Richmond Town Hall, DL10 4QL | 7:30pm | £10 | Refreshments, bookstall, disabled access.

In 'White Spines: Confessions of a Book Collector' (Salt), Nicholas Royle wrote about collecting all the Picador paperbacks published between 1972 and 2000. In follow-up 'Shadow Lines: Searching for the Book Beyond the Shelf ' (Salt), Royle – described by the Telegraph as ‘fast becoming the bibliophile’s bibliophile’ – turns his attention to what he calls ‘inclusions’, improvised bookmarks left in second-hand books. Royle, also a novelist, short story writer, publisher and creative writing tutor, will be in conversation with writer, critic and Royle’s former student Matthew Adamson, whose enthusiasm for his ex-tutor’s Picador-collecting memoir was such that he undertook his own 'White Spines' Tour, setting out to visit all of the 100 second-hand bookshops covered in that book, but who retains enough critical distance to ask Royle difficult questions about his habit of walking and reading, his practice of returning books to former homes, and his fascination with Thomas the Tank Engine.

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Leave Station car park 9.15am. Start at Greta Bridge roadside parking by the bridge (GR: NZ 086 132, What3Words: ///rollover.clutches.mixture) at 9.45am. 6.5 Miles. Easy. £15 to include the guided tour of Rokeby Park

Our day starts at Greta Bridge and the roman settlement and fort that existed there alongside the old roman road.  As we enter the Rokeby Estate we learn about the history of Mortham Tower, and also the connections to Sir Walter Scott and JMW Turner and the romantic setting of Waters Meet. We follow a delightful, wooded stretch of the River Tees to Egglestone Abbey. Returning to Rokeby Park, the main part of the afternoon will be taken up by a guided tour of the house and the fascinating history of the families who have lived there. We will walk back to Greta Bridge through landscaped grounds alongside the Greta, emerging at the old gatehouse in time to visit the Morritt Arms and a chance to see Gilroy’s famous wall mural. There will be time for refreshments. With the walk and visit this will be a full day.  A guide from Rokeby Park will be with us all day and will tell us about the connections between the landscape and the history of the estate.

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Leave Station car park at 9.30am. Start at Reeth Village Green by the Kings Arms Hotel (GR: SE 038 993, What3Words: ///fallback.cake.flinch) at 10.00am. 10 Miles.1,400 feet of climbing. Moderate. £7

An initial steady climb takes us onto moor to enjoy excellent views up along Swaledale, using good paths and tracks above the valley. We descend to the hamlet of Low Row to cross the iconic Isles Bridge. Our return is along the valley, with sections along the new Swale Trail and the riverside path, before crossing the Reeth Suspension Footbridge to return to our start.

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Leave Station car park at 9.30am. Start at Layby on A684 before West Witton (GR: SE 067 885, What3Words: ///cheater.sprayer.proclaims) at 10.00am. 8 Miles. Easy. £7

From our starting point we will walk through the village of West Witton, steadily gaining height as we head west along Langthwaite Lane, now a footpath. We descend to the interesting ruins of a Knights Templar Chapel. The final section of the walk is along field and riverside paths including a very scenic stretch of the River Ure as we pass Redmire Force on our way.

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The Station, Richmond DL10 4LD | Two workshops 10:00am – 1:00pm and 1:30pm to 4:30pm | £25 | Café/restaurant, bookstall, disabled access (to The Station but not for walk)

These workshops are a three hour local stroll, with stops for sketching. Discover or rediscover lovely areas around Richmond with this local walk and drawing session with artist, Liz Harvey. Liz will provide sketchbooks and materials as well as portable stools so you can draw in (relative!) comfort. Liz is an experienced teacher and artist and will guide you through how to compose your work, use different mark making techniques and develop a series of sketches of the local area. The aim will be to use a range of different materials throughout the session. The route will be dependent on weather, but please come prepared with layers of clothes and a waterproof as well as comfortable shoes. 

