double prices from £114, excluding breakfast.
Manchester
Britain’s first free public library, Chetham’s, opened in Manchester in 1653, and literature and freedom of expression are an integral part of the city’s history. Friedrich Engels and Karl Marx worked on their Communist Manifesto in the reading room of Chetham’s Library in 1845, and Elizabeth Gaskell wrote her campaign novels that awakened the nation to the plight of the poor. The museum at the Pankhurst Center celebrates the writings of suffragist Emmeline Pankhurst, who founded the Women’s Social and Political Union in Manchester in 1903.
With over 200 spoken languages, Manchester is the most linguistically diverse city in Western Europe, and this is reflected in the 800 literature events held each year, reaching an audience of around 48,000 people. Famous Manchurian writers include Frances Hodgson Burnett, Anthony Burgess, John Cooper Clarke, Jeanette Winterson and Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy. In terms of festivals, October sees the Manchester Literature Festival (a showcase of contemporary writing around the world), the Children’s Book Festival and the Festival of Libraries, which celebrates the key role libraries play in social life, including events in the historic library gems Chetham’s, The Portico, John Rylands and the Central Library, Britain’s busiest.
Stay
Native Manchester has double prices from £153, including breakfast.
Norwich
Home to Britain’s National Center of Writing, Norwich is known as a city of firsts. Revelations of Divine Love, written by Julian of Norwich in 1395, was the first book written in English by a woman. The first poem in blank verse was written here by Henry Howard in the 16th centurye century. The first English provincial library opened in 1608 and Norwich was the first to implement the Public Library Act of 1850.
In 1970, the first Creative Writing MA was founded by Malcolm Bradbury and Angus Wilson at the University of East Anglia (UEA), of which Ian McEwan was the first graduate. Writers who have called Norwich their home include Thomas Browne, Ian McEwan, Kazuo Ishiguro, Emma Healey and Sarah Perry.
Don’t miss the Norfolk and Norwich Millennium Library, housed in the Forum, or a visit to the Cathedral Library, home to more than 20,000 books (some dating back to the 15th century). Also notable is the John Innes Center with its collection of natural history and rare books. The Norwich Crime Writing Festival attracts the best crime writers in the world.
Stay
The Assembly House has double prices from £196, including breakfast.
Nottingham
Nottingham’s commitment to improving literacy, combined with a rich literary history and diverse writing community, has earned it an award as a City of Literature. Known for its rebels and pioneers, this is a city that gave the world William Langland Robin Hood and J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. Other literary heroes include DH Lawrence, Lord Byron and Alan Sillitoe. A third of the city’s population is under 24 years old and the vibrant literature scene with a thriving community of poets reflects this.
Spoken word and slam poetry events take place throughout the year, culminating in the Nottingham Poetry Festival in April/May. Georgina Wilding is the current Young Poet Laureate, and contemporary writers include playwright Amanda Whittington, screenwriter Shane Meadows and novelist and poet John Harvey. Catch a performance at the Nottingham Writers’ Studio, Nottingham Playhouse or one of eighteen public libraries.
Stay
Hart’s Nottingham has double prices from £199, including breakfast.
Dublin
Wherever you wander in Dublin, it is a journey through its vast written heritage. Bram Stoker, Oscar Wilde and WB Yeats all studied at Trinity College, the literary heart of the city. The highlight is the 60-metre-long long room in the old library, which contains 200,000 books (currently under long-term restoration, although remains impressive). The Book of Kells, an ancient manuscript created by monks in 800AD, is on display as part of an exhibition at the Old Library.
Marsh’s is Ireland’s oldest public library, unchanged for over three centuries. Visit Ulysses Rare Books where you will find Joyces’ books Odysseus illustrated by Henri Matisse, signed by both author and artist (and for sale for no less than 25,000 euros). At the James Joyce Center you can attend a lecture or reading, and at the Museum of Literature Ireland, innovative exhibitions bring the country’s literature to life.
Don’t miss Dublin’s literary pub crawl and get to grips with the work of the city’s famous writers in a fun way. Notable festivals include the Bloomsday Festival, where everything is celebrated.Odysseus‘; ‘Murder One (for crime writers); the Bram Stoker Festival for all things gothic and spooky; the International Literature Festival, which attracts a global audience; and the Dublin Book Festival in November, championing Irish writers. The International Dublin Literary Award is the richest literary prize in the world, awarding €100,000 to the winning author.
Stay
The Leinster (+353 1233 6000) www.theleinster.ie Doubles from £230, including breakfast.
