The Wigtown Book Festival is a ten-day literary festival held each autumn in Wigtown, Dumfries and Galloway, south-west Scotland. The festival was first held in 1999 and has grown to be the second biggest book festival in Scotland.
2024 Festival
In 2024, the festival took place between 27 September - 6 October. The 2024 festival had over 250 planned events, with a focus on discussing the Galloway Coast and climate change. Performers at the 2024 festival included actor Alan Cumming, poet Pam Ayres and writer Irvine Welsh.
History
The first festival took place in 1999.
In 2007, the Wigtown Festival Company became a registered charity.
In 2013, there were 7500 visitors to the festival, more than half of which were from outside Dumfries and Galloway. A report commissioned by the Wigtown Festival Company in 2013 estimated that the festival contributed £2 million to the regional economy each year. This was three times higher than that estimated by a similar study in 2008.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the festival was held entirely online. It resumed as a physical festival in September 2021. 2021 performers included the crime writer Val McDermid and the novelist Nadifa Mohamed.
The 2022 festival involved over 200 events, with novelist and speakers including Karen Campbell and Hugh McMillan.
The 2023 festival took place from the 22 September to 1 October. Performers and readers included Nigel Planer, Kate Mosse and Jo Caulfield.
Events, Competitions and Prizes
Regular festival events include the annual James Mirrlees lecture, which marks the local Novel Prize economist.
The Anne Brown Prize has been given since 2021 for the best essay. It is named for Anne Brown, a former chairwoman and trustee of the festival and comes with a £1,500 financial prize.
Poetry competition
The festival runs an annual international poetry competition and awards three separate prizes for compositions in English, Scottish Gaelic and Scots. Prizes are given to winners.
References
- ^ Ferguson, Brain (27 August 2014). "Wigtown Book Festival to set sail on Solway Firth". The Scotsman: Scotland on Sunday. Archived from the original on 30 August 2014.
- Finklestein, David; McCleery, Alistair, eds. (2008). The Edinburgh history of the book in Scotland. Vol. 4: Professionalism and diversity 1880-2000. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press. p. 453. ISBN 978-0-7486-1829-3.
- Lu, Yu Tonia (2015). Lost in location: arts development and policy in rural Scotland (PDF). University of Glasgow (PhD thesis). p. 152.
- "Wigtown Book Festival". www.wigtownbookfestival.com.
- ^ "How becoming Scotland's National Book Town transformed Wigtown's fortunes". ITV News. 7 December 2023. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
- ^ "Alan Cumming among Wigtown Book Festival highlights". BBC News. 6 August 2024. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
- "OSCR | Charity Details". OSCR. Archived from the original on 9 August 2015. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
- "Wigtown Book Festival secures financial boost". BBC News. Archived from the original on 4 October 2014. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
- ^ "Wigtown Book Festival gets 'show back on the road'". BBC News. 21 September 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
- "Wigtown Book Festival promises hundreds of events". BBC News. 22 September 2022. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
- ^ "Wigtown Book Festival line-up begins to take shape". BBC News. 18 July 2023. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
- "Wigtown essay prize honours 'extraordinary' journalist Anne Brown". BBC News. 13 July 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2024.
- "Wigtown Book Festival - Poetry Competition". www.wigtownbookfestival.com. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
Further reading
- MacLeod, D. (2009). "Scottish theme towns: Have new identities enhanced development?" (PDF). Journal of Tourism and Cultural Change. 7 (2): 133–145. doi:10.1080/14766820903126460. S2CID 35853860.
- Seaton, A. V. (1999). "Book towns as tourism developments in peripheral areas". International Journal of Tourism Research. 1 (5): 389–399. doi:10.1002/(SICI)1522-1970(199909/10)1:5<389::AID-JTR204>3.0.CO;2-0.