This session is suitable for complete beginners and also more experienced artists as Liz will guide you individually at each stop to ensure you are able to develop your skills. 

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Meet outside the Town Hall at 12.00 noon. Free but donations to the Richmond Mayor’s Charity most welcome.

Your costumed guide, a Richmond policeman of 1842, takes you for a walk back in time lasting just over one hour.

 

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The Station, Richmond DL10 4LD \ 2:00pm – 5:00pm\ £55 including materials\ Café/restaurant, disabled access.

Have you ever wondered how fine and antiquarian books were made? The art and craft of book making dates back over two thousand years, but whether that’s works from ancient China, Japanese designs, the rich tradition of Islamic bookbinding, or the leather-bound volumes of stately-home libraries, the principles are similar: papers are sewn together and secured within a protective, often decorated, casing. In this workshop led by local bookbinder, Delphine Ruston, see for yourself how books start life by making two books of your own to take away – a 3-hole pamphlet (or chap book), and a single-section, hardback notebook. With a few materials, tools and simple skills, it’s possible to make attractive books to put to whatever use you wish.

Sponsored by: The Station

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Richmond Town Hall, DL10 4QL | 7:30pm | £10 | Refreshments, bookstall, disabled access.

Martin Edwards will give the first of our planned annual Peter Robinson Memorial Talks. Peter, author of the Inspector Banks’ books, was the Festival’s patron until his death in 2022.

Martin will talk about Peter and their many conversations about the crime writing life over the years and also about his book ‘The Life of Crime: Detecting the History of Mysteries and their Creators’, the first major history of crime fiction in fifty years. The book traces the evolution of the genre from the eighteenth century to the present, offering brand-new perspectives on the world’s most popular form of fiction.

Martin Edwards is a multi-award-winning crime novelist, the President of the Detection Club, archivist of the Crime Writers’ Association and series consultant to the British Library’s highly successful series of crime classics.

Sponsored by: Millgate House

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Leave Station car park at 9.00am. Start Buckden National Park Car Park (Charge £5.50/day). (GR: SD 942 772, What3Words: ///sports.unhelpful.outreach) at 10:00am.  9 miles, 1700 feet of climbing. Hard.

Buckden Pike (702m 2300ft) is the iconic mountain at the top of Wharfedale. We ascend from the south-west using the old miners’ route passing the lead mine entrance and ruined buildings. From the summit, on a clear day, we will get good views of the Yorkshire 3 peaks and other recognisable Dales mountains. We descend assisted by the new National Trust gravelled path bridging the well-known bogs, before descending to the hamlet of Cray. We walk east along the Limestone Pavement under Yockenthwaite Moor to pretty Hubberholme and back along the Wharfe to Buckden. 

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Leave Station car park 9.15am. Park at Demesnes (free car park, accessed via Gray Lane off Thorngate) (GR: NZ 050 160, What3Words: ///beeline.bring.speedily) at 10.00am. 7 Miles. Moderate. £7

We follow the Teesdale Way for the first part of our walk, passing the Castle which gives the town its name. We cross the Tees and walk along it’s south bank to Pecknell Wood. Here, we pick up a bridleway that takes us into the lovely grounds of the Grade II* listed Lartington Hall.  Reaching the village of Lartington, we follow the course of a dismantled railway that once carried coal from the Durham coalfields to the Lancashire mills. An impressive bridge abutment marks the line’s crossing of Deepdale Beck, where we descend into Deepdale Wood. We follow the beck back to its confluence with the Tees, and then back into Barnard Castle, where our walk concludes with opportunities to visit the Castle, cafes, and the Bowes Museum.

