Edinburgh International Book Festival unveils line-up with Thunberg, Evaristo and Karunatilaka

The Edinburgh International Book Festival has launched its 2023 programme boasting a line-up including Greta Thunberg, Bernardine Evaristo, Shehan Karunatilaka, Irvine Welsh and Alice Oseman under the theme “The Joy of Words”. 

The festival, which runs from 12th to 28th August, will take place at the Edinburgh College of Art, with a programme of events livestreamed to The Birks Cinema in Aberfeldy. There will also be a range of pay what you can, BSL interpreted and live captioned events as well as a brand-new £10 ticket concession for under 26s.  

Nick Barley, director of the Edinburgh International Festival, who will be stepping down in September, said: “This year’s book festival programme is called ’The Joy of Words’, and it’s been truly a joy to bring it together. My team and I have aimed to build an uplifting festival that is packed with exceptional thinkers from all over the world. At a time of polarised opinion and deep divisions, we hope to rediscover the pleasure of conversation; the satisfaction of spending time with people who can offer positive insights into the world today. This is my 14th and final programme for the book festival and I’m very excited by the prospect of 18 days in August with such a cornucopia of brilliant writers.” 

This year’s festival has nearly 600 live events featuring more than 470 authors, writers and thinkers from 49 countries. More than 100 events will be livestreamed and festival late nights will return for the first time in three years, including special salons hosted by Damian Barr and Gemma Cairney. 

Evaristo will join Jackie Kay, Val McDermid, Elif Shafak, and Ali Smith to talk about how their experiences have informed their writing careers in a series called ’What Makes a Writer’ and, in its 40th year, the festival has selected 40 writers for ’New Writers, New Worlds’. This strand highlights 20 emerging Scottish authors including Heather Parry and Em Strang, and international writers such as Jenny Erpenbeck and Leila Slimani. This year also sees the return of three authors who attended the first ever festival in 1983 — Alastair Moffat, Michael Rosen, and A N Wilson. 

Seven Booker Prize winners also join the line-up including 2022 winner Karunatilaka, McEwan, Eleanor Catton, Ben Okri, James Kelman and Anne Enright with her brand new novel The Wren, The Wren (Jonathan Cape). Former International Booker winner David Diop will also appear, as will this year’s winners, the Bulgarian author Georgi Gospodinov and translator Angela Roden.  

Scottish authors Welsh, Jenny Colgan, Denise Mina, Chris Brookmyre and Alexander McCall Smith will also be discussing their books. They are joined in the festival by leading British authors including Deborah Levy, Sebastian Faulks, and Katherine Rundell; and writers from further afield including Colson Whitehead, Chika Unigwe, Eileen Myles, Isabella Hammad, Ayobami Adebayo, Yiyun Li, Iman Mersal, Clemens Meyer and Raja Shehadeh. 

Headlining this year’s young adult offering is Oseman who will be talking about her bestselling Heartstopper series with Benjamin Dean. Leading children’s authors including Julia Donaldson and Children’s Laureate Joseph Coelho also return, alongside events featuring Dapo Adeola and Nathan Bryon, Tracey Corderoy and Steven Lenton. The festival will also host panels featuring the YA Book Prize 2023 shortlistees and the live announcement of this year’s winner.

Thunberg will appear at “It’s Not Too Late to Change the World” chaired by writer and broadcaster Cairney at the Edinburgh Playhouse on Sunday 13th August as part of the Climate Positive series events that looks at the health of our planet.  

Culture minister Christina McKelvie said: “Without words there would be no books so the theme for this year’s Edinburgh International Book Festival is well chosen. With the world’s greatest writers and thinkers gathered in Edinburgh, there really is something for everyone. 

“The Scottish government is proud to support the festival as it celebrates its 40th anniversary with £182,500 from our Expo and PLACE Funds.” 

Iain Munro, c.e.o. of Creative Scotland, said: “Huge congratulations to Nick and the team at EIBF on an outstanding programme for their 40th anniversary year. Featuring an impressive range of international and homegrown talent, this year’s programme provides an opportunity for people from all walks of life to experience the joy of words. 

“I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank Nick, as he steps down later this year, for everything he has achieved during his time as director of the EIBF. 

“Nick and his book festival team have been instrumental in bringing people together from around the world to explore and debate contemporary issues of our time, underlining the fundamental role that literature in all its forms plays in influencing and shaping public debate."