ISLE OF WIGHT BOOK AWARDS 2026
ISLAND SAILING CLUB
Tuesday 6th October
This year’s IW Book Awards Presentation Lunch will be the first event of the IW Literary Festival and will be held at the Island Sailing Club in Cowes, it will feature an opening speech by the Awards’ founder Hunter Davies and the three judges will be on hand to announce the winners and present the awards. Sponsored by David and Patsy Franks, The Isle Of Wight Festival, Creative Island, Medina Publishing and Monkton Arts, this year’s prizes are £200 for each of the category winners and an additional £500 for the overall winner of the Book Of The Year Award.
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CHEERS!
WINE TASTING WITH HELEN MCGINN
THURSDAY 8TH OCTOBER | 6PM
The effervescent Helen McGinn will be with us for a special wine tasting event. She will be guiding us through wines of her choice enriching our palettes and minds with her knowledge and expertise. (Cheese included).
Sponsored by www.represent.co.uk
FIZZ QUIZ
THURSDAY 8TH OCTOBER | 7.30PM (DOORS OPEN 6.00PM)
ISLAND SAILING CLUB
Enjoy the hospitality and ambiance of the Island Sailing Club while pitting your literary and general knowledge against other Festival goers at the popular Fizz Quiz.
Prizes include a bottle of fizz and discounts at the Festival Bookshop.
Teams to a maximum of six.
GET THORPE
FRIDAY 9TH OCTBOER | 11.00AM
Julian Francis Godolphin & Karen Phillipps
A lawyer and professional lobbyist, Julian Godolphin, and Karen Phillipps, legal adviser, mediator, barrister and confidant of George Carman QC, one of Britain's most famous lawyers, offer a forensic analysis of the events that led to and the trial of Jeremy Thorpe MP and ex leader of the Liberal Party. Julian, who knows about the involvement of Harold Wilson and Penrose and Courtier, the journalists who wrote a book which ultimately led to the arrest of Thorpe, sets the scene. Afterwards, Karen and Julian, will unravel the complexity of the case through a series of Q&As.examining the remarkable trial that followed.
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WRITE ON WIGHT
FOR THE ISLAND AUTHOR COMMUNITY
In partnership with the Naked Figleaf Press and Medina Book Shop
Following its successful inaugural year, Write on Wight is taking over the Friday night of our festival—now expanded into a full evening celebrating the Island’s vibrant literary talent. Head to out Write on Wight page here for a full schedule of the evening's events.
WHISKIES GALORE
FRIDAY 9TH OCTOBER | 5.00PM
Whisky fans will love the tasting session with expert Ian Buxton at the Royal Ocean Racing Club in Cowes on the Friday from 5pm.
Ian has written a new edition of his book Whiskies Galore about the whiskies of the Scottish islands and will be talking about these Scotches at the event sponsored by NFU Mutual, as well as giving a sample to ticket holders.
CATH KIDSTON Q&A
Thursday 9th October | Commodores House | 5.00pm - 6.00pm
Admission to this event is included as part of a ticket purchase for Cath Kidston MBE's talk ‘A Place To Call Home’, sponsored by Spence Willard and taking place at 11.00am, Friday 10th October, Northwood House
Join us at Commodores House, Cowes for a glass of Nyetimber English sparkling wine with Wine Broadcaster Helena Nicklin as she hosts a Q&A with Cath Kidston MBE.
Helena and Cath will discuss the inspiration behind Cath’s latest collection, ‘C Atherley’. Named after her grandmother, this natural bath and body care brand is a homage to her love of gardening and flowers and celebrates Cath's obsession with geraniums.
Guests will enjoy delicious Isle of Wight tomato canapes prepared by local bespoke caterers 'Eat Street'.
'C Atherley' products will be available to try and buy at a pop up store in Commodore’s House, including complimentary gifts with purchase, prize draw and a 10% donation from all sales to support the volunteer gardeners at Northwood House.
SEABOURN'S RUBY AFTERNOON TEA
SATURDAY 10TH OCTOBER | 3.00PM
WITH ROYAL BUTLER GRANT HARROLD
What does it really take to navigate afternoon tea with impeccable manners — and what happens when royalty comes to the table?
Join former Royal Household butler and leading etiquette expert Grant Harrold – The Royal Butler for a very special afternoon tea at the Royal London Yacht Club.
Drawing on seven years serving in the Royal Household of the then Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, Grant will share the traditions, rules and occasional pitfalls of royal and formal etiquette. From the correct way to approach afternoon tea to the finer points of introductions, conversation, table manners and protocol, he will reveal the dos and don’ts learned during an extraordinary career at the heart of royal life.
Along the way, Grant will share entertaining stories and insights from his years serving members of the Royal Family, offering guests a fascinating glimpse behind the scenes of a world governed by tradition, discretion and impeccable manners.
Sponsored by Seabourn, this special afternoon tea takes place on Saturday 10 October at the Royal London Yacht Club.
MURDER MYSTERY
THE WOODYARD MURDER
SATURDAY 10TH OCTOBER | 6.00PM
Another Saturday highlight will be a murder-mystery penned by Ann Cleeves, the writer of Vera and Shetland, who will be speaking at this year’s festival.
When a yoga teacher is murdered in The Woodyard, the community arts' centre run by Inspector Matthew Venn's husband Jonathan, everybody is shocked.
Will you be able to work out whodunnit?
SPONSORED BY SEABOURN
SOME ENCHANTED EVENING
SATURDAY 10TH OCTOBER | 7.30PM
A Celebration of Rodgers & Hammerstein and More
Prepare to be swept away by an unforgettable soirée of glorious melody as acclaimed baritone Mike Christie joins forces with pianist Jonathan Hodgson for a sumptuous celebration of the golden age of musical theatre.
At the heart of the programme lies the incomparable music of Rodgers and Hammerstein, with treasured songs from their enduring masterpieces The Sound of Music, The King and I, Carousel, Oklahoma! and South Pacific.
The journey continues with a dazzling collection of musical theatre favourites from some of the genre’s greatest composers and lyricists, including Jerry Herman, the Sherman Brothers, Boublil and Schönberg, Andrew Lloyd Webber, and Lerner and Loewe.
Expect highlights from The Phantom of the Opera, Les Misérables, Mary Poppins, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, Mack and Mabel, Camelot and My Fair Lady.
Join us for a timeless evening brimming with romance, nostalgia and humour — not to be missed.
HUGO BURNAND
SUNDAY 11TH OCTOBER | 12.00PM
An Audience with the King's Photographer
In this lively and interactive Q&A session, the audience takes the lead. Guests choose questions from the screen in a game-show style format, prompting Hugo Burnand to reveal stories from his remarkable career photographing royalty, society and history in the making. Illustrated with photographs and well supplied with anecdotes, the answers may be educational, historical, surprising—or occasionally just a little cheeky.
SNAKES AND LADDERS
SUNDAY 11TH OCTOBER | 3.00PM
PUBLISHING PANEL | HELPFUL TIPS FROM EXPERTS ON FINDING AN AUDIENCE FOR YOUR WRITING
Join literary agent Caroline Sheldon, poet and author Lily Blacksell, and Pan Macmillan’s Senior Influencer Marketing Manager Emma Oulton for an insider’s look at the modern publishing world.
From catching the eye of an agent and developing a manuscript, to the experience of working with a publisher and launching a first book, the panel will explore what really happens behind the scenes. They will also look at the increasingly important role of social media, influencers and BookTok in helping books find their audiences.
Bringing together the perspectives of agent, author and marketer, this conversation will offer practical insight into how books are discovered, developed, published and promoted today.
Whether you are an aspiring writer, an emerging author or simply curious about how publishing works, this is a chance to hear directly from three people working at very different stages of a book’s journey.
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