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Leave Station car park at 9.15am. Start at layby just after the United Reform Chapel in Low Row (GR:SD 979 977, What3Words :///rewarded.plus.warblers) at 10.00am. 6 Miles. Moderate. £7

We are pleased to include a new Discovery Walk, led by a member of the team at the Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust. This will be a walk and talk on the theme of rivers and wildlife, starting from near Isles Bridge just west of Low Row, following the River Swale to Gunnerside from where we climb up above the village to be rewarded with beautiful views of Swaledale. A ridge walk at the edge of the moorland is followed by a steady descent through fields and woodland before returning to our starting point. Please note there are some uneven paths and stiles, and a steep climb. 

Supported by: The Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust   

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The Station, Richmond DL10 4LD| 10:00am – 2:00pm | £15 | Café/restaurant, bookstall, disabled access

Join local writer Mary-Jane Holmes on this writing workshop which includes a two hour walk around the wonderful town of Richmond. As we stroll its paths, we will reflect on how our experience of environments shapes us and how by harnessing our powers of deep observation in relation to our surroundings, we can develop a more active way of seeing the world we inhabit.

This workshop will combine discussion, walking, listening to the work of writers and fun writing exercises. It is open to everyone whether you are a seasoned writer of any genre be that poetry, fiction or memoir or simply curious about the creative writing process.

Mary-Jane Holmes is a published and prize-winning poet who lives in Teesdale. Her latest book is ‘Set a crow to catch a crow’ (2023).

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Start at parking opposite Gilling West Village Hall (GR: NZ183 051, What3Words:///canal.influencing.tries) at 10.15am. 4 Miles. Easy. Free just turn up on the day.  

A short walk which is part of the national Ramblers Wellbeing Walks programme. There should be some good autumn tints to see as we pass through lovely woods. We cross the fields to the hamlet of Hartforth with its interesting modern turreted house. We pick up “Jagger Lane”, once used to carry lead on horseback from the local Lead Mines. After a short climb, we leave the lane to skirt the horse fields past the Grade II listed Gillingwood Hall with its mysterious follies, once part of the grounds of an 18th Century Hall which burnt down in 1750. Old Hall Lane takes us back to Gilling West.

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Georgian Theatre Royal, Richmond DL10 4DW | 7:30pm | £12 from www.georgiantheatreroyal.co.uk | Bar, bookstall, disabled access

Sarah Siddons grew up always poor and often hungry. But before she was 30 she had become a superstar. Her London debut in 1775 aged just 20, was a disaster. But the young actress – already a mother of two - rebuilt her career, returning triumphantly to the capital seven years later. Her shows were sell-outs.

In a world of vicious satire and gossip, Sarah battled to protect her reputation. She took constant pains to portray herself as a wife and mother, but this hid some darker truths. This remarkable woman also redefined the world of theatre and became the first celebrity actress.

Jo Willett is an award-winning freelance producer of TV comedy and drama and has now begun a second career writing historical biographies.

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Leave Station car park at 9.15am.  Start at Bainbridge Village Green (GR: SD 934 902, What3Words: ///asterisk.composed.graphic) at 10.00am. 12 Miles. Hard. £7

This walk, last in the programme in 2021, visits both the summit of Addlebrough with its remains of an Iron Age settlement, and also the beautiful Semer Water - one of only two natural lakes in North Yorkshire. On leaving Bainbridge our route climbs onto an escarpment with fine views over the Ure Valley and the site of the Roman fort, before making a steep climb up to the summit of Addlebrough (480m). The descent takes us through the remains of the Iron Age settlement and then along ancient tracks running across attractive heathland where curlew and oystercatchers can usually be seen. We will join the route of Wainwright's “Pennine Journey” as we walk through the limestone scenery to the attractive hamlet of Stalling Busk and on, past the evocative remains of the old church, to the shores of Semer Water. From here the route follows the River Bain back to the starting point.

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Leave Station car park at 9.15am. Rendezvous at National Park CP in Muker, entrance before the bridge. (GR: SD 911 978, What3Words: ///towel.dished.ringers) at 10.00am. 9 Miles. Moderate. £7

It is claimed that Keld has the highest concentration of waterfalls within a mile of the village of anywhere in England. This walk takes in the half-dozen that are publicly accessible, as well as views of a number of others. Along the way, traditional hay meadows, with their characteristic small barns, give an insight into the agricultural history of Upper Swaledale, while glimpses of lead mining activity speak of its industrial heritage. Leaving the charming village of Muker, we head up over the shoulder of Kisdon Hill, with stunning views of the surrounding fells. Dropping down, we loop around Keld – the highest settlement in Swaledale – to visit each of its waterfalls, culminating in impressive Kisdon Force. A gentle stroll through fields alongside the river brings us back to Muker and the end of our journey through this beautiful and remote corner of the Dales.    

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Leave Station car park at 9.45am. Rendezvous at Nosterfield Nature Reserve car park (GR: SE 279 795, What3Words: ///divides.commenced.voltage) at 10.30am. An easy nature walk of around 5 Miles. £7

Following an early sell out in 2023, we are repeating this Discovery Walk at the National Nature Reserve at Nosterfield and the nearby reserve at Nosterfield Quarry, still a working quarry. During a short walk over level ground we will learn about the restoration of former quarries into nature reserves well known locally for their bird life and flowers, learning something of the conservation methods used to create and improve habitats, including the propagation nursery set up at the site to supply plants for this work.  Your knowledgeable team for the day will help you identify the flora and fauna present. A member of the Nosterfield team will explain their work.   Please bring binoculars if you have them. We aim to spend the morning at Nosterfield Reserve before transferring to Nosterfield Quarry for the afternoon, with a planned finish at around 4pm.

Supported by: The Lower Ure Conservation Trust

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The Station, Richmond DL10 4LD | 11:00am – midday | £8 | Café/restaurant, bookstall, disabled access.

Peter Barron will talk about his lifetime working on newspapers. He is a very amusing raconteur.

Peter is an award-winning journalist and was the Editor of the Northern Echo for 40 years. He is widely regarded as one of the UK's foremost regional journalists. He is also the author of children’s books and is Deputy Lieutenant of County Durham.

 

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Richmond Town Hall, DL10 4QL | 7:30pm | £10 | Refreshments, bookstall, disabled access.

‘The Lion Who Never Roared’ is the incredible story of Jack Leslie who was the only black player in the Football League when he was selected for his country in 1925. But Jack was dropped due to the colour of his skin. A statue of Jack was unveiled in 2022 and the FA awarded Jack’s family a posthumous honorary cap, 97 years after his selection.

Matt Tiller tells Jack's story: his childhood in East London during the First World War; the riots that targeted black people soon after; his illustrious career at Plymouth Argyle (137 goals in 400 games); becoming the league’s first black captain before an eye injury forced his retirement; joining West Ham United in his sixties to shine the boots of World Cup winners like Bobby Moore; and his selection for England and how that accolade was snatched away.

Matt is a radio and TV writer/producer. His first job as a radio reporter covered Leslie’s club, Plymouth Argyle. Matt studied history at Oxford and through research, campaigning and working with Jack’s family his book has come to fruition.

 

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The Station, Richmond DL10 4LD | 7:30pm | £35 including 2 course meal plus nibbles| bookstall, disabled access.

Guilty or innocent? You decide. Best-selling author Mark Bridgeman will be taking the part of judge, prosecution and defence when he presents a real-life murder trial at this year’s festival - in which you the audience will become the jury!

With a prize for the winner, evidence and exhibits from the case, and a Q&A with the author, this promises to be an event to remember. Silence in Court!

The entry fee includes a two-course meal and nibbles.

Mark has appeared on TV & Radio. His stories have been dramatised and featured in newspaper serial form. Mark’s titles ‘Perthshire’s Pound of Flesh’ and ‘Blood across the Water’ have been among Waterstones Scotland’s non-fiction best sellers for 2022 and 2023.

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