UK GHOST STORY FESTIVAL FULL SCHEDULE
PASSES AND INDIVIDUAL EVENT TICKETS AVAILABLE HERE
FRIDAY 27TH FEB, QUAD
EVENT 1
12:30pm-1:30pm, Cinema Two
Willow Winsham – Talk: Unfamiliar Familiars – The Unusual Companions of the Witch
Tickets £6.50
When it comes to witches, everyone knows that the black cat is their companion of choice – right? Although this has come to be the most enduring image, the cat is, in fact, only one of a variety of weird and wonderful creatures to be linked to the witch throughout the period of the witch trials and beyond.
From ferrets to miniature horses, and even a trio of snails, join Willow for a fascinating delve into the historical trial documents and pamphlet accounts to uncover the full extent of the varied - and frequently surprising - animals to be found in the magical menagerie.
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EVENT 2
12:30pm-1:30pm, Participation Space
Tracy Fahey – Workshop: Talking To Your Ghost – Writing a Contemporary Ghost Story
Tickets £7.50
Unresolved business, malignant forces, the product of trauma, folkloric entities—wraiths from the past continue to haunt the present. How do we forge a language through which to address these revenants? This workshop guides you in conjuring and interrogating spectres to build the bones of a contemporary ghost story.
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EVENT 3
12:30pm-1:30pm, The Box
Dan Webber, Talk: 'Out for the Count' LGBTQ+ reflections of Dracula
Tickets £6.50
Dracula events specialist and Derby Museums events programmer Dan Webber explores how the LGBTQ+ community have embraced horror and its icons, including the queer elements of Dracula and its countless adaptations on stage and screen.
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EVENT 4
2:00pm-3:00pm, Cinema Two
Malcolm Schofield, Talk: An Invitation to Understanding – Sceptic to Parapsychologist and Back? My Journey as a Parapsychologist
Tickets £6.50
Join parapsychologist and lecturer Malcolm Schofield as he explores his personal relationship with the paranormal, and the journey from sceptic to parapsychologist – and how he perhaps got that journey wrong!
During the talk, Malcolm will cover some of his research into paranormal beliefs and experience, and the people he has met along the way. He'll also be talking about some of his favourite paranormal phenomena and cases, such as thoughtographer Ted Serios, Borley Rectory, and of course, Mothman. Malcolm will cover public perceptions of the paranormal, and what that has meant for his career as a lecturer in psychology, and his position on the Council of the Society for Psychical Research and work on their Spontaneous Cases Committee.
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EVENT 5
2:00pm-3:00pm, Participation Space
Alex Davis – Workshop: Writing a Twist in the Ghost Story
Tickets £7.50
Twists in fiction can truly be make or break for any plot, and are not all that often seen in the ghost story – perhaps leaving some room for new writers in the field? In this session we’ll be exploring the fine art of the twist, and how it can be applied to your supernatural tales!
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EVENT 6
2:00pm-3:00pm, The Box
Ally Wilkes – Workshop: Pitch and synopsis writing for novelists
Tickets £7.50
Discover how to distil your novel into a short and punchy pitch, and learn tips for creating a readable one-page synopsis (without tears). Participants will have the opportunity to work on their own pitch / synopsis documents to develop these key selling tools, and maybe even share them - if they dare.
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EVENT 7
3:30pm-4:30pm, Cinema Two
Anthony Kerrigan – Talk: ‘Faerie Bad’ – An Insight into Misconstrued Notions
Tickets £6.50
We’ll be taking an in depth look at the Spirits of nature. Where did they come from? Who are they? What impression did they have on society in bygone ages and the present day?
Some cases that we will be visiting include the Cottingley Fairies, photographed by two young girls in 1917, which caught the attention of the world, and none other than spiritualist and Sherlock Holmes author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1859-1930).
In addition we’ll examine the Murder of Bridget Cleary (15th March 1895) by her husband who believed she had changed into a fairy.
Join me, Anthony Kerrigan for a delightful journey into the fairyland.
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EVENT 8
3:30pm-4:30pm, Participation Space
Corinne Pollard – Workshop: We Are The Ghosts, Mister
Tickets £7.50
This writing workshop will look at how to write about ghost characters hiding their identity and their motivations/reasons for doing so. Often seen as a plot twist, ghost characters will eventually reveal themselves to the audience and all the signs of their identity will be understood in the ending.
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EVENT 9
3:30pm-4:30pm, The Box
Mark and Tracey Norman – Interview (int. Alex Davis)
Tickets £6.50
UK Ghost Story Festival regulars Mark and Tracey Norman have built a strong legacy within the worlds of folklore, through a range of exciting books, performances, podcast and archives. In this session, they’ll be chatting with UK Ghost Story Festival co-ordinator Alex Davis to discuss their fascination with folklore, their work in the field, their ongoing research and more!
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EVENT 10
4:45pm-6:15pm, Meet at QUAD Main Entrance
Derby Uncovered – Walk: Hauntings and Hangings
Tickets £10
Join David from Derby Uncovered for a 90-minute walk full of tortured spirits who met a grisly end, including both the murderers and their victims. Meet outside QUAD’s main entrance for 4:45pm sharp for this special tour of the city!
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EVENT 11
5:00pm-6:00pm, Cinema Two
Victoria Langford – Talk: Haunted Hills and Hellish Places: Derbyshire and the Peak District in Gothic Imagination
Tickets £6.50
What horrors haunt Derbyshire’s moors, caves, and villages? This talk explores how the county’s terrain, folklore, and literature converge to form a distinct regional Gothic, where ghosts, rogues and devils linger in story and place. Drawing on church records, funerary customs and folktales, the research examines how Gothic writers have reimagined Derbyshire’s manors and moorlands, crafting settings of dread and revelation that continue to manifest in the Gothic imagination.
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EVENT 12
5:00pm-6:00pm, Participation Space
Alex Davis – Workshop: Pacing Your Ghost Story
Tickets £7.50
Pacing is a key element to any ghost story, with the slow-burn approach needing careful management. In this session, we’ll be exploring some of the challenges and opportunities presented by this pacing, and taking on a writing task exploring the ‘Weirdometer’!
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EVENT 13
6:30pm-7:30pm, Cinema Two
Steve Nallon – Performance: Steve Nallon's Ghost Stories
Tickets £7.50
Steve Nallon’s Ghost Stories is a darkly humorous collection of tales with modern takes on classic supernatural traditions. There are haunted houses, enchanted mirrors, spooky graveyards, ghosts-on-the-road, revengefully witches, a blood-fest horror beach, and much more. Each yarn has its own distinctive style, from fateful horror and psychological terror, to comedic mischief and warm-hearted tales of redemption. Performance readings include a creepy Halloween homage to M.R. James, a Downing Street satire featuring the ghost of Margaret Thatcher, a nourish 1940s detective story with a supernatural feline twist, plus a laugh-out-loud farce narrated in the voice of Kenneth Williams involving the spirit of Carry On star Hattie Jacques talking up residence in the downstairs loo of two gay bears!
The talk also reveals as well the inspirational ‘back story’ behind each narrative and how these ideas then evolved into ghost tales. And on from this, there’s a look at the creative world of leading exponents of supernatural fiction such as the novelist Stephen King and the movie-maker Guillermo del Toro.
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EVENT 14
8:00pm-9:00pm, Cinema Two
Catriona Ward – Interview (int.Alex Davis)
Tickets £7.50
Join us for an in-depth interview with bestselling ghost story and Gothic fiction author Catriona Ward. With titles including The Last House on Needless Street, Nowhere Burning, Looking Glass Sound, Sundial and many more, Catriona Ward has cemented herself as a leading name in the field in recent years.
In this interview, Catriona will be discussing her inspirations, her writing process, Gothic fiction and ghost stories at large and much more.
