We’re really excited to announce that the Foreword Festival has been nominated for the East Anglian Festival Network FESTIVAL OF THE YEAR AWARD! Head to the EAFN website to cast your vote for your favourite Suffolk festival of 2026 – and please do consider voting for us! This year’s week-long festival in Stowmarket was run entirely by…
Read more
The Foreword Festival is partnering with the John Peel Centre in Stowmarket, and the John Peel Centre Writers’ Group, to bring you a fantastic line-up of authors, books, and activities for children – and entry is FREE! Join us at the John Peel Centre on Sunday December 7th, 10am-3pm for a Christmas event with a Foreword Festival twist. We’ve lined up 17 local authors for the…
Read more
The Foreword Festival is over for 2025! We’ve sold our last book, performed our last poem, and waved goodbye to our final authors of the week. Before we all collapse and sleep for a couple of days, the organisers would like to thank ALL our sponsors, authors, supporters, volunteers, venues, and of course – our…
Read more
If you haven’t made it to any of the Foreword Festival events yet, don’t miss our punk and performance poetry night on Friday – it’s going to be amazing! Book via the John Peel Centre Box Office. Don’t worry – it’s not going to be intense people in black berets smoking Gauloises cigarettes and discussing…
Read more
We’ve teamed up with the wonderful Roughacre Brewery to produce a limited-edition Foreword Festival Beer! It’s a zesty, summery pale ale, perfect for drinking while you sit and enjoy your new book purchases in the sunshine. Check out our list of stockists, and pick up your bottle(s) from August 4th.
The Foreword Festival doesn’t operate from a central venue. Instead, you’ll find us in locations all over Stowmarket! Head to the Find Our Venues page to plan your visit by car, train, or bus. .
. We’re delighted to announce the winners of the Fast Foreword Flash Fiction Competition! Actors from QuirkHouse Theatre will be performing the stories on our Storytelling Trail for grown-ups on Saturday August 9th. Join them for a tour of Stowmarket, with some fantastic stories from East Anglian writers! 12pm – John Peel Centre (at the Vinyl Fair)The…
Read more
. We’re delighted to announce the shortlist for the Fast Foreword Flash Fiction Competition! The ten winning stories will be announced on July 7th. Stay tuned! 57 Philosophies – B. BarnettA Hug Too Far – Richard StainerAshes to Ashes – Virginia BettsCharacter in a Car – Samantha TasseraThe Choice – Morag ClarkeThe Cottage – Des…
Read more
The closing date for our Fast Foreword Flash Fiction Competition has passed. Thank you to everyone who entered – the judges are looking forward to reading your stories! The judging panel will chose ten stories to be performed across five venues at the Foreword Festival 2025, by actors from the Quirkhouse Theatre Company. We’ll announce the times and venues on the…
Read more
It’s the Fast Foreword Flash Fiction Competition deadline day! The competition closes AT MIDNIGHT TONIGHT – May 31st 2025! . We’re looking for stories of 400 to 500 words. Quick, punchy narratives that you can sit and read in the time it takes you to enjoy a cuppa. Stories can be on any theme, in any genre. Entry is…
Read more
