What’s On

Illustrated with images from Phyllis Dalton’s own extraordinary archive, Alexander Ballinger’s event celebrates the glittering career of the Oscar-winning film costume designer. Expect to be entertained by behind-the-scenes insights from…more

Award-winning investigative journalist and podcast producer Kaf Okpattah spent months in the murky online world of fraudsters who use artificial intelligence, encrypted messaging and social media platforms to commit increasingly…more

A chance to enjoy Alan Bennett’s beautiful 1984 comedy filmed in Ilkley: A Private Function, starring Michael Palin and Maggie Smith as the married couple who, whilst rationing continues following…more

Hull’s own Nancy Birtwhistle came to fame by winning The Great British Bake Off in 2014. Since then, motivated by protecting the planet for her ten grandchildren, Birtwhistle decided to…more

John Yorke knows what makes a compelling story. His resume includes Head of Channel Four Drama, Controller of BBC Drama Production, a lecturer on all forms of narrative and author…more

What draws a human being into an intimate relationship with a non-human? Academic, writer and award-winning filmmaker Dr Agnieszka Piotrowska explores the fast-growing intimate relationships between humans and generative AI….more

From the icy oceans of our poles to remote coral islands, Sir David Attenborough’s long-term collaborator Colin Butfield has filmed in every ocean habitat on planet earth. Across one hundred…more

EVENT CANCELLED DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES.  Around 41% of Americans believe aliens have made contact. Orwell Prize-winning journalist Daniel Lavelle set out on a road trip through the USA’s UFO…more

Tennis player. National coach. Mother to two champions. Strictly contestant. Costa Prize judge. Edinburgh Fringe performer. Author of a Sunday Times bestselling autobiography. OBE. And now – crime writer! Judy…more

Tennis player. National coach. Mother to two champions. Strictly contestant. Costa Prize judge. Edinburgh Fringe performer. Author of a Sunday Times bestselling autobiography. OBE. And now – crime writer! Judy…more

Do you know your Chronicles of Narnia from your Game of Thrones? Your Anne Tyler from your Ann Patchett?  Quiz Master Mel hosts the ILF institution: the annual book quiz!…more

Be first to discover two exciting new novels published in Spring 2027. The first, Wits, is a Restoration dramedy told exclusively in letters. Author Stephanie Bain is a writer and…more

In his first solo title, Si King – one half of the Hairy Bikers alongside his best friend, the late Dave Myers – shares the food he cooks and eats…more

VENUE CHANGE: DIFFERENT FROM BROCHURE – EVENT NOW TAKING PLACE AT KING’S HALL One of the world’s foremost novelists Kate Atkinson returns to Ilkley to discuss her latest dazzling standalone…more

THIS EVENT WILL BE AVAILABLE TO VIEW ONLINE AT 5PM (Recording will take place at 2pm). One of the world’s foremost novelists Kate Atkinson returns to Ilkley to discuss her…more

An event exclusively for Friends and Patrons of Ilkley Literature Festival. Purchase a membership here! Born into a famous artistic dynasty at a time when women of her class were not…more

An event exclusively for Friends and Patrons of Ilkley Literature Festival. Purchase a membership here! Born into a famous artistic dynasty at a time when women of her class were not expected…more

Stephen Sondheim wrote a song for her; Ted Hughes translated a play. An icon at twenty-seven, Yorkshire-born actor Diana Rigg was Emma Peel, the cat-suited Avenger, and 007’s only wife….more

Decolonial Poetics Nature Walk and Workshop In this immersive walking and poetry workshop led by acclaimed poet, author and academic Emily Zobel Marshall, we will use a cyanometer (an 18th-century…more

Kickstart your weekend with a guided coffee tasting from a man who knows his beans. A go-to coffee expert, Tim Ridley established Department of Coffee and Social Affairs, one of…more