From Saturday 25th July 2026 until Saturday 1st August 2026
All day event
Dorchester Baptist Church. Bridport Road, Dorchester, Dorset DT1 1RR

The 27th International Thomas Hardy Conference and Festival

The conference will take place at The Dorford Centre

TICKET PRICES

Full Conference Ticket - THS Member - £250

Full Conference Ticket - Non-Member - £300

Full Conference Ticket - THS Student Member - £75

Conference Day Ticket - THS Member - £50 (excluding Saturday)

Conference Day Ticket - Non-Member - £60 (excluding Saturday)

Conference Day Ticket - THS Student Member - £20 (excluding Saturday)

A Full Conference Ticket includes the Welcome dinner, Farewell buffet, workshops and some evening performances

(Check the programme for further information)

BOOK ONLINE

PROGRAMME

Saturday 25th July

From 12 noon - Registration at The Dorford Centre

1.30pm – Roman Casterbridge

Walk around Roman Dorchester with County Archaeologist, Steve Wallis and Mark Chutter

6.30pm – Welcome Dinner, Thomas Hardye School, Dorchester

8.00pm – Opening Speaker: Paula Byrne

Best-selling author talking about her book, Hardy Women: Mother, Sisters, Wives, Muses

9.00pm – The Melplash Band: Tess’s Sisters: Songs of the Working Women of Hardy’s Wessex

Sunday, 26th July

8.30am – Coach trip to Oxford, led by Tony Fincham*

Exploring Jude's Christminster, including a visit to Fawley and the Brown House

10.30am – Wey Valley Walk led by Byron Silver and Mark North*

3.00pm – Poetry in the Casterbridge Room, King’s Arms

4.00pm - Hardy and Clothing Workshop

6.00pm – Evensong, St Michael’s Church, Stinsford

7.15pm – The Hardy Annuals, St Michael’s Church, Stinsford

Monday, 27th July

9.30am – Keynote: Richard Franklin

11.00am – Call for Papers 1 and 2

1.30pm – Coombe Keynes to Lulworth Walk, led by Lucy Boyle Brown*

1.30pm – The Trumpet Major Tour, led by Alban O’Brien*

Tour of landmarks featured in The Trumpet Major

3.00pm – The Hardy Archive, Dorset History Centre

7.00pm – The Trumpet Major Performance*

Tim Laycock and friends with readings, music and dance

Tuesday, 28th July

9.30am – Keynote: Mark Ford

11.00am – Call for Papers 3 and 4

1.30pm – Hardy & Archaeology, talk by Chris Copson, including a Dorset cream tea with stunning views*

Included in the CBA Festival of Archaeology 2026

1.30pm – Hardy's Dorset Gallery, Dorset Museum, tour led by Alban O’Brien*

3.00pm – The Mayor of Casterbridge Walk, led by Alastair Braidwood*

4.00pm - The Postgraduate Forum

5.30pm – The Withered Arm, performed by Wey Valley Academy

Promenade performance starting at the Roman Town House

7.00pm – Hardy Quiz and Buffet, The Old Tea House*

Wednesday, 29th July

9.30am – Keynote: Jackie Walker

11.00am – Call for Papers 5 and 6

1.30pm – Wolfeton House Walk, led by Mark Damon Chutter*

1.30pm – The Fiddler of the Reels – A Musical Walk led by Tony Fincham*

Accompanied by Ruth Thompson & Cath McMillan

4.00pm – Poetry Workshop with Finn Horton

Exploring the visibility of Hardy's life in his poetry.

7.00pm – In Harmony with Hardy, The Corn Exchange, Dorchester

An evening of readings, songs, and piano music performed by James Graham

Thursday, 30th July

9.30am – Keynote: Roger Ebbatson

11.00am – Call for Papers 7 and 8

1.30pm – Hardy’s Cottage and Thorncombe Woods walk, led by Alban O’Brien*

1.30pm – Isle of Slingers Tour, led by Tony Fincham*

A walking tour of Portland followed by an exploration of Tout Quarry, led by sculptor Hannah Sofaer

4.00pm – Common Reader Seminar

7.00pm – The Well Beloved, Wessex Dramas Project

Screening of the award-winning, locally produced film in the Casterbridge Room, The King’s Arms

Friday, 31st July

9.30am – Keynote: Trish Ferguson

11.00am – Call for Papers 9 and 10

1.30pm – Tour of Sherborne, led by Mark Damon Chutter*

Exploring Hardy’s Sherton Abbas

1.30pm – Max Gate house and gardens tour, with performance by The New Hardy Players*

3.00pm – Creative Writing Workshop with Lucy Boyle Brown at Max Gate

To commemorate Virgina Woolf’s visit to the Hardys at Max Gate on July 25th 1926

7.00pm - Farewell Barn Dance and Buffet at Brownsword Hall

Saturday, 1st August

9.30am – Closing Speaker: Amelia Fletcher, Author of "The Irrepressible Mary Jeune, Victorian Influencer"

11am – THS AGM

1.00pm – The Hand of Ethelberta, performance by The New Hardy Players

2pm – End of Conference

*Not included in the Full Conference Ticket

BOOKABLE ACTIVITIES

Walks, Tours and Performances

(Afternoon activities and entertainment are listed on each day of the THS Conference)

BOOK ONLINE

Bookings for the additional activities (walks/tours/performances) are only currently available to THS Conference Ticket Holders

Tickets will become available to THS members from 2nd June 2026 and non-members from 9th June 2026 (subject to availability).

Priority Booking is given to Conference Ticket holders and THS members.

Places are limited and will be issued on a first-come basis.

Workshops

(THS Conference ticket holders only)

Click on workshop title to

Book a Place

Woolfs at the Door

Places are limited and allocated on a first-come basis

The Dorford Centre is a contemporary, modern and extensive conference centre situated near the south coast in the centre of Dorchester, Dorset. The Centre is fully disability accessible. The centre is located opposite the Top 'O' Town car park where daily parking rates apply.