Since its inauguration in 1983, the Edinburgh International Book Festival has grown into a major Festival draw in Scotland’s capital every August, attracting around 250,000 visits. Claimed to be the largest public celebration of the written word in the world, until 2020 it was based at a fondly-remembered tented Festival village in Charlotte Square Gardens, then moved to the Edinburgh College of Art buildings at Lauriston, in the city’s Old Town, and last year re-launched in newly-refurbished indoor and outdoor spaces at the Edinburgh Futures Institute, around the former Royal Infirmary buildings.
The facility, alongside the adjacent McEwan Hall, makes for an attractive and ideal space for the Festival and its proximity to other key Festival venues is proving a major draw.
Centring on the theme of repair, 2025’s programme comprises over 600 events, with the most exciting writers and thinkers on the planet, there in the city to ignite imaginations, foster human connection, and challenge the status quo, with lively, challenging and entertaining discussion, poetry and performance, and plenty of fun and entertainment including late-night events in the famous Spiegeltent; the popular bookshop and signing tents will also be busy as ever.
This is the second year under the Direction of Jenny Niven, pictured, and makes the most of the flat, grassy outdoor spaces, hosting children’s events, food vendors, a buzzing bar, all with plenty of seating for chat – and reading! For audiences worldwide, digital events and workshops return, with many of the events saved for streaming.
The visual arts and music continue to be enduring themes, this year including gallery pioneer James Birch on his adventures in the art trade, Dylan Jones, Miranda Sawyer & Arusa Qureshi discussing music through the decades, Alayo Akinkugbe & Zarina Muhammad on the Rewriting Art History, and a discussion on the work of singular artist Edward Gorey.
The Festival programme is widely available online (see website, left) around the city, or by post.
