About Us

BridLit has much to celebrate in this our special year. Spawned from the internationally celebrated Bridport Prize, the Festival was conceived over two decades ago. A brainchild of Mark Culme-Seymour, director of Eype Church Centre for the Arts, who together with Chris Huxley, director of the Bridport Arts Centre and myself, director of the Beaminster Festival of Music and the Arts created, incubated and delivered a programme of literary events to be enjoyed by the local community and audiences from across West Dorset. Local resident Venetia Ross Skinner became our first generous sponsor. Our concept of a literary festival was to bring authors together to Bridport, at a particularly fallow time of year for the town, to talk about books and share their ideas with diverse audiences with eclectic interests. From humble beginnings, BridLit was registered as a charity in 2012, the Festival has grown in stature to be recognised nationally and enjoyed both by writers and all lovers of literature from across the country. We hope there is much to inspire and enlighten in this year’s programme featuring many aspects of the Arts.

Festival Director: Tanya Bruce-Lockhart

President: Lord Fellowes of West Stafford

Festival Patron: Sir Michael Holroyd CBE

Trustees:
Deirdre Coates – Chairman,
David Burnett, Helen Carless, Nick Child, Rose Joly, Stuart Rock, Venetia Ross Skinner (Honorary Trustee)

The Team:
Tanya Harley, Margery Hookings, Tom Hughes, Joanna Jacobson, Adrien Munden, Graham Shackleton.

Interlocutors: James Crowden, John Dean, Howard Davies, Jamie Giles, Olivia Glazebrook, Rachel James, Nic Jeune, Prue Keely, Paul Lashmar, Sally Laverack, Oliver Letwin, Caroline Montagu, Georgina Moore, Sophy Roberts, Sam Rose, Susannah Simons, Barney White-Spunner, Helen Stiles, Jo Willett, Rene Wyndham

Festival Bookshop

The Bookshop, 14 South Street, Bridport, DT6 3NQ | 01308 422964

Tickets:

Bridport Town Hall, South St, Bucky Doo Square, Bridport DT6 3LF
01308 424901 | bridport.tic@bridport-tc.gov.uk

Charity No: 1147075