SATURDAY 28TH FEB, QUAD
EVENT 15
10:30am-11:30am, Cinema Two
Author Panel – Ghost Clusters: Types of Spirits in Fiction
Tickets £5.50
From ethereal, half-seen shapes to violent poltergeists, ghosts in fiction can come in all shapes and forms. But what difference does it make to the story, and how do you ensure that you stay within the ‘rules’ that you establish for them? Join us for a panel exploring the full spectrum of spectres…
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EVENT 16
10:30am-11:30am, Participation Space
Daniel Carpenter – Workshop: Experimenting with Form in Ghost Stories
Tickets £7.50
Stuck in a ghost story rut? Tired of producing the same, tired tale every time? Looking to reinvigorate your brain, discover bold new styles and forms, enter the terrifying void of experimental fiction and perhaps lose yourself there forever? Then you just might need 'Experimenting with Form in Ghost Stories' - the latest patented cure-all from award-nominated author and horror editor Daniel Carpenter
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EVENT 17
10:30am-11:30am, The Box
Jennifer Brough – Talk: The Spectral Feminine and Modern Gothic
Tickets £6.50
From the candlelit corridors of Victorian fiction to the dim glow of digital screens, the ghostly woman figure endures. This illustrated talk explores the evolution of the “spectral feminine”—figures of grief, repression, revenge, and return—from literary Gothic heroines into the haunted women of modern cinema. Drawing on works by Shirley Jackson and Daphne du Maurier through to cinematic portrayals, including The Haunting (1963) to I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House (2018) and more, Jennifer Brough will trace how female ghosts continue to embody buried histories, trauma, and the persistence of the past in the present.
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EVENT 18
12:00pm-1:00pm, Cinema Two
Author Panel – Ghost Stories in the Modern Publishing Climate
Tickets £5.50
As horror continues its revival in 2026, where does the ghost story fit in that space? Is the form more literary and thriving there? How do publishers and publicists see ghost stories within their release schedule? Join us for a panel looking at where supernatural fiction fits in 2026.
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EVENT 19
12:00pm-1:00pm, Participation Space
Kristina Adams – Workshop: Balancing the power of three: plot, character, and world building
Tickets £7.50
We all know the importance of characters, plot, and world building in our writing. But how do you balance all three so that readers can connect with your characters, get immersed in your world, and can’t put your book down?
The better you balance these things, the more engaged your readers will become and the easier your books will be to write.
Discover the formula in this workshop taught by the bestselling author of Afterlife Calls, What Happens in…, and Productivity for Writers, and former blogger at The Writer’s Cookbook.
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EVENT 20
12:00pm-1:00pm, The Box
TC Parker – Workshop: Semiotics For (Horror) Storytelling: Cultural Insight & Audience Resonance
Tickets £7.50
Understanding the cultural meanings and social-historical baggage of the ghosts and monsters we conjure in our fiction is essential for connecting with readers
But what exactly ARE the new, emergent meanings of ghosts and monsters in the UK today - and how can we draw on them when writing ghost stories?
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EVENT 21
1:45pm-2:45pm, Cinema Two
Author panel – Folklore in Fiction
Tickets £5.50
With interest in folklore ever growing, it’s only natural that writers should begin to take inspiration from that world. But how do you do it effectively, how much research do you need and how wise is it to deviate from expectations and established folklore? Join out panel for a dive into the many ways traditional beliefs and traditions can impact horror fiction…
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EVENT 22
1:45pm-2:45pm, Participation Space
James Everington – Workshop: Ghosts and Ambiguity
Tickets £7.50
Ghost stories are inherently ambiguous - but how does that work when you need to tell one with certainty & clarity. Author James Everington explores how to make your ghost stories unambiguously ambiguous for your readers.
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EVENT 23
1:45pm-2:45pm, The Box
Ally Wilkes – Workshop: Writing and selling short weird fiction
Tickets £7.50
The short story is going through "a renaissance" for both readers and writers! In this workshop we'll discuss the modern weird short story, you'll learn techniques to make your short-form writing effective and engaging, and we'll explore ways (from self publishing to big anthologies) to get it in front of readers.
