Students and staff to feature at Ipswich Book Festival events

Staff and students from English courses at the University of Suffolk will be appearing at the first Ipswich Book Festival this October.

Dr Andrea Smith will be discussing her new book, Shakespeare on the Radio: A Century of BBC Plays, with her colleague, Dr Jenny Amos, while Dr Lindsey Scott is interviewing bestselling and award-winning novelist and screenwriter, Elle McNicoll.

In addition, MA Creative and Critical Writing students and graduates will discussing their published work from the course’s fourth anthology, Suffolk Haunts: Original Stories Inspired by the Legends and Landscapes of East Anglia.

Dr Smith said: “I’m Suffolk born and bred and have spent most of my life in Ipswich. I’m proud to be working at a university which didn’t exist when I was young – and delighted to see our county town finally getting its own book festival.

“The organisers want to celebrate the transformative power of books, bringing new voices to people’s attention and building connections. That’s exactly what we do at the university – helping our students develop their creative work and connect to the community around us.”

Dr Smith’s book tells the story of British radio drama through the history of its Shakespearean broadcasts, from petty one-upmanship over slippers and giggling ad-libbers to its pioneering women and forgotten stars. 

She’ll be interviewed by Dr Amos at the Ipswich Institute on Saturday 4 October at 10.30am. 

Dr Amos, a spoken language specialist at the University, said: “It’s always a lot of fun when Andrea and I get to work together, and I’m really looking forward to discussing Shakesperean works from such a fresh and vibrant perspective”.

Lindsey Scott, who runs the MA in Creative and Critical Writing course at the University, and teaches children’s fiction, will be talking to Elle McNicoll about her latest book, Role Model, as well as Elle’s neurodiversity and her writing process. 

The session takes place at St Clement’s Arts Centre at 5.30pm on Friday 3 October. 

Dr Scott will also be supporting the MA students and graduates at their story readings from Suffolk Haunts on Sunday 5 October at the Unitarian Meeting House.

“We are so proud of our MA students and alumni for writing these wonderful stories about our county,” Dr Scott said.

“Some of them have already been featured in Suffolk Magazine and we are delighted they can be shared at the first Ipswich Book Festival. 

“We also have a brand-new anthology coming out this autumn, so the festival will be a great opportunity to celebrate.”

Elsewhere, Dr Ashley Hickson-Lovence, a Visiting Fellow in Creative Writing at the University, will be appearing on the Sunday afternoon in a bus on the Cornhill. 

Dr Hickson-Lovence is the author of The 392 (set entirely on a London bus), Your Show (based on the life of Premier League referee Uriah Rennie), the young adult novel-in-verse Wild East. 

His latest, Why I Am Not a Bus Driver is a moving reflection on grief, love, and community.

The Ipswich Book Festival runs from 3-5 October at various venues across the town. Tickets can be booked via the New Wolsey Theatre website here.

To find out more about the BA English course, visit the course webpage here.

For more information on the MA Creative and Critical Writing course, head to the webpage here.