Explore the Festival programme

The Edinburgh International Book Festival takes place from 15-30 August 2026. The programme will be available in June 2026. Sign up for our ebulletins or follow us on social media to hear announcements and updates.

In the meantime, you can enjoy watching nearly 150 events from the 2025 Festival on our website. 

2024 Book Festival Highlights

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EIBF_2024-08-13_image by Mihaela Bodlovic (247)
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Look, Listen & read

The Front List: Ta-Nehisi Coates

The Front List: Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates is an award-winning, uncompromising commentator on race relations, truth, and justice, especially in America. He’ll discuss the urgent need for the West, and particularly America, to free itself from the myths it tells itself…

Roger Robinson: ‘Ordinary Poems Won’t Change the World (2020 Event)
Roger Robinson: ‘Ordinary Poems Won’t Change the World (2020 Event)

Firmly rooted in the dub poetry tradition of his Trinidadian heritage, Robinson’s plain-speaking, fizzy, often joyous verse journeys through our contemporary preoccupations with a…

Michel Faber: The ‘Evil Is In The ‘Etail (2020 Event)
Michel Faber: The ‘Evil Is In The ‘Etail (2020 Event)

Reminiscent of Charles Dickens and of Lewis Carroll, Michel Faber’s fable D is a delightful sideways look at the evils of our times. He joins us to discuss Dhikilo’s wild odyssey…

Freedom
Freedom by Vivian French

When I was little and complaining about the injustices of having to pick my clothes up off the floor and tidy my room, my grandfather would emerge from behind his newspaper and blink owlishly at me. ‘“Man”’ he would pronounce, ‘and that, Vivian, is a…