Notable Visitors

We have hosted 102,000 people in 18 years of author talks in our top floor café. Here are some high points from this, possibly the most eclectic event programme of any bookshop in the history of the world.
For the full list, click here

Fiction Writers

Umberto Eco, David Lodge, A.S. Byatt, Malcolm Bradbury, Isabel Allende, Will Self, Beryl Bainbridge, John Mortimer, Elizabeth Jane Howard.

“Waterstones Canterbury is the Piccadilly of my psychogeography” – David Mitchell

Spiritual Writers

Paulo Coelho, Julian Cope, Deepak Chopra, Jon Kabat-Zin, 6 Tibetan Lamas.

“Martin Latham (the manager) is my ambassador in Europe” – Paulo Coelho

Historians

David Starkey, Hugh Trevor-Roper, Michael Wood, Antonia Fraser, William Dalrymple , John Julius Norwich, Anthony Beevor, John Keegan, Sir Roy Strong

“Waterstones Canterbