When is the next Derby Book Festival?

Our Autumn Festival is taking place from 14 - 19 November 2024 at various venues across Derby city centre - primarily at QUAD. We are offering in-person events as well as a Digital Pass and individual event recordings.

Our annual Book and Craft Market is taking place on Saturday 23 November at The Museum of Making.

When are tickets going on sale?

Festival Friends can access priority bookings from 10am on Tuesday 24 September.
Our general sale begins on Tuesday 1 October from 10am.

If you’d like to find out more about signing up to become a Festival Friend, visit the website here.

How can I book tickets?

You can book tickets for all events via the Derby Book Festival website here.

If you are unable to book tickets online and wish to book in person, please contact us by emailing hello@derbybookfestival.co.uk.

You can book tickets in person for all the events that will be hosted at QUAD. You can either visit their box office or telephone them on 01332 290606. Please check QUAD’s website for opening times before visiting.

For all events taking place at Derby Museum (Old Library), Landau Forte College, Artcore and the West End Community Centre, please book directly through our website. To book for the Pippa Curnick events at Alvaston Library and Normanton Library, book at the library or call them directly.

Please note that, due to the format of our booking system, you are required to enter your card details into our secure payment page even when booking free tickets. Please be assured that your card will not be charged.

I have a carer, do they need to book a ticket?

Our policy is to provide a complimentary ticket to any carer on request. Please email hello@derbybookfestival.co.uk for more information.

Where can I view the programme?

You can view our full festival line-up here.

We will also be distributing printed programmes to venues and locations across the city. You can pick one up from QUAD, Derby Museums and Art Galleries, Artcore, local libraries, and other arts venues.

If you’d like to stock copies of our programme, please let us know by emailing hello@derbybookfestival.co.uk.


Will I receive a physical ticket?

You will only receive a physical ticket for events at QUAD if you book in person and/or request one from QUAD. You will not receive a physical ticket if you book for events online through the Festival website. All events booked through our website will automatically generate a confirmation email, which is also your ticket. There is no need to print your confirmation email as we will have a guest list. You can also show it at the event entrance on your phone.

If the event is cancelled, will I get a refund?

Yes, tickets are refundable (and exchangeable where possible) if an event is cancelled.

I’m not able to attend in-person events, can I watch online?

Yes, we have several options: we are filming and recording 15 events. You can either buy and view these as individual event recordings (each costing 50% of the in-person ticket except for the Afternoon Tea event with Sam Leith - the recording costs £5) or you can buy a Digital Pass for £35 for all 15 recorded events. These recordings will be available to you after the Festival has finished.

How long will these recordings be available for?

Once the Festival has finished, our external filming and sound team will start uploading the recordings to our YouTube channel. This means individual recordings and the Digital Pass will be available for a period of six weeks from 22 November to 3 January.

More details about the Digital Pass can be viewed here.

What are the benefits of becoming a Festival Friend?

By becoming a Festival Friend for 12 months, you receive benefits such as accessing priority bookings to all events one week before tickets go on general sale. Throughout the year, you will also receive ticket offers and be invited to special events.

How do I become a Festival Friend?

It’s really easy to become a Friend of Derby Book Festival. Simply visit the website here, and decide whether you want to purchase a single or joint membership. Unlike other memberships, you do not have to live at the same address as the person you share your membership with.

Can I purchase refreshments during my event?

Most of our venues have cafe/bar facilities including food.  You can take drinks in with you at QUAD and Landau Forte College.  We would ask you not to take food into events as this may disturb other audience members and the author/interviewer.

The cafe bar at QUAD serves hot and cold food during its opening hours. Please check their website for details.

A licensed bar will be open at Landau Forte College before their events start and drinks can be taken into their theatre.  

There is a cafe at the Old Library (Derby Museum & Art Gallery) but it is not open on Sundays. 

How should I travel to the venues?

We are committed to finding ways to reduce the environmental impact of the Festival. We would encourage you to walk, cycle or use public transport to get to our venues but realise this is not always practical.

We are partnering with Travel Derbyshire to encourage bus use to all Festival events. Not only are buses a sustainable and affordable mode of travel, all single journeys cost just £2 for the remainder of the year. There are many bus services operating in Derby. Most terminate at Derby bus station, located in the heart of the city.

If you are travelling in from across the county, there are plenty of options for you: Stagecoach, Trent Barton and Arriva Midlands operate direct bus services. To find out which service is best for you, visit travelderbyshire.co.uk to find out about ticket offers and the Wayfarer rover pass which allows almost unlimited all-day travel between Derbyshire and nearby town centres, or scan the QR code to access the Traveline journey planning tool.

If driving, you can get FREE or discounted parking when visiting most of our venues. Check website for details.

Where should I park if I am coming to Festival events?

If you are driving to events, there is both on street parking (generally metered) and a range of car parks in the city centre within a short walking distance from QUAD, the Old Library and Artcore.  

Please note that the Assembly Rooms Car Park is scheduled to close and will not be available during the Festival. 

For events at QUAD or the Museum of Making/Old Library, we recommend using Chapel Street car park or Bold Lane  ‘Parksafe’, as your ticket can be validated by the box office, so you only need to pay £2.70 for the day.

There are other open air car parks and metered street parking close to QUAD and Artcore, but they will probably be more expensive if your visit lasts longer than two hours. If you need any advice on parking, please email: hello@derbybookfestival.co.uk

At Landau Forte College there is a car park at the venue and parking is offered for free to attendees.

At Alvaston Library there is a free car park behind the row of shops where the library is located.  At Normanton Library there is no public car park but on street parking is usually available next to the building, particularly during the daytime.

What are your plans for Festivals in 2025?

Our 2025 Festival will take place between 23 May and 1 June. We’re working hard on putting together an exceptional range of events in celebration of our 10th Year.  We will also be holding an Autumn Edition in November and one-off events during the year.

What are the addresses of your venues: (A-Z)

Alvaston Library and Learning Centre:
1252 London Road,
Alvaston
Derby, DE24 8QP

Artcore:
Artcore Gallery,
8 Osnabruck Square,
Albert Square,
Derby, DE1 2DS

Derby Museum & Art Gallery (DMAG):
Old Library, The Wardwick,
Derby, DE1 1BS

Landau Forte College:
Fox Street,
Derby, DE1 2LS

Normanton Library:
Almond Street,
Derby, DE23 6LX

QUAD:
QUAD, Market Place,
Cathedral Quarter,
Derby, DE1 3AS

The Museum of Making:
Silk Mill Lane,
Derby, DE1 3AJ

West End Community Centre:
Mackworth Road
Derby, DE22 3BL

Accessibility

We want our Festival to be accessible to all. We work closely with our venues to ensure they can deal with your needs - check their websites for further details.

All our venues are accessible - if you need assistance at the venue, please contact us using the email below.

We work with Communication Unlimited to provide translations of events into BSL. If there is an event you would like to attend and need a BSL interpreter, email hello@derbybookfestival.co.uk and we will arrange this.