Lighting the Fire

Four Gloucestershire poets open the festival, with a new bard crowned

Dobunni Poetry Festival begins with Alison Brackenbury, Kate Potts, Zoe Brooks and Jason Conway reading at Lansdown Hall. The programme also includes the revealing and crowning of the inaugural Dobunni Bard, a festival figure described as a cultural witness, myth-maker and mascot.

There is a local thread running through the line-up: Brackenbury's work draws on Gloucestershire's hills, horses, hares and history, Brooks writes and performs from Gloucestershire, and Conway directs the Gloucestershire Poetry Society. Potts brings her work as a poet, mentor and editor, making this an opening session with both local connections and plenty of poetry before the rest of the festival gets underway.

Lansdown Hall is a short walk from Stroud High Street, with the railway and bus stations also within easy walking distance. Parking outside the hall is limited, and the venue has a step-free rear route to the Hall through Bank Gardens as well as accessible toilets and a hearing loop.

Ticketed. Book with Dobunni Poetry Festival.

Friday 16 October 2026 · Lansdown Hall, Lansdown, Stroud GL5 1BB · Starts 12.30pm