Join us at the Birmingham & Midland Institute on Saturday 3rd October 2026 from 10am-4pm for the Alliance of Literary Societies Fair, a free day celebrating books, authors, readers and literary societies.
Meet literary societies from across the country, browse their stalls and discover societies devoted to Victorian fiction, poetry, crime writing, children’s literature, the classics and much more.
Throughout the day there will be talks and presentations from individual literary societies alongside a fantastic line-up of guest speakers: James Naughtie, Lindsey Davis, Liz Berry, Gyles Brandreth and Frank Cottrell-Boyce.
Admission is free and everyone is welcome. We are asking visitors to register in advance to help us plan for the day and estimate numbers.
Find out more and register for free
Lyttelton Theatre
Our guest speakers will be appearing in the Lyttelton Theatre throughout the day. Following each talk, speakers will be available in the foyer to sign copies of their books.:
 | 11.00am – Lindsey Davis, Bestselling historical novelist |
 | 12.00pm – Liz Berry, Award-winning poet |
 | 1.00pm – James Naughtie, Broadcaster, journalist and author |
 | 2.00pm – Gyles Brandreth, Author and broadcaster |
 | 3.00pm – Frank Cottrell-Boyce, Author, former Children’s Laureate and screenwriter |
Exhibitors
Meet the literary societies, organisations and booksellers taking part in the Fair.
Angela Thirkell Society
Arthur Ransome Society
Barbara Pym Society
Betjeman Society
Birmingham & Midland Institute
Birmingham University
Centre for Printing History & Culture
Charles Dickens Fellowship
Children’s Books History Society
Edward Thomas Fellowship
Francis Brett Young Society
Friends of Coleridge
George Eliot Fellowship
The Heath Bookshop
Housman Society
IBIS Imaginative Book Illustration Society
International Board of Books for Young People (IBBY)
Jane Austen Society Midlands
Johnson Society (Lichfield)
Katherine Mansfield Society
Kipling Society
Lewis Carroll Society
May Sinclair Society
PG Wodehouse Society (UK)
Philip Larkin Society
Pre-Raphaelite Society
Royal Society of Literature
R.S. Thomas & M.E. Eldridge Society
Sherlock Holmes Society of London
Siegfried Sassoon Fellowship
Slightly Foxed
TE Lawrence Society
Trollope Society
William Morris Society
The Wit’s End
John Peek Room
Throughout the day, member societies of the Alliance of Literary Societies will give short talks introducing their authors, their work and the activities of their societies. Drop in to discover more about some familiar names and perhaps encounter a few new ones.
10.15am Welcome by James Naughtie, President of the Alliance of Literary Societies
10.30am Jane Austen Society (Midlands) – Jack Barber on Jane Austen
10.45am Housman Society – Hugo Gye on A.E. Housman
11.30am Francis Brett Young Society – Dr Michael Hall on Francis Brett Young
11.45 am R.S. Thomas & M.E. Eldridge Society – Peter Hewlett & Ceri Creffield on R.S. Thomas & M.E. Eldridge
12.30pm Johnson Society (Lichfield) – Dr Phil Jones on Samuel Johnson
12.45pm Kipling Society – Andrew Scragg on Rudyard Kipling
1.30pm Friends of Coleridge – Greg Leadbetter on Samuel Taylor Coleridge
1.45pm Angela Thirkell Society – Hilary Temple on Angela Thirkell
2.30pm George Eliot Fellowship – John Burton on George Eliot
2.45pm T.E. Lawrence Society – Susan Vincent on T.E. Lawrence
