Ely Events and Reading Groups
In this atmospheric medieval city, just over an hour from London by train, author events range from reading groups and intimate events in the bookshop to the drama of performances under the world-renowned Octagon of Ely Cathedral. We hold events all year round, but in the autumn there is a special focus on the Ely Literary Festival.
Hernan Diaz
Wednesday 31st August, 7.30pm
We are very excited to welcome Hernan Diaz to Ely to discuss his Booker Prize longlisted new novel, Trust.Can one person change the course of history? …
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Kitchen Disco
Monday 5th September, 7.30pm
Join Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Richard Jones for a dazzling evening celebrating their new recipe book Love. Food. Family: Recipes from the Kitchen Disco! During Lockdown they …
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Robert Harris
Monday 12th September, 7.30pm
We are very excited to welcome Robert Harris to Ely to discuss his new book, Act of Oblivion. Robert is the author of fourteen bestselling novels: …
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Reading Group
Tuesday 13th September, 7.30pm
In 1816, forty years after they had last seen each other, Lotte Kestner made a visit to Weimar to see her one-time suitor Wolfgang Goethe, whose …
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Reading Group
Tuesday 13th September, 7.30pm
Min works at the BBC as an audio engineer, where she is struggling to replicate the sound of a heartbeat. At home, other matters of the …
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Orlando Figes
Thursday 15th September, 7.30pm
No other country has been so divided over its own past as Russia. None has changed its story so often. How the Russians came to tell …
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Zoulfa Katouh
Friday 16th September, 7.30pm
We are so excited to welcome Zoulfa Katouh to Ely to discuss her debut novel, As Long As The Lemon Trees Grow. An epic, emotional, breathtaking …
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John Boyne
Monday 19th September, 7.30pm
John Boyne, author of the devastatingly beautiful The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas returns with its sequel, All the Broken Places. Ninety-one-year-old Gretel Fernsby has lived …
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Ben Macintyre
Wednesday 21st September, 7.30pm
Author of Agent Sonia and The Spy and The Traitor Ben Macintyre returns to Ely with Colditz: Prisoners of the Castle, the incredible true story of …
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Alan Johnson
Thursday 22nd September, 7.30pm
We are excited to welcome Alan Johnson back to Ely for another exciting political thriller: One of Our Ministers is Missing. A government minister in the …
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Tom Kerridge
Monday 26th September, 7.30pm
We’re excited to welcome chef Tom Kerridge back to Ely to celebrate his new book, Real Life Recipes. Tom brings you deliciously fuss-free recipes for when …
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Caroline Davison
Wednesday 28th September, 7.30pm
Join us upstairs in the Bookshop to celebrate the publication of Caroline Davison’s The Captain’s Apprentice, a beautifully written exploration of the world of Edwardian folk …
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Raynor Winn
Monday 3rd October, 7.30pm
Since travelling the South West Coastal Path, Raynor Winn has become a regular long-distance walker and writes about nature, homelessness and wild camping. Her previous books, …
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Justine Picardie
Thursday 6th October, 7.30pm
Justine Picardie unpicks Miss Dior, a wartime story of freedom and fascism, beauty and betrayal. Miss Dior explores the relationship between the visionary designer Christian Dior …
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Clare Jackson
Wednesday 12th October, 7.30pm
Join Clare Jackson to celebrate her success in the Wolfson History Prize 2022, in line with the release of the paperback of Devil-Land. “A big historical …
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Natalie Haynes
Tuesday 18th October, 7pm
‘So to mortal men, we are monsters. Because of our flight, our strength. They fear us, so they call us monsters.’ Join Natalie Haynes to celebrate …
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Dan Jones
Tuesday 25th October, 7.30pm
Dan Jones makes his historical fiction debut with Essex Dogs. It is the explosive first instalment in an epic new trilogy set during the Hundred Years …
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Giuseppe Dell'Anno
Wednesday 2nd November, 7.30pm
It’s time to dust down your cake stands, pull out those pizza paddles and get ready to welcome Great British Bake Off 2021 winner, Giuseppe Dell’Anno …
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Max Hastings
Monday 7th November, 7.30pm
Marking the sixtieth anniversary of the Cuban Missile Crisis, we are delighted to welcome Max Hastings back to Ely to discuss his new book Abyss: The …
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Angela Harding
Wednesday 9th November, 7.30pm
We are very excited to welcome author and much-loved printmaker Angela Harding to Ely, to talk us through her new book, Wild Light, which details 24 …
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Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan
Monday 14th November, 7.30pm
We are thrilled that bestselling authors Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Finney Boylan will be joining us the evening before its release to discuss their new novel …
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Winetasting with Oz Clarke
Tuesday 15th November, 7.30pm
Join us for an evening of wine tasting with Oz Clarke, to celebrate the publication of his revised book on English wines. One of the great …
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James Stourton
Wednesday 23rd November, 7.30pm
Heritage is all around us: millions belong to its organisations, tens of thousands volunteer for it, and politicians pay lip service to it. When the Victorians …
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