Vivian French - Early Bird Stories - Ages 0-5
Start the day with stories and rhymes for pre-schoolers from Vivian French, author of the wildly popular Tales from the Five Kingdoms series among 300 other books! 30 min.
| When: Saturday 7 November 2026 @ 9.30 am |
| Where: Lyric Theatre |
Jasbinder Bilan - Girl with a Sabretooth Tiger - Ages 8+
Join the Costa Children’s Book Award-winner on a magical quest through prehistoricEngland. When Swallow’s baby sister falls ill, she begins a dangerous trek to find the cure: a precious jade stone. Her companion? A sabretooth tiger spirit animal. Perfect for fans of Kiran Millwood Hargrave and Katherine Rundell.
| When: Saturday 7 November 2026 @ 10.15 am |
| Where: Lyric Theatre |
Philip Ardagh - Bunnies in a Rocket - Ages 3-5
The Sunny Town Bunnies have travelled by bus, in a boat, on Santa’s sleigh and now, in their most epic adventure of all, they’re going to the moon! What could possibly go wrong? The winner of the Roald Dahl Funny Prize brings his creation gloriously to life.
| When: Saturday 7 November 2026 @ 11.30 am |
| Where: Lyric Theatre |
Vivian French - Trouble in Ogreville - Ages 6-11
A hilarious adventure packed with capers, chaos and chocolate cake. Monny the Ogre needs a favour from Good King Ogle, but there’s trouble in the palace. Can he and the other village ogres sort it out?
| When: Saturday 7 November 2026 @ 1.00 pm |
| Where: Lyric Theatre |
Laurence Anholt - Small Stories of Great Artists - Family Event
One of our greatest children’s illustrators presents his classic tales of the great artists and the real children who knew them – from Van Gogh and Frida Kahlo to Picasso and Leonardo. A joyous springboard into a lifetime’s love of art.
| When: Saturday 7 November 2026 @ 2.15 pm |
| Where: Lyric Theatre |
The Great KidLit Draw-Off - Family Event
Two teams of illustrators and authors face off. Who will come up with the weirdest story based on your suggestions? Explosively funny and fastpaced. It could get messy. 60 min.
| When: Saturday 7 November 2026 @ 3.30 pm |
| Where: Lyric Theatre |
Holly Miller - Puppet Making Drop-in
Create your own puppet with the Lyric Theatre’s in-house puppet-maker Holly Miller. She’ll help you make a rod puppet of your favourite character from a book. hollymillerartist.com
| When: Saturday 7 November 2026 @ 10.30 am - 12.30 pm |
| Where: Lyric Theatre |
Illustration Drop-in
Develop your own drawing with an expert illustrator. Everyone is welcome because everyone can draw!
| When: Saturday 7 November 2026 @ 1.00 - 3.00 pm |
| Where: Lyric Theatre |
Martin Maudsley - Monsterlogica - A Menagerie of Monsters, beasts and magical beings
In collaboration with Bridport Literary Festival and Oxenbury’s Yard, author and storyteller Martin Maudsley presents a special story performance for family audiences to celebrate his newly-published book Monsterlogica – lavishly illustrated by artist Victoria Topping.
Join him on an imaginative journey around the world and through the pages of the book – alongside vibrant projected images – bringing to life a menagerie of monstrous beings and mysterious creatures…
Find out: How to outwit a Troll; Where to find a Chupacabra; When to battle a Basilisk (and survive); and why all Dragons are not the same…
Warning: May contain beastly encounters and wild adventures! Best for: Ages 7–12 and brave grown-ups. Format: 60 minutes of live storytelling and projected artwork from Monsterlogica. Plus meet the author and book sales/signings afterwards.
Refreshments and home-baked Monster biscuits will also be available!!
| When: Saturday 19 September 2026 @ 10.30 am |
| Where: Oxenbury's Yard |