UK Ghost Story Festival

Join us this winter for a weekend celebration of one of the most beloved forms of fiction – the ghost story. From the classics of Charles Dickens and M R James to modern favourites such as The Woman in Black, The Little Stranger and more, the ghost story has long fascinated audiences around the world.

The UK Ghost Story Festival will be presenting a host of readings, author interviews, talks, film screenings, workshops and much more, taking place around one of the UK’s most haunted cities, featuring authors including Andrew Michael Hurley, Johnny Mains, Adam LG Nevill, Laura Purcell and many more!

See full festival details and book here for all events

On Sunday, the festival will be taking place at the Museum of Making. The following events are available, please click each event for more information and how to book:

How to Make Your Writing Really Flow – 10.30am – book here

Workshop with Peter Laws – Tickets: £7

When I was an aspiring author, I wanted my words to roll off the page. Yet my writing often felt clunky and nowhere near as smooth as the books I loved to read. I struggled with flow and the result was a flurry of rejection letters. That all changed when I started to identify the bad habits that were holding my work back. Join me in this workshop where I’ll identify what might be blocking your storytelling, because sometimes the issue isn’t a lack of imagination, talent, or hard work – it’s simply learning how to make your pages really flow.

Black Angel – Women in Horror – 10.30am – book here

Talk and Q&A with Stephanie Ellis and Alyson Faye – Tickets: £4

Black Angel Press was founded in 2020, with a view to putting out the best in female-written horror fiction. In this talk and Q&A, founders Stephanie Ellis and Alyson Faye (also of Horror Tree) will discuss their journeys in writing, their highs and lows in the field, why they started the press and their Daughters of Darkness anthologies, as well as making a special announcement exclusive to UK Ghost Story Festival.

Create-a-Ghost – 12 noon – book here

Workshop with Alex Davis – Tickets: £7

This writing workshop will allow you to develop a ghost and build the story around them using a series of fun and interesting prompts – bring your pen, paper and an active imagination!

AJ West – The Spirit Engineer – 12 noon – book here

Interview and Q&A with AJ West – Tickets: £6

‘Fiendishly Clever’ – Derren Brown
‘So Clever it Makes your Head Spin’ – Jeremy Vine
‘A Gothic Classic’ – Jodie Whittaker

AJ West’s debut novel The Spirit Engineer has already been widely acclaimed and was one of the biggest dark fiction titles of the year. Based upon the true story of professor and sceptic William Jackson Crawford and famed medium Kathleen Goligher, The Spirit Engineer, is a haunted, twisted tale of power, paranoia and one inescapable truth…

AJ will be joining us for a talk before taking audience questions, as well as signing his book after the event.

Restless Graves – 2pm – book here

Performance presented by Don’t Go Into The Cellar – Tickets: £10

Montague Rhodes James returns in Don’t Go Into The Cellar’s latest stage adaptation of several timeless Edwardian ghost stories! Beware the wrath of Mrs Mothersole in the terrifying tale of The Ash-Tree! Dare you learn the dreadful secret of The Uncommon Prayer Book? Acclaimed actor Jonathan Goodwin once more performs as M R James, in a show scripted by himself and co-directed by Goodwin and Gary Archer.

Suitable for adults, fans of horror, ghost stories and local writers.

The UK Ghost Story Festival is co-produced with QUAD.