19/08/2026
Royal William Yard Debut Month Long Literary Festival This September.
The RWY Royal William Yard, is debuting its first-ever literary festival this September. Named Read Write Yap, a clever play on the site’s initials (RWY), the month long festival transforms the Yard’s historic buildings, outdoor lawns, and harborside into a celebration of reading, writing, and spoken word.
Festival Highlights
📘 Community Led Talent: The lineup shines a spotlight on local Plymouth creatives, independent booksellers, coastal authors, and spoken word performers.
📗 Diverse Events: Visitors can dive into history talks, cocktail-paired book clubs, spoken word nights, and even a maritime mythology workshop hosted partly at sea.
📙 Youth & Whimsical Extras: Features a children’s short story competition, a "blind date with a book" station (where readers choose books by clues rather than covers), and a dedicated stick library for dogs.
📕 The Grand Finale (Sept 27): The festival culminates in the Read Write Yap Market on The Green. Run by the team behind the Yard's popular Good Food and Craft Market, this final day book fair brings together independent artisans, authors, and booksellers on the lawn.
The festival runs all month long with a flexible, relaxed, drop in structure, and additional events will be added to the schedule throughout September.
WHAT’S ON
From 1st September, a number of fixtures run across the Yard for the whole month:
🔸 Second-hand bookstall, Pop-Up Shop, Unit 5, Arcade. A shifting selection of preloved titles to browse and buy throughout September.
🔸 Blind date with a book, Pop-Up Shop, Unit 5, Arcade. Pick up a parcel wrapped in brown paper and string, read the clues – genre, mood, a hint of what’s inside – and take a chance on a book you haven’t met yet. Available for a small fee.
🔸 Big Little Story Competition, Pebble, Unit 2, Arcade. A short story competition for young writers aged 5 to 10. Two age categories, one prompt – “It all started when I found…” – and up to 250 words to run with it. Entry sheets available in store. Every child who enters receives a Storytelling Star certificate; winners take home a hamper of books and treats.
🔸 Dog stick library, outside Nala’s Pet Co, Arcade. The festival’s canine-friendly offering. A dedicated spot where four-legged visitors can borrow a stick, enjoy it thoroughly and, unlike a library, keep it. No library card required!
🔸 Hai Coo’s Trail haiku display, Melville Corner. All 20 poems from Hai Coo’s Trail – the public haiku installation curated by Plymouth’s Laureate of Words R.C.
🔸 Thomas in conjunction with Literature Works – brought together in one place at Royal William Yard for the first time.
🔸 200 Exhibition, Melville Corner, daily 11am–5pm, free. Read all about it:Royal William Yard’s free self-guided history exhibition brings together original documents, letters, books, photographs and personal testimonials tracing the story of the site from its origins to the present day.
And there's lots more! See comments for full details 👇