03/06/2026
Bathurst Book Fair returns with
new vision, dozens of events
By Eric Sibiya
The Bathurst Book Fair is returning next weekend with a new generation of organisers hoping to transform the long-running event into a broader literary celebration for the village and surrounding communities.
Running from 5 to 7 June, this year’s programme stretches far beyond bookshelves, with more than 40 events planned across the weekend. Visitors can expect writing workshops, author talks, poetry sessions, theatre performances, storytelling events, live music, puppet shows, food vendors and a book character dress-up competition. Children will also have their own activity spaces, including workshops, jumping castles and storytelling exercises.
For organisers Jason Northfield and Suné Senekal, the event is also about preserving something Bathurst nearly lost.
The book fair began more than two decades ago as a celebration of local bookshops and reading culture. But after years of being run by older generations of organisers, there were concerns the event might disappear altogether.
“When we heard the book fair was going to end because nobody wanted to take it on, we realised if we don’t take over these events from the older generation, we can’t let something that has been going on for so long die,” Northfield said.
The pair said they wanted to keep the spirit of the original event while expanding it into a literary festival that celebrates storytelling in different forms.
"We are trying to take something over but make something big as well," Senekal said. "Bring everyone to town to show them that it's not just a book festival, but a literary festival as well."
“We are a village of stories, so we need to keep our stories alive,” Northfield added.
A night market will launch the weekend’s activities on Friday, with food vendors selling everything from shwarmas and samoosas to stir-fries and pasta dishes. "We've got amazing food vendors coming to join us, we're also running around to get everyone... [we just need to] put the final touches on it," said Senekal. A “Night at the Museum” lantern experience is also planned, giving visitors the chance to walk through local history exhibits while hearing stories about Bathurst’s farming past.
Northfield and Senekal say the aim is to make literature interactive and accessible, especially at a time when reading culture faces competition from social media and artificial intelligence tools.
As part of that approach, some workshops will ban phones entirely. Participants in short story sessions and poetry workshops will be encouraged to write by hand and focus on their own creativity.
“We’ve got so much creativity within us,” Senekal said. “Why do we need something that is AI to bring joy to readers?”
Among the featured guests this year is Cape Town-based author Steve de Witt, who will launch two books during the festival. Other highlights include discussions around rhino poaching, theatre performances and high tea events.
The organisers hope the expanded programme will also help bring tourism and energy back into Bathurst.
“We don’t want to lose what it was,” Northfield said. “We want to keep with that, but we want to add to it.”
More information and booking details are available on the festival’s page.
Bathurst Literary Festival co-organisers Jason Northfield and Suné Senekal have teamed up to save the town's beloved 22-year
old book fair, transforming the traditional Sunday event into a vibrant, three-day celebration of storytelling. Photo: Eric Sibiya
