The Eastbourne LitFest Podcast

Eastbourne Literary Festival
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The mission of our festival, and our podcast, is to celebrate stories by the sea. Through conversations with fascinating authors, as well as with book lovers and supporters of Eastbourne LitFest, we aim to share insights about their inspiration and craft, and about the book industry, bringing you closer to books and writers of stories of all shapes and sizes.

Episodes

  1. May 22

    Eastbourne LitFest chats with our patron, Dame Jacqueline Wilson (Part 1)

    In the first of two conversations recorded for the Eastbourne LitFest podcast, Dame Jacqueline Wilson sits down with Festival Director Jane Branson and lifelong fan Anna Branson to talk about a writing life that has now produced an average of two and a half books a year. She reflects on her post-war childhood in a house with few books, on the local library that fed her omnivorous reading, and on knowing at the age of six — much to her mother's astonishment the night before her tonsil operation — that she wanted to be a writer. She traces the chance newspaper advert that took her to Dundee at seventeen to work for DC Thomson, and the writing routine she still keeps today: mornings in pyjamas, another quiet hour before supper while her wife cooks. She lifts the lid just a little on her new book, Esme Pepper, due this autumn — another girl in care, but a very different girl from Tracy Beaker, and one whose story somehow involves garden gnomes. Answering questions sent in by local schoolchildren and Instagram followers, she explains why she writes about children at the edges of family life rather than the comfortable middle, which of her own characters she'd most like to live as, the one subject she long resisted writing about, and the classic she thinks is overdue a fresh retelling. Part two picks up with the question we leave hanging here: if she could give every child three books at birth, what would they be?

    20 min

  2. 08/12/2025

    Desert Island Books with Charles Humble

    Welcome to "Desert Island Books". In this new format Eastbourne Literary Festival podcast episode, people are asked to share with us the 5 books that mean the most to them and why. This episode explores 5 books that mean the world to author and technologist, Charles Humble, including: "The Wind in the Willows" by Kenneth Grahame  "Last Chance to See" by Douglas Adams and Mark Carwardine "The Passion" by Jeanette Winterson "Seven Brief Lessons on Physics" by Carlo Rovelli "Wolf Hall" by Hilary Mantel

    49 min

  3. 07/08/2025

    On Writing with M J Buckman

    For our 10th episode we are joined by the wonderful M.J. Buckman, local author of the award winning book “Bent is not Broken” and recently her second book, “Women of Note”. Some of the references from this show: "Save the Cat" by Blake Snyder "Bent is not Broken" by M J Buckman "Women of Note" by M J Buckman

    38 min

  4. 07/01/2025

    On Writing with Ed Bingham

    For our ninth episode we are joined by a local Eastbourne writer whose debut work, it’s not exaggeration to say, defies convention and reshapes genres. Ed Bingham is the author of Broadlake — an extraordinary novel written entirely in verse, where poetry and storytelling converge to unravel a haunting mystery from beyond the veil of death. Ed has also just published a picturebook especially for a younger audience called “The Kind Wasp” and is working on a new novel “The Five O’Clock Club” to be published in 2026. Some of the references from this show include: "Broadlake" by Ed Bingham "The Kind Wasp" by Ed Bingham "A Night at the Opera" by Queen "Telegraph Road" by Dire Straits

    46 min

  5. 06/02/2025

    On Writing with Louise Morrish

    For our eighth episode we are joined by a writer who has been a supporter and fan of our festival since our very early days. Louise Morrish is a historical fiction author and librarian from Hampshire. She writes stories inspired by the lives of women in the past, who achieved extraordinary things, but whom history has forgotten. Louise always knew she wanted to write books, but it wasn’t until her late 30s that she finally had the chance to take her hobby seriously. In 2012 she completed the Faber online ‘Write Your Novel’ course, and then, armed with a manuscript, she began the submission process. Her debut novel was Operation Moonlight and it won the Penguin Random House First Novel competition. Just recently Louise has also released her new novel “Women of War”. Some of the references from this show include: "In Memoriam" by Alice Winn "The Blazing World" by Jonathan Healey "Jane Austen's Bookshelf" by Rebecca Romney "Muckraker" by W. Sidney Robinson "The Art of a Lie" by Laura Shepherd-Robinson "Life Cycle of a Moth" by Rowe Irvin "The Rush" by Beth Lewis "Operation Tulip by Deborah Swift "The Owl Was A Baker's Daughter" by Grace Tiffany

    53 min

  6. 05/22/2025

    On Writing with Charles Humble

    In our seventh episode we are joined by Charles Humble. Charles is an author, editor, podcaster, and technology consultant. He's also a former software engineer, architect and CTO. He was editor-in-chief at online publication InfoQ from 2014-2020, and was chief editor for Container Solutions technology consultancy from 2020-2023. Charles writes regularly for many publications, is a highly experienced content strategist, and has spoken at many international conferences. Most recently Charles has published “The Developer's Guide to Cloud Infrastructure , Efficiency and Sustainability” at TheNewStack and he’s a valued member of the Software Inklings, an online community that look to provide a friendly environment for writers in technology to flourish. Some of the references from this show include: "Writing For Story" by Jonathan Franklin "White Beech: The Rainforest Years" by Germaine Greer Fellow Tech Writers: Anne Currie, Holly Cumins and Jennifer Riggins "On Writing Well" by William Zinsser "What You Are Looking for Is in the Library" by Michiko Aoyama Mr B's Emporium in Bath and their incredible book subscription services

    44 min

  7. 05/10/2025

    On Writing with Julia Raeside

    In our sixth episode of the Eastbourne Literary Festival podcast we had the pleasure to talk with Julia Raeside, debut author of brilliant novel, "Don't Make Me Laugh". As well as now being a best-selling novelist, Julia Raeside is a journalist and broadcaster who has written for the Guardian, Times, Observer and The Big Issue among others. She makes regular contributions to BBC Radio, including review spots on Radio 4s Front Row and Lauren Laverne’s 6 Music show. These podcasts are such a joy and we had such a wonderful time chatting with Julia about how she writes, reads and embraces having her brilliant debut novel, "Don't Make Me Laugh" now out on the shelves. Some of the references from this episode: Daisy Buchanan Nisha Dolan- Katie Wix Nora Ephron Charlotte Runcie Minette Walters Cecil Sharp House

    1h 3m

  8. 04/28/2025

    On Writing with L. M. Chilton

    In our fifth episode of the Eastbourne Literary Festival podcast we had the pleasure to talk with L. M. Chilton, bestselling author of“Don’t Swipe Right” and, as of the 13th March 2025, “Everyone in the group chat dies!”. Luke has been a journalist for 15 years, working for TV shows like This Morning, The One Show and Loose Women, as well as magazines and newspapers such as The Times, The Mirror, Metro, New!, Cosmopolitan and Glamour. As well as exploring his unhealthy-but-wonderful thematic obsession with serial killers, we enjoyed a wonderful chat around how Luke writes, how he approaches writing deep and rich female characters and the trepidation and wonders of television and film book adaption.

    48 min

  9. 04/21/2025

    On Writing with Molly Anderson

    In our fourth episode of the Eastbourne Literary Festival podcast we had the pleasure to talk with author Molly Anderson. Molly is the author of the incredible memoir, “Dad’s New Dress”.

    39 min

  10. 04/09/2025

    On Writing with Jake R. Wilson

    In our third episode of the Eastbourne Literary Festival podcast we had the pleasure to talk with local author, Jake R. Wilson. Jake is the author of “Cursed Tales: The Pharaoh of Asco Express” and “Sar Wylda and the Legendary Goldbreaker”.

    40 min

  11. 03/12/2025

    On Writing with Holly Seddon

    In our second episode of the Eastbourne Literary Festival podcast we had the pleasure to talk with Holly Seddon. Holly is the international, best-selling author of "Try Not to Breathe", "Don't Close Your Eyes", "Love Will Tear Us Apart", "The Hit List", "The Woman on the Bridge" and "The Short Straw". And if that wasn’t enough to be tremendously exciting, Holly also has a new novel, "59 Minutes", which will be published in September. In this episode Holly shares her utter joy of writing and carefully explains the differences between writing and the process of publishing. She explores how she crafts commercial fiction, explores and protects fragile early ideas and trusts a messy, artistic and real writing process to help her deliver such wonderful stories. Lastly, in harmony with our festival's mission of helping people realise they can write and already are a writer, Holly shares her tips for embarking on, and continuing, a writing life. Some links from this episode: Holly's instagram The Honest Authors Podcast "Swept Away" by Beth O'Leary "A Moveable Feast" by Ernest Hemingway

    50 min

  12. 02/13/2025

    On Writing with David Hendy

    In this our first episode of the Eastbourne Literary Festival podcast we had the pleasure to talk with David Hendy, a local writer and broadcaster specialising in modern cultural history and Emeritus Professor of the University of Sussex. David shares his own journey into writing historical non-fiction from writing for radio for the BBC through to writing carefully curated treatments of cultural history, such as "The BBC: A People's History". Explaining how he taps into the lived experiences of people that are so often at the heart of connecting with history, David explores how he researches and balances the need for authenticity with the need for engaging storytelling. Lastly, in harmony with our festival's mission of helping people realise they can write and already are a writer, David shares his tips for embarking on, and continuing, the writing life. Some links from the episode: "The BBC: A People's History" by David Hendy "Noise: A Human History of Sound & Listening" by David Hendy "Life On Air: A History Of Radio 4" by David Hendy "Radio in the Global Age" by David Hendy "History is Alive and Personal" by Clare Mulley

    54 min
  • 12 Episodes

About

The mission of our festival, and our podcast, is to celebrate stories by the sea. Through conversations with fascinating authors, as well as with book lovers and supporters of Eastbourne LitFest, we aim to share insights about their inspiration and craft, and about the book industry, bringing you closer to books and writers of stories of all shapes and sizes.

Information

  • Creator
    Eastbourne Literary Festival
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    12
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The Eastbourne LitFest Podcast