Books, sea air and a brand-new festival
23 – 30 May 2026
Short cuts : Line-up | Tickets | Map
A note from Tamara Macfarlane, The Book Hotel at The Falstaff
For over two decades I ran Tales on Moon Lane, a children’s bookshop in South London until I came to Ramsgate and fell completely in love with it …
I opened Moon Lane Children’s Books on Addington Street and spent a lot of time drinking coffee in the lovely Falstaff. The warmth of the building, the team and the atmosphere can not be replicated. I kept day-dreaming of a holiday place that combined the Falstaff’s warmth and good coffee with Ramsgate’s extraordinary light, sea walks, beach swims and piles of brilliant books. Recently, Peter Andon, who owns The Falstaff, remembered our conversations from 2022 and asked if I was still interested, and the Book Hotel at The Falstaff was born.
Together we have taken this much-loved hotel on the brilliantly independent Addington Street, the original high street of Ramsgate, and filled it with books. There is a bookshop, a café, a bar, an event space, eight individually designed guest rooms and two apartments, all nestled under one 1801 roof, all combining to create a perfect place to finish reading … or writing … that novel. A good cup of coffee and a great piece of cake within easy reach.
The welcome from Ramsgate’s exceptional locals has been unreservedly generous. We sold a third of our opening stock in that first weekend, and the wider Thanet community has cheered us on at every turn. The shop is deliberately open to anyone and welcomes everyone. We could not have had more support.
We are officially launching with the first Ramsgate Lit Fest across this May half-term, in The Falstaff’s Waterloo Room. Authors have said yes with great generosity, and the programme has come together in a way that feels right for Ramsgate, interesting, eclectic, embracing.
Please come and join us …
Ramsgate Lit Fest 26 : the line-up
Saturday 23 – Saturday 30 May 2026 · The Waterloo Room, The Falstaff.
• Sat 23 May, 4pm: Mrs H Sings — A Family Music Show (Children · Half Term)
• Sat 23 May, 7pm: Mlle. Loulou — An Evening of French Chanson & Jazz with Garance Louis (All Ages · Opening Night)
• Sun 24 May, 7pm: Rosie Wilby: The Breakup Monologues — The Unexpected Joy of Heartbreak (Adults)
• Tue 26 May, 2pm: Garry Parsons — Pooping Dinosaur & Daisy Trouble Draw-Along (Children)
• Tue 26 May, 7pm: Adam Weymouth: Lone Wolf — Walking the Faultlines of Europe (Adults)
• Wed 27 May, 2pm: Tamara Macfarlane: The Book of Mysteries, Magic and the Unexplained (Children)
• Wed 27 May, 6pm: Eleanor Shearer: Fireflies in Winter (Adults)
• Wed 27 May, 7pm: Dominic Gregory: Lifeboat at the End of the World — A Volunteer’s Story (Adults)
• Thu 28 May, 11am: Adam Stower: Murray & Bun — Murray the Pirate (Children)
• Thu 28 May, 2pm: Fern Riddell: I Am a Royal Rulebreaker — Women Who Shaped History (Children)
• Thu 28 May, 7pm: Fern Riddell: Victoria’s Secret — The Private Passion of a Queen (Adults)
• Fri 29 May, 7pm: Rosa Rankin Gee — author of Dreamland, with her new book My Only Boy (Adults) — NEW
• Sat 30 May, 11am: Katie’s Story Time — Free Family Storytelling (Children)
• Sat 30 May, 7pm: Joanne Bourne: Flint — A Lithic Love Letter (Adults · Closing Night)
Tickets & information
Click here for the full programme and bookings.
Address
The Book Hotel at The Falstaff, 16–18 Addington Street, Ramsgate, Kent CT11 9JJ