Robin Ince loves books. Maybe a little too much. He journeys across the world exploring his lifelong love of bookshops and books – and also tries to find out just why he can never have enough of them.

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2023 Tour Dates

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Bibliomaniac
The Documentary Series

In this series we travel with Robin across the UK as he visits 100s of independent bookshops and libraries to browse and give talks about his love of books. The series is written and presented by Robin Ince and directed by Trent Burton. Thanks to the generous support of our Patreon subscribers and the Laura Kinsela Foundation this series will be free to watch online.

Episode One
Adventures in Exeter

In this first episode Robin does three shows in a day, in two libraries and an Oxfam, visits a special secondhand bookshop and gets let lose in ‘the cage’, the secret underground collection at the Exeter Library.

Premieres Monday July 31st at 8:30pm BST

The Online Bibliomaniac Book Club
Hosted by Robin Ince

CURRENTLY ON HIATUS DUE TO TOURING AND EDINBURGH FRINGE. WE WILL RETURN IN SEPTEMBER.

During Robin’s tour of bookshops coinciding with Bibliomanaic being published, he started to hear from people that they had been reading my book for months, but had only got up to page 23, as every time they read about a book that they decided sounded fascinating, they would stop reading Bibliomaniac and go to that book instead, and then return when finished.

And so we’ve created an online book club to discuss those books Robin praises and discovers within the pages of Bibliomaniac. These meetings will be LIVE!

We will be joined by independent booksellers, librarians and YOU.

To start with, this club will be free for all to attend (but with limited spaces available first dibs will go to subscribers of the Cosmic Shambles or Book Shambles Patreon accounts)

HOW IT WILL WORK

  1. We will meet once each month during 2023.
  2. Approximately three weeks beforehand will will post three book choices for the following month on our Patreon pages for subscribers to vote on. You can subscribe to our Patreon here.
  3. Two weeks before each meeting we will post the meeting date and time here on this page, as well as which book we will be reading. To make sure you don’t miss the announcement, follow us on social media (links in the page footer) or sign up to our mailing list here.
  4. One hour before the meeting Patreon subscribers will be emailed a secret Zoom link to join the waiting room for the meeting.
  5. 15 minutes before the beginning of the meeting the Zoom link will be posted publicly on this page.
  6. People will be admitted until the capacity has been reached.
  7. Each meeting will begin with an intro from Robin, a discussion with the bookseller from the shop where Robin got the book, and then we’ll all chat about it.
  8. Meetings will last approximately one hour.
  9. Obviously the meetings will be moderated and anyone being intentionally disruptive will be removed from the Zoom session.

MEETING #1
January 30th 7:30pm GMT

Book: Gratitude by Delphine de Vigan

Recording Available for Patreon supporters now.

MEETING #2
February 24th 7:30pm GMT

Book: Good Morning, Midnight by Jean Rhys

Recording Available for Patreon supporters now

MEETING #3
March 27th 7:30pm BST

Book: At the Existentialist Café by Sarah Bakewell

Apologies but no recording of this meeting will be available due to a technical error.

MEETING #4
Sunday May 28th 7:30pm BST

Book: A Short History of Queer Women by Kirsty Loehr
Recording available for Patreons.

Bibliomaniac 2023 Tour Dates
(More being added all the time so check back regularly)

Weapons of Empathy
August 2 – 27 – 1:00pm
Award-winning comedian and bibliomaniac, Robin Ince, takes audiences on a celebratory tour of the places books can take us, and of the ideas that can make wonder and widen the sky. Robin was the Bookseller’s Association 2022 Author of the Year. The Times Literary Supplement described Bibliomaniac as ‘joyous, irreverent – liberating and life-affirming’ while Eric Idle said ‘one of the most delightful books I have ever read… always making me laugh’. Expect a chaos of words and ideas, love and delight. And also a very long reading list.
Gilded Ballon at the Museum. Tickets.

There will be more 2023 Tour dates released after Edinburgh.

Previous Dates
  • 1 Feb – Sedbergh – Westwood Books
  • 2 Feb – Chorley – Ebb and Flo Bookshop
  • 7 Feb – Warwick Bookshop
  • 8 Feb
    • Birmingham – The Electric
    • Birmingham – Bear Bookshop
  • 9 Feb – Swindon – Bert’s
  • 15 Feb – Tiverton- Liznojan Books
  • 16 Feb – Bristol – Bookhaus
  • 17-18 Feb – Bristol – Slapstick Festival
  • 21 Feb – Canterbury Christ Church University with campus bookshop
  • 23 Feb – Bookseller Crow – Crystal Palace
  • 27 Feb
    • Exeter Oxfam Bookshop
    • St Thomas Library
  • 28 Feb – Plymouth Humanists with Ivybridge Bookshop
  • 1 Mar –
    • Liskeard – The Book Shop – Lunchtime
    • Mevagissey – Hurley Books – Evening
  • 3 Mar – Chesire – Simply Books (Morning)
  • 4 Mar – Hoylake – Doctor Who Convention
  • 5 Mar – Carlisle – Bookends Bookshop
  • 6 Mar – Stewarton – The Book Nook
  • 7 Mar – Glasgow – Mt Florida Books
  • 8 Mar – Edinburgh – Portobello Books
  • 9 Mar – Linlithgow – The Madding Crowd
  • 10 Mar – Edinburgh – Lighthouse Bookshop
  • 11 Mar – Alnwick – Forum Books
  • 14 Mar – Wendover – Real Magic Books
  • 18 Apr – Settle – Settle Community Library with Limestone Books POSTPONED
  • 19 Apri – Leeds – Philip Howard Books
  • 20 Apr – Cromford – Scarthin Books
  • 25 Apr – Bridgewater – Snug Bookshop and Cafe
  • 26 Apr – Bristol – The Small City Bookshop
  • 27 April – North Bristol – Max Minerva’s Bookshop
  • 2 May – Winchester – P & G Wells
  • 3 May – London – Wanstead Library
  • 6 May – Corsham – Pound Arts (Fringe Preview)
  • 9 May
    • Swansea Volcano Theatre with Cover to Cover Books
    • Swansea University Rapid Motion Through Space special screening and Q&A
  • 10 May – Monmouth – Rossiters Books
  • 11 May – Pontypridd – Storyville Books
  • 16 May – London – Wanstead Tap (I’m a Joke and So Are You Updated Edition Special Event)
  • 17 May – Hull Libraries
  • 18 May – Marsden Library
  • 20 May – The Wood Festival
  • 27 May – Glasgow – Aye Write Festival
  • 30 May – Haye-on-Wye – Hay Festival (in conversation with Marcus Brigstocke)
  • 29 May – Brighton Skeptics
  • 6 Jun – Shoreham by Sea – Ropetackle Arts Centre (Fringe Preview)
  • 7 Jun – Cheltenham – Cheltenham Science Festival
  • 9 Jun – Liverpool – Humanist’s UK Convention
  • 10 Jun – Ampthill Book Festival
  • 11 Jun – Swaffham – Southam Book Festival
  • 15 Jun – Essex – Essex Book Festival
  • 16 Jun – Harmony Garden – Borders Book Festival
  • Jun 17 – Lowestoft – First Light Festival
  • Jun 19 – Belper – Dormouse Books – 7pm
  • Jun 20 – Arnold Nottingham – But – 7pm
  • Jun 21
    • Sheffield – Juno Books – 1pm
    • Leicester – Fox Books – Evening
  • 24 Jun – Felixstowe Book Festival

Tour presented by The Cosmic Shambles Network and Atlantic Books

The Cosmic Shambles Network is only possible due to the generous pledges of our Patreon supporters. There’s lots of great rewards available for supporters. Subscribe below.