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Bristol Books

A not-for-profit company publishing important and untold stories about lives, communities, places and events with significance and interest in the Bristol

Bristol Books, a not-for-profit Community Interest Company was formed by four people with a passion for Bristol to meet the huge demand for local stories about the city and the South West through the years. There is a huge appetite for stories about Bristol and the surrounding area. Bristol has been the home of some fascinating characters and the venue for some amazing events. Our aim is to capture these untold stories and help enrich the culture of the city.

14/11/2025

Bristol Books have donated a selection of books to the Little Book Stop, located in Redfield’s brilliant 3ft 6 Cafe on Lancaster Street.

The cafe was chosen as one of 90 locations by Penguin in partnership with the non-profit Little Free Library.

The community bookshelves are looked after by volunteer and cafe co-owner Jack Barnett.

11/11/2025

NOW BACK IN PRINT!

Bristol Music: Sounds of the City

This essential guide to Bristol music is now back in print and has been revised and updated for 2025.

Featuring a timeline of the key moments in the city’s music history from 1955 to the present day, with profiles of almost 100 bands, musicians, DJs and producers who have made a significant impact on the sound of the city from Russ Conway to Massive Attack.

RRP: £12
Available from bristolbooks.org/shop

Published by Tangent Books and Bristol Books

06/11/2025

What if Bristol had a metro railway?

This is an artist’s impression of the proposed 1980s Avon Metro. The scheme was put forward by a company called Advanced Transport for Avon (ATA), with a system modelled on London’s Docklands Light Railway. Routes were considered from central Bristol to Portishead, Filton, Emersons Green, Yate, Bradley Stoke, Hartcliffe and Weston-super-Mare, with costs projected at around £230m.

This image is taken from Eugene Byrne’s Unbuilt Bristol walk, featured in The Bristol Ideas Book of Walks, a collection of 12 unique Bristol city walks, available from www.bristolbooks.org

03/11/2025

November Author Talks

Clive Burlton
Bristol's Lost City
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Tues 11th November, 7:15pm
Shipham, Rowberrow and Star History Society
Venue: Shipham Village Hall

Tues 18th November, 7:30pm
Yate Heritage Centre Lectures
Venue: Church Road, Yate

Martin Powell
Maid of the Haystack
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Thursday 30th November, 10am
Birnbeck Probus Club
Venue: Weston Golf Club, Weston-super-Mare.

29/10/2025

Steve Stacey playing for Bristol City against QPR at Loftus Road (1970/71 season). This image is from 'The Colour of Football' the story of the first African-American to play professional football in the UK – a recommended read this Black History Month.

Steve rose from kicking a ball in the gaslit streets of post-war Bristol to running out in the top flight of English football.

'The Colour of Football' follows his rise through the football leagues – the dressing room banter, the famous names, the injuries as Steve plied his trade with Bristol City, Wrexham, Ipswich, and Exeter then breaking more boundaries as one of the first black footballers in Australia playing for Floreat Athena in Perth.

25/10/2025

What did Hotwells look like before the wrecking ball?

Many of the buildings in this photo were demolished when the flyover was built in the 1960’s. Places of interest include:

1. Rownham Inn
2. The Brethren Chapel
3. Sopey Park
4. Anderson's workshop
5. Public lavatories
6. Territt Memorial Hall
7. Spa Assembly Rooms
8. Brunel’s Swivel Bridge (survived)

This image is taken from Hotwells: Spa to Pantomime, a wonderfully illustrated and colourful tale about the community of Hotwells and Cliftonwood and its ability to adapt to extraordinary changes.

21/10/2025

Win a £50 Bristol Books voucher! 📚🎉

We are giving you the chance to win £50 worth of local books from the Bristol Books website, all of your own choosing. From history and untold stories, to guides, city walks books, art, sport, biographies and more, we've got it all to choose from.

To enter (and T&C's), simply sign-up to our mailing list now: https://www.bristolbooks.org/join-now

One lucky winner will be drawn from our mailing list (existing subscribers included).

Competition closes on 5th December, 2025.

17/10/2025

What's your Bristol story?

Do you have a Bristol story to tell? We’re always on the look-out for interesting stories and book ideas about the people, places and events of significance to Bristol and the surrounding area. If you have an interesting Bristol story to tell, an idea for a local interest book, or you’re looking to produce a book for your local organisation, business or charity, get in touch with Bristol Books and see how we might be able to help.

Since 2012 we've been publishing books on behalf of local authors, businesses, organisations and charities. We're a community interest company and winner of Bristol Life Civic Award 2022 and shortlisted South West Business of the Year 2024 for our community impact.

Get in touch: bristolbooks.org/take-action

14/10/2025

BACK IN STOCK: Saints, Crooks & Slavers
History of a Bristol house and its people

A shady French aristocrat whose parents were guillotined in the Revolution, a Quaker philanthropist who twice married into slave-owning families, and the Phippen sisters who ran schools for destitute girls are just some of the amazing untold stories about the people who’ve lived at Peter and Sue Cullimore’s Georgian home in Bristol.

The couple delved into the history of their house in Montpelier, Bristol after it was shortlisted for the TV history programme A House Through Time. In the end, theirs wasn’t the one chosen. But it inspired them to become house history detectives themselves. Saints, Crooks and Slavers combines the history with their step-by-step guide on how to investigate where you live.

Buy now: bristolbooks.org/shop

09/10/2025

Bristol Books love Bookshop Day!

Celebrate your wonderful Bristol bookshops this Saturday, 11th October.

The perfect place to treat yourself this Autumn or kick start your Christmas gift-buying.

07/10/2025

Poets’ Walk poetry readings
Martin Rieser

Sat 11th October, 4pm
Princes Hall, Clevedon

Readings from Poets’ Walk a compilation of poetry edited by Martin Rieser, as part of a one day celebration of books and book-related arts, featuring a marketplace for local authors plus author talks.

Poets’ Walk is available now from bristolbooks.org/shop

03/10/2025

Luke Jerram’s Helios at Bristol Cathedral

Mon 6th – Weds 8th October
Bristol Cathedral, College Green, Bristol

☀Step inside the sun at Bristol Cathedral this October with Helios, a stunning illuminated sculpture by Bristol-based artist Luke Jerram. This breathtaking installation featuring detailed imagery of the sun’s surface will be accompanied by a specially created surround sound composition by Duncan Speakman and Sarah Anderson.

You can explore more of Luke’s work, including Helios, in the new book Luke Jerram: Of Earth and Sky, available from bristolbooks.org/shop.

Address

The Courtyard, Wraxall Hill, Wraxall
Bristol
BS481NA

Telephone

01275393933

Website

http://www.bristolbooks.org/

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Celebrating Bristol in books

Bristol Books is a not-for-profit Community Interest Company formed in 2012 by four people with a passion for Bristol and an ambition to enrich the culture of the city through book publishing.

We pride ourselves on high publishing standards – investing in quality writing, research and design to ensure all our books are a success. We place a real value on books as physical objects and the important role they play in chronicling and recording the rich heritage and culture of the city, both past and present.

As well as commissioning our own books we also produce books on behalf of many local businesses, organisations and individuals.

The Bristol Books team is author and social historian Clive Burlton; publisher Richard Jones; book designer Joe Burt and Martin Powell, publicist and marketing professional.