Butser Book Festival 2024
Saturday October 19th & Sunday October 20th 2024, 10am - 4pm || Butser Ancient Farm, Waterlooville, Hampshire, UK
An incredible two days of entertainment and inspiration with bestselling writers! Join us for our inaugural book festival celebrating words, worldbuilding and the wilderness that inspires us. We will welcome in the autumn with literary talks covering a range of writing genres, live poetry readings and folk music, local craftsfolk, storytelling, fun activities for all the family, in-depth writing workshops, and book signings, all set against the ancient backdrop of Butser Ancient Farm.
Kindle your creativity, or simply bring your love of books and reading to our unique site for a fun-filled literary weekend this autumn!
Discover a world of books, NATURE and storytelling
Experience exciting and insightful entertainment, talks and workshops, with storytelling, and live poetry readings on nature and folklore to inspire your creativity! Immersive yourself in Saxon lyre and poetry with skald Eorðen, or listen to fascinating talks on writing and researching historical fiction by bestselling authors Lucy Holland, Adrian Goldsworthy, Elodie Harper and Caroline Lawrence. Ignite your family’s creativity joining a workshop scouring our local Hampshire landscape for inspiration or learning to tell stories imbued with folklore and research.
Get hands-on with learning and interactive fun for adults and kids alike! Try your hand at our folkloric funfair games run by powerhouse zine-team Hwæt!, or have a go crafting quills and cracking codes with our sitewide activities. Browse stalls from incredible illustrators, zine-makers and local writers, meet authors who will sign your books, watch medieval calligraphy and illumination in action (and even bring some home), join workshops exploring the nature surrounding our ancient buildings, and get hands-on learning new skills.
What’s On at Butser book festival
Join zine-Team Hwæt! throughout the whole weekend for funfair-style games inspired by the lore and land of the British Isles. Featuring megalithic cup-and-ring toss, medieval trebuchets and more...
In this lively talk, bestselling children's author Caroline shares how visiting Butser Ancient Farm inspired scenes from two of her most exciting books, Escape from Rome and Death in the Arena.
Join illustrator Hester Aspland and printmaker Amy Hunter in a Saxon meadhall to learn how to carve into lino, print and customise your own folkloric bookmark!
A storytelling workshop digging into the buried folklore under our feet. We'll work with folktales specific to the Butser Hill area and play with how to turn them into living, breathing tales! *Tickets £15
Explore the stories and folklore of the sun with traditional storyteller and author,, Dawn.
Join Eorðen as he guides you through the history of a meadhall entertainer, singing tales accompanied by lyre and the crackling of the hearth-fire.
A talk on Reimagining History: Crafting Stories from Diverse Sources with Elodie Harper, bestselling author of the Wolf Den trilogy.
Lauren will perform a reading from her short story collection Oaken Tongue, to sweep you away to fantasy worlds steeped in beauty, rugged wilderness and the magic of folklore…
Foraging for leaves, twigs, shrubs and other natural delights, participants will be guided by writer and performer Ri Baroche through a technique of building poems, pieces of writing and lyrics from found objects in nature... *Tickets £15
If you were to go back in time to Anglo-Saxon England how would you manage? Bestselling author Toni Mount looks at these fascinating questions and more...
Join author and poet Katie Metcalfe in a Saxon meadhall for darkling poems with themes ranging from folk horror to climate change and mental health.
Jason will perform live tellings of excerpts from his collection of stories celebrating some of the last dragons.
Caroline Lawrence, author of over 45 books, including The Roman Mysteries and The Roman Quests – shares her tips for writing plot, character and setting! *Tickets £15
Join an engaging conversation where bestselling author Lucy Holland delves into the rich tapestry of British history and myths that inspires her novels.
Join Lauren Morton for poems steeped in the magic of nature, folklore and inspired by British myths.
How do we take the evidence from the past and try to understand the lives and the world of the people living in Britain c. AD 100? Join bestselling author and historian Adrian Goldsworthy in a talk on how to vividly bring the past to life.
Award-winning author and illustrator Tiffany Francis-Baker will share how she carved out her career over the last decade, with honest insights into the highs and lows of the industry in an inspiring talk!
Join Ri for a family-friendly performance of stories, songs, poems and audience participation inspired by their passions of nature, genre-blending and transcendence.
Join illustrator Hester Aspland and printmaker Amy Hunter in a Saxon meadhall to learn how to carve into lino, print and customise your own folkloric bookmark!
Join bestselling author, Lucy Holland, for a writing workshop exploring worldbuilding, language and landscape in the atmospheric surroundings of Butser’s Saxon meadhall. *Tickets £15
Callum will be discussing and reading from his book "The South Downs: Paths of the Dead", about his spirit-filled, magical walk of the lore-rich South Downs Way, just around the corner.
If you’re a parent with a dyslexic child, or a teenager or adult who wishes you could read and write more easily, join Lou Barnes for this interactive talk!
Have you ever wanted to write for children? What makes for a gripping tale? How can writing wild adventures inspire young people to take action for nature? Join author Yarrow Townsend for an insightful journey into the world of children’s books
Join award-winning storyteller Bernadette Russell for an exciting workshop designed to engage children and families with the natural world, exploring our unique site. *Tickets £15
In this lyrical dig into the hidden depths of metal detecting, journalist and travel writer Nigel Richardson describes the dopamine hit of the find and how this unusual hobby brings us closer to the land.
Why are we still interested in ancient Greek hero myths? Is there a place for heroes in the modern world? Join Ffion Smith for a fun exploration of The Lightning Thief: The Percy Jackson Musical.
Join award-winning author and illustrator Tiffany Francis-Baker for a workshop focused on the ancient Wheel of the Year, exploring how we can use the seasonal rhythms to approach creativity in different ways. * Tickets £15
Join writer and long-time lover of skaldic poetry Sofie in a Saxon meadhall, and hear a selection of poems inspired by the dark north, Nordic myths and pagan legend.
IGNITE YOUR CREATIVITY WITH INSPIRING WORKSHOPS!
Inspiring workshops for book lovers and writers alike, at just £15 a head! Kids under 14 go free (must be accompanied by paying adult).
Join illustrator Hester Aspland and printmaker Amy Hunter in a Saxon meadhall to learn how to carve into lino, print and customise your own folkloric bookmark!
A storytelling workshop digging into the buried folklore under our feet. We'll work with folktales specific to the Butser Hill area and play with how to turn them into living, breathing tales! *Tickets £15
Foraging for leaves, twigs, shrubs and other natural delights, participants will be guided by writer and performer Ri Baroche through a technique of building poems, pieces of writing and lyrics from found objects in nature... *Tickets £15
Caroline Lawrence, author of over 45 books, including The Roman Mysteries and The Roman Quests – shares her tips for writing plot, character and setting! *Tickets £15
Join illustrator Hester Aspland and printmaker Amy Hunter in a Saxon meadhall to learn how to carve into lino, print and customise your own folkloric bookmark!
Join bestselling author, Lucy Holland, for a writing workshop exploring worldbuilding, language and landscape in the atmospheric surroundings of Butser’s Saxon meadhall. *Tickets £15
Join award-winning storyteller Bernadette Russell for an exciting workshop designed to engage children and families with the natural world, exploring our unique site. *Tickets £15
Join award-winning author and illustrator Tiffany Francis-Baker for a workshop focused on the ancient Wheel of the Year, exploring how we can use the seasonal rhythms to approach creativity in different ways. * Tickets £15
Getting to butser Book festival in Hampshire
We’re two minutes off the A3 close to Petersfield, and easily accessible from London, Portsmouth, and beyond.
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We are a two minute drive from the A3. Take the A3 between Petersfield and Portsmouth in Hampshire, and come off at the Clanfield exit. Follow the brown signs to Butser Ancient Farm, or directions to Chalton. The entrance to the farm is halfway down the hill on your right.
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Take the train to Petersfield, Hampshire. Catch the Number 37 bus from Petersfield to Clanfield, and come off at the Hampshire Hog in Clanfield. We are a 10 minute walk down the hill from the Hampshire Hog. Please be aware that parts of this walk are on the road with no pavement.
Please remember to check bus and train times before planning your journey! (Unfortunately buses don’t tend to run on a Sunday with the Hampshire Hog stop)
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Our nearest airports in the UK are Southampton and Gatwick. See where to stay locally →
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We have many several local taxi options in Hampshire:
Petersfield Taxis: 01730 303030
Petersfield Station Taxi Rank: 0845 600 0650
5 Ways Cars: 01730 260442
Get tickets now!
Discover fun activities and beautiful writing celebrating the ancient past and nature around us all against the one-of-a-kind setting of Butser Ancient Farm.
Remember to book online for up to 10% off your tickets!
information
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First entrance is at 10am, and last entrance is at 3pm - please be aware we close at 4pm.
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Visitors aged 65 and over, students, and disabled visitors are eligible for our concession ticket. Registered carers are entitled to free or discounted entry.
Children under 3 can always enter for free.
Annual passholders only have to pay the difference to general admission, which comes to £2.
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We'll have the amazing Cookhouse Street Food truck at our festival, serving a range of hot, tasty treats from delicious burgers to tacos! (Gluten-free, vegan and vegetarian options available.)
We also serve light refreshments in our Visitor Centre, including hot and cold drinks, a selection of sandwiches, delicious cakes, and sweet and savoury snacks.
You’re also welcome to bring your own picnic if you prefer.
Across the site you can find picnic benches, or if it’s wet you can cosy up on a bench by the fire in one of our historic buildings!
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Your whole family is welcome to Butser's Book Festival, including your four-legged friends!
We want our Book Festival talks to be an enjoyable experience for everyone, so please be mindful with your dog and take a seat near the exit in case you need to step out for a moment.
Please don't bring your pooch into buildings when workshops are taking place and to respect our other visitors, please keep your dogs on a leash and be sure to clean up after them.
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Unfortunately we’re not able to offer refunds on any of our tickets.