Yorkshire Voices Take Centre Stage As Ilkley Literature Festival Returns

The north's longest-running literary festival opens in less than a fortnight, with a third of this year's authors drawn from, living in or closely connected to Yorkshire.

Ilkley Literature Festival 2026 has something for most tastes, with a programme that runs from Mesopotamian epic to natural cleaning. Alongside the nationally and internationally acclaimed names it draws every year, the festival is making a point of championing the county's own writers.

"With such a wealth of home-grown literary talent here in Yorkshire, we are proud to champion local writers too," said Erica Morris, Chief Executive of Word Up North, which produces the festival. "This year one third of the authors appearing at the festival are from, live in or have strong connections to Yorkshire, which is pretty remarkable. Having been part of the cultural fabric of the county for over fifty years, we know how important events like ours are in inspiring new generations and demonstrating that Yorkshire's writers stand amongst the best in the world."

The biggest Yorkshire name is the Poet Laureate. Simon Armitage returns to Ilkley to launch his new verse translation of Gilgamesh, the epic poem that began in Ancient Mesopotamia nearly 4,000 years ago. He spent more than a decade on it. The book sets verse alongside commentary and context, and turns the hero's desperate search for immortality into a very modern story (17 October, 7.30pm).

Another Ilkley regular, Ian McMillan, brings his new collection, Red River Valley. One of Britain's best-loved living poets, he writes about family life, everyday surrealism and what austerity has done to the village near Barnsley where he has lived all his life. After a long career as a writer and broadcaster, he says he is still looking for his voice. It may be in Red River Valley, which was his father's favourite song (16 October, 7pm).

York-raised novelist Fiona Mozley was shortlisted for the Booker Prize with her debut, Elmet. Her new novel, Awake Awake, has a narrator who looks a lot like her. Mary Mooney is also a novelist from York whose first book is up for a major prize. Mary's problem is that she remembers too much rather than too little. The most troubling memories concern her Jewish grandfather and the part he is said to have played in the death of Adolf Hitler. She is sure it cannot be true, but she still has doubts (10 October, 1.15pm).

Some of the most popular events are likely to be far from the literary mainstream. Paul "Piglet" Middleton has worked on the North York Moors Railway since leaving school and has looked after it for more than 30 years. He now leads the team that maintains and runs the world's most-visited heritage railway. The star of Channel 4's Steam Train Diaries will share funny and moving stories about the line and the staff and volunteers who keep it running (11 October, 12 noon).

Hull's Nancy Birtwhistle won The Great British Bake Off in 2014. Wanting to protect the planet for her ten grandchildren, she has since cut back on plastic, single-use products and chemicals at home, and her swaps and natural cleaning methods have been taken up by millions. She will talk about her latest book, Clean Magic (4 October, 2.30pm).

Keighley-born Shahnaz Ahsan, an author, columnist and award-winning food writer, presents The Jackfruit Chronicles. The memoir explores the flavours and history of Bengali food through her family's recipes and memories. Dishes range from sour tomato broth and jackfruit kofta curry to fish with clementine peels and cardamom-infused vermicelli pudding. It is a love letter to family, food and Bangladesh (10 October, 6.15pm).

This is the National Year of Reading, and several events look at how stories are made. John Yorke has been Head of Channel Four Drama and Controller of BBC Drama Production, and his bestseller Into the Woods changed how many people think about story structure. His new book, Trip to the Moon, looks at the power of stories beyond art and culture, in politics and current affairs (4 October, 3.45pm).

The wider programme includes interviews with the award-winning novelists Kate Atkinson and Joanne Harris, and panels with bestsellers Oyinkan Braithwaite and Tom Hindle. There are also new debut novelists and reading groups on classic books. Jasper Fforde reveals the final instalment of his Thursday Next series about a literary detective. Michelle Anya Anjirbag and Melanie Ramdarshan Bold give cultural histories of Cinderella and Paddington Bear, and broadcaster Matthew Sweet looks at the surprising life and huge output of Barbara Cartland.

Armitage has called the festival "always a landmark occasion in the literary year, an ongoing success with a proud history." With so much of this year's line-up from Yorkshire, the county is making a strong case for itself.

Full programme and tickets: ilkleyliteraturefestival.org.uk