Takeover Day Pass: 2026

Takeover Day, Sunday 24 May, Derby College DE24 8JE

Join us for our Takeover Day when all the events are in one location at Derby College (Roundhouse campus). You can buy a Day Pass to attend all seven of the following author events:

• Gilly McArthur: The Beauty of Cold: The Restorative Power of Cold Water for Connection and Joy
• Robert Verkaik: The Writer and the Traitor: Graham Greene, Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal
• Janet Tennant: Refugee Countess: The Five Lives of Marion Stein
• Rachel Trethewey: Muv: The Story of the Mitford Girls' Mother - Sponsored by Boolers
• Sally Coulthard: A Brief History of the Coast in 100 Objects
• Bee Wilson: The Heart-Shaped Tin
• Sarah Hilary: The Drowning Place

Events last 55 minutes (45 minute event, 10 minute Q&A), enabling 20 minutes between events, so people can move comfortably between rooms for the next event. Refreshments are available throughout the day at a Starbucks concession.

Derby College has a large, FREE car park available to people attending Festival events. The car park is located off the roundabout between the College campus and the railway station. Security will be present to raise the barrier.

The Takeover Day Pass excludes the Writing Workshops and the Festival Book Quiz, which must be bought separately.  

You can buy individual tickets for each of the seven events.