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EVENT 24
3:15pm-4:15pm, Cinema Two
Author Panel – New Angles on Ghosts
Tickets £5.50
We’ve all seen the classics, and while we still love to see ghosts in all their spooky glory, what different approaches can we take when telling a ghost story? What new ground is left to cover, and who is doing it? And can we present and place ghosts differently in 2026 compared to what has come before? Join our panel as the explore little-seen and perhaps never-before-encountered hauntings…
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EVENT 25
3:15pm-4:15pm, Participation Space
Richard Farren Barber – Workshop: I Like the Way You Move: Locomotion in the Ghost Story
Tickets £7.50
Floating? Running? Scrabbling? Walking? In this workshop we'll explore how the motion of spectres can evoke different responses in the minds of our readers, taking inspiration from examples within the genre.
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EVENT 26
3:15pm-4:15pm, The Box
Dan Coxon – Workshop: Writing Dissonance: Using the Weird and the Uncanny to Build Atmosphere
Tickets £7.50
Good ghost stories are about more than just spectres - they're about building and sustaining atmosphere, too. This workshop will look at ways to use the weird and the uncanny to unsettle readers before your ghost even appears, crafting stories that linger far beyond their final sentence.
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EVENT 27
4:30pm-5:00pm, Cinema Two
Gothic Catwalk – The Art of Transformation
Witness a mesmerising fusion of art, confidence, and Gothic glamour as a team of professional body-painting artists and models transform the human form into living canvases.
Each design celebrates individuality, body confidence, and self-expression through the darkly seductive lens of the Gothic, culminating in a catwalk with in the theatre.
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EVENT 28
4:30pm-6:00pm, Meet at QUAD entrance
Derby Uncovered – Walk: Weird Derby
Tickets £10
Join us for a 90 minute walk full of weird occurrences from Derby's history including frogs falling from the skies, ghouls roaming the streets, historic hot dogs, mummified cats and much more. Meet outside QUAD’s main entrance for 4:30pm sharp for this special tour of the city!
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EVENT 29
5:00pm, Cinema Two
Book Launch Panel – Unquiet Guests
With Dan Coxon (chair), Will MacLean, Alison Moore and Ally Wilkes
Tickets £6.50
A house is more than just a place to lay your head at night. Sometimes, the walls remember…
Gathering ten modern masters of the strange and unsettling, Unquiet Guests sets fire to the blueprints and reimagines the haunted house from the foundations up. From dreamlike visions of an abandoned future mansion to a sentient building grown tired of its owners, these rooms echo with whispers of the disenfranchised and the lost.
This launch panel and discussion will be led by editor Dan Coxon, who will be joined by three of the featured authors from the anthology in Will MacLean, Alison Moore and Ally Wilkes.
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EVENT 30
5:00pm, Participation Space
Sophie Draper – Workshop: Editing Your Novel
Tickets £7.50
Wrestling with that draft book? Join award-winning author Sophie Draper for an insight into how to edit your book. From how to tell the story (structural edits) to sculpting characters, dialogue and setting. It’s not just about grammar and crafting the words, but hooking and guiding the reader through your story.
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EVENT 31
6:30pm, Cinema Two
Jon Dear: No Digging: The Story of the BBC’s Ghost Story at Christmas – Interview (int. Mark Norman)
Tickets £7.50
The BBC’s Ghost Story for Christmas has been a long-running tradition, starting back in the 1970s and returning to our screens again in more recent years. Join acclaimed film writer, critic and podcaster Jon Dear as he discusses his new release from Headpress, exploring the history and legacy of the BBC’s spooky festive tradition.
This interview slot will also allow time for Q+A from the audience at the end of the slot.
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EVENT 32
8:00pm, Cinema Two
David Alnwick: Performance – The Signalman
Tickets £7.50
Actor and Occult Illusionist David Alnwick presents Charles Dickens’ classic ‘The Signalman.’
A lone traveller befriends a railway signalman who has a terrifying tale to tell. The reading is performed in classic Dickensian style, and is preceded by a live performance of Victorian spiritualist magic.
“Inspired… beautifully creepy” – The Guardian
“Nerve-shredding for the sold-out crowd” – The Scotsman
“Strong storytelling, good pace, and some very well executed magic” – North East Theatre Guide
★★★★★ “The magic itself is flawless, and the storytelling aspect is equally perfectly performed… a triumph” – World Magic Review
★★★★★ The Student
★★★★★ ThreeWeeks
★★★★★ The Sphinx
SUNDAY 1ST MARCH, QUAD
EVENT 33
10:30am-11:30am, Cinema Two
Tracey Norman – Talk: Pawn or Penitent? The truth behind the legend of Lady Mary Howard
Tickets £6.50
In the velvet darkness of night, a ghostly carriage can often be seen travelling along the roads on Dartmoor in Devon. This is the carriage of the fearsome Lady Howard, constructed from the bones of her four dead husbands, whom she murdered. To see it brings the gravest misfortune...
But what of the woman behind this grisly story? Who was Lady Mary Howard, and how did she become the central character in one of Dartmoor's creepiest ghost stories? Delve into her past and decide for yourself if the crime fits the punishment – if, indeed, there is any crime at all.
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EVENT 34
10:30am, 11:30am, Participation Space
Melanie Atkinson – Workshop: Writing the Modern Ghost Story
Tickets £7.50
Writing The Modern Ghost Story is a workshop that will focus on the key elements of ghost stories and discuss how these traditional themes can be used or inverted in order to write a ghost story set in the modern world.
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EVENT 35
10:30am-11:30am, The Box
Darrell Buxton – Talk: Phantoms of the Horse Opera
Tickets £6.50
The Wild West - prime territory for Gunslingers, Gamblers, Sheriffs, Deputies, Comanches, and Cavalry. But those gulches and prairies and one-horse towns sometimes offered a hiding place for haunting spirits too.
Darrell Buxton, editor of 'We Belong Dead' magazine, takes a journey through the history of spooky cowboy movies - expect spaghetti, Duke Wayne, Eastwood, Woody Woodpecker, and much more. That treasure map leading beneath the lonely ranch over on the outskirts might just hold a few surprises in store...
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EVENT 36
12:00pm-1:00pm, Cinema Two
Emma Probbett – Talk: Dracula and Survival Cannibalism
Tickets £6.50
Cannibalism at sea was at one point in time such a common occurrence that it was called ‘the custom of the sea’. While periodicals of the eighteenth and nineteenth century often went for the more desperate zombie image of survivors cracking skulls to get at brain tissue (a fairly uncommon occurrence), nearly all instances of survival cannibalism at sea begin with drinking the victim’s blood. This isn’t incidental either, and many accounts from survivors discuss hastening a proposed victim’s end either in desperation to drink something, or for fear that they would die and their blood would congeal before anyone could take action. This brings us to Dracula (1897) and the novel’s connections to fears around real-life survival cannibalism, especially in the wake of the landmark case of R vs Dudley and Stephens (1884). Blood drinking is of course not exclusive, nor does it originate from Dracula’s voyage on the Demeter, but his actions parallel many accounts of people who have survived being in open water: feelings of terror and paranoia infect the crew, the fear of being prey dominates the ship, and the series of deaths slowly makes its way up the chain of command (it is remarkably rare for Captains to draw the short straw when lots are cast). In this talk I will explore the fears around the custom of the sea, how Dracula embodies them (particularly in regard to how survivors are treated), and take a new look at Dracula, not as a monster, but as a commentary on survival cannibalism at sea.
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EVENT 37
12:00pm-1:00pm, Participation Space
Alex Davis – Workshop: Ghosts of the Future
Tickets £7.50
We might first think of history and the past when ghosts come to mind – but are there ways to bring them into the worlds of science-fiction? In this workshop, we'll be exploring the ways we can make ghosts not just modern, but positively futuristic!
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EVENT 38
1:30pm-2:30pm, Cinema Two
Mark Norman – Talk: Screaming Skulls
Tickets £6.50
There are a number of country houses across the UK which profess to contain skulls which get very grumpy if they are taken away. If folklore is to be believed they scream and wail, causing no end of supernatural shenanigans and frightening the horses until they are put back. Or sometimes, when they put themselves back.
They were even the subject of a 1958 American horror film so terrifying that it came with a unique special offer for its audiences.
Dare you pry into the secrets of the Screaming Skulls of British folklore...?