Oxford, the city of dreaming spires, is a stunning place where the city itself is as much the attraction as the talks.
You could spend a long weekend here, exploring the narrow cobbled streets, dropping in and out of coffee houses, and sampling the diverse selection of foodie spots.
So, ahead of this year’s Oxford Literary Festival, I arrived early to get a flavour of what to expect when you visit Oxford.
The vibe
Broad Street is the main street through the centre, flanked by Trinity and Exeter College, and home to the world-famous Oxford Blackwells bookshop.
On the day I arrived, the place is filled with food, music, and crafts — thanks to an all-day open market — and the campus shops packed with people, though thankfully, not to the point of being cramped.
Card readers beep almost every 10 seconds as books and brownies are bought, wine kegs are flowing, and it’s days like this where the dark days of COVID and national lockdown feel like a distant memory.
In short, it’s a really pleasant vibe and there’s a constant hum of chatter as the city comes to life.
A short 10-15 minute walk away from the busier streets are a number of open green spaces.
These include Christ Church Meadows, the Botanic Gardens opposite Magdalen College, and – my personal favourite – University Parks, up past the Natural History Museum. In this spot, you’ll even find the Tolkien bench.
These spaces are perfect for quiet reflection, a picnic with friends and family, and or simply a walk in nature away from the hustle and hustle of Oxford City Centre.
Accessibility
One of the impressive things about Oxford Literary Festival is how easy it is to get around to different events.
Whether you’re in the Sheldonian Theatre, Oxford Martin Building, Brasenose College, or the Weston Lecture Theatre, no venue is ever more than a 3-minute walk from one-another.
This keeps the whole event accessible for older and/or disabled visitors so that everyone can enjoy what the festival has to offer, without having to rush between venues or jump on buses to get between talks.
Plus, there is almost always a one-hour interlude between talks too, enabling visitors to explore the city, peek into College quadrangles, or grab a refreshment.
The city itself is reasonably straightforward to get around too, provided you aren’t driving (Oxford isn’t an overly car-friendly place).
Fortunately, it’s got a decent bus network and the centre of the city isn’t spread too far apart, with most places within a 20-minute walk of one another. You can also Uber around easily enough.
Plus, if you’re eScooter-inclined, there are plenty of these available, making zipping around the city a relative breeze.
Connecting authors with readers
This year, the festival’s tagline, ‘The World’s Meeting Place for Writer and Readers’, stood out to me for a couple of reasons.
As a copywriter, and a fervent reader, I have the blessing / curse [delete as appropriate] of noticing microcopy and advertising copy all over the place, from bus stop adverts to event pamphlets.
But this is one of those cases where advertisements meet expectations. Oxford Literary Festival does genuinely feel like a place where authors and readers can connect in a meaningful way.
This is particularly important, because it fosters that sense of community and openness that feels immediately inclusive.
As I wrote last year, authors are more than happy to sign books and talk to attendees after their event. It’s not a case of them simply doing a talk and selling some books before being ushered away.
More often than not, the Q&As are very conversational too — giving the audience a more active role in the room. Festivals are getting much better at this now more broadly, but Oxford Literary Festival is particularly good at it.
Variety of speakers, topics, and venues
Coming to Oxford Literary Festival means you’ll find discussions anywhere from the politics of the day and Booker Prize-winning writers, through to debut novelists and talks from academic professionals on extremely niche topics.
One of my favourite talks has been by Nussaibah Younis on her debut novel Fundamentally — a book on ISIS-brides, with a ‘Fleabag-like sense of humour’ according to Younis. Meanwhile, seasoned academics such as Peter Boxall spoke on the possibility of literature and the changing faces of literary criticism in the last few decades.
Children are reasonably well-catered for too, with a dedicated programme of events. This year, Mel Taylor-Bessent kicked off the kids programme with an activity session where children were encouraged to create their own characters and worlds, with print-offs provided by the author.
Previous Childrens’ Laureate, Cressida Cowell, also joined young readers in the Sheldonian later in the day, talking about her How to Train Your Dragon series ahead of a live action film launching in the summer.
Overall, Oxford Literary Festival should be high on your list of must-attend book festivals, whether you’re a seasoned festival-goer or a reluctant first-time attendee.
It’s a friendly, approachable series of events that platforms brilliant thinkers, excellent orators, and some delightfully funny, thought-provoking talks.
Check out my book festival calendar for more festivals up and down the UK.