Wantage Literary Festival – Day 4

Nicola Moorby | Turner and Constable: Art, Life, Landscape

Joint Biography| Art History
12+ years | 12pm | The Beacon
Adult £13.50 | Student £8

Nicola Moorby is the former curator of British Art 1790-1850 at the Tate Gallery. An expert in the works and lives of Turner and Constable, she advised Tate Britain on the 2026 Tate Britain exhibition featuring these two brilliant artists. Her widely praised book ‘Turner and Constable: Art, Life, Landscape’ offers a fresh perspective on two extraordinary artists.

Daniel Stables | Fiesta: A Journey Through Festivity

Travel | General History | Anthropology
14+ years | 2pm | The Beacon
Adult £13.50 | Student £8

In ‘Fiesta’, travel writer Daniel Stables (Winner of 2025 ‘Travel Feature of the Year’ Award) takes us on a journey through human festivity, told through vibrant travel narratives set at some of the world’s most famous festivals. Using ideas from anthropology, history, psychology, and folklore, Stables takes a curious, humanistic look at world festivals to unravel universal threads running through our diverse global celebrations.

Hamish de Bretton-Gordon | Tank Command: How the Tank  Changed the Face of Battle

Military History | Technology | Weapons
12+ years | 3.00 pm | The Beacon
Adult £13.50 | Student £8

Hamish de Bretton-Gordon OBE offers a compelling and unique account of the evolution of tank warfare, on and off the battlefield. ‘Tank Command’ is an exciting and original look at tanks and tank warfare by a tank commander with over twenty years’ experience of commanding and fighting these behemoths of the battlefield. A unique opportunity to hear from one of the world’s experts on modern warfare.

Jack Perks | The Great British River: A Guide to Our Waterways and River Wildlife

Sustainability | Conservation | Nature
12+ | 4pm | The Beacon
Adult £13.50 | Student or child under 14 years £8

Wantage Literary Festival is proud to co-present the 2026 Sustainability Interview in Conjunction with Sustainability Wantage.

Jack Perks is a freelance underwater and wildlife cameraman. His camerawork has appeared on Springwatch, The One Show, Mr Crabtree Goes Fishing and, more recently, on David Attenbourough’s ‘Wild Isles.’ Nicknamed the ‘Fish Twitcher’ by the BBC for spending 7 years hunting around the UK to film all 54 British freshwater fish. Who better then to talk to us about our ‘Great British Rivers’?

Simon Mason | The Dangerous Stranger: Dark Secrets. Buried Crimes

Crime Fiction | Thriller
Modern British Crime
Adult | 6.00pm | The Beacon
Adult £13.50 | Student £8

Join us for a glass of wine and an interview with one of Oxford’s and the UK’s best crime writers as we celebrate Wantage’s 2026 Big Town Read. Simon Mason has written over twenty books, including his hugely successful crime series featuring the Oxford detectives DI Ray Wilkins & DI Ryan Wilkins. ‘The Dangerous Stranger’ is the fifth book in the series and has been chosen as Wantage’s 2026 Big Town Read. Praise for Mason’s novels has come from the likes of Mick Herron –‘Well plotted and great characters’ and Val McDermid –‘Move over Morse.’ The whole town is reading this book.