About the Festival

Our abiding passion is to make Poole Literary Festival (PLF) an established annual event, which is a major contributor to the cultural life of Poole and a highlight in the UK Literary Calendar.

We are a not-for-profit organisation founded in April 2009 by Sue Luminati, and run with the help of a dynamic steering group of unpaid volunteers. Former Children’s Laureate Michael Morpurgo is our Patron and the inspiration behind establishing a Festival of Literature in Poole.

The Festival will provide the opportunity to meet some of your favourite authors and discover new ones through our programme of workshops, discussions and events for adults, children and families. By creating an environment where people can dive into a world of words we hope to ignite your literary passions and leave you wanting more!

The Festival will be varied - a mix of serious and sparky, big names alongside the up-and-coming, with some surprises to create that edge and catch us unawares. But most of all it will be fun!

Poole is a unique location with much to offer, from a quirky Quay, an award winning blue flag beach, a highly regarded University, the largest regional arts venue in the country - the Lighthouse, fine restaurants and first-class accommodation. The enormous growth in Literary Festivals in recent years is good news and a remarkable success story, Poole should be a part of that success.

The Lighthouse, Concert Hall

We need your support to ensure that PLF is a success. If you would like to know more about our Friends of the Festival scheme or would like to volunteer please do get in touch.

About Poole

Click here to find out more about Poole.

Friends of the Festival

Becoming a Friend of the Festival is a brilliant way of keeping in touch with what’s happening at PLF and a great way of providing long-term support, helping to ensure the Festival's future, after all that’s what friends are for! Find out more here.

Steering Commitee

Find out more about the PLF steering group and their favourite books.

Poole Confessions

Writer David Gaffney is collecting the anonymous confessions of the people
of Poole to turn them into micro-stories. He will perform the stories in
in a custom built mobile confessional box in Poole Dolphin Shopping Centre & Lighthouse Poole’s centre for the Arts, as part of the Poole Literary Festival. Look out for the box and join the queue! After hearing a story the listener will decide on an appropriate penance and the penances will be posted on the Poole confessions website.

> Take Part

Post your anonymous confession, read other people’s confessions, or simply
find out more, by visiting www.pooleconfessions.com