Big Tasty Read

In 2025, Bradford Literature Festival (BLF) was chosen as the launch partner for BBC Arts and The Reading Agency’s Big Tasty Read, a nationwide campaign designed to reawaken the joy of reading by using the universal appeal of food to inspire reading and bring communities together.

Prompted by research from The Reading Agency showing that half of UK adults do not read regularly, the initiative used the pleasures of food writing, memoir and fiction to inspire more people to pick up a book.

The Big Tasty Read was part of Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture and supported by City of Bradford Council.

The Reading Agency’s research showed that people who choose books aligned to their interests and hobbies are less likely to report struggling to focus when reading, and are more likely to enjoy reading, while people who selected both reading and cooking as two of their top three hobbies are 17.5% less likely to report often feeling anxious or depressed compared to the general population.

Titles featured on previous Big Read booklists – The Big Sporting Read (2024), The Big Eurovision Read (2023) and The Big Jubilee Read (2022) – saw an 54% average increase in library loans during the campaign periods

A specially curated booklist, featuring a diverse range of 22 titles, was selected by The Reading Agency in partnership with librarians, booksellers, and an expert advisory panel. Each book was selected not only for its literary quality, but also for its ability to spark dialogue across generations, cultures and communities, using food as an entry point into deeper stories. Discover the full booklist here: The Big Tasty Read Booklist.

The booklist was unveiled at Bradford Literature Festival alongside nine events during BLF 2025, including a launch event with Big Tasty Read ambassadors: food writer and broadcaster, Grace Dent, and restaurateur and author, Nisha Katona.

During the sold-out event at St George’s Hall, Dent and Katona explored how food carries memory, history and belonging, and how stories about food open up conversations about identity, migration and community. The launch reflected one of BLF’s core principles: literature has the greatest impact when it connect directly with lived experience and when it becomes a bridge between people.

The Big Tasty Read campaign continued after the launch event with an exciting programme of events led by Bradford Council’s Bradford Libraries, engaging audiences across the district and beyond with a programme of events, workshops, and book clubs. The initiative connected local food communities, highlighting how food can be a gateway to storytelling, shared experiences, and cultural understanding. Members of the public were also invited to share their own food memories and recipes on social media throughout the summer.

To commission, co-produce or fund similar programmes, please get in touch. 

Big Tasty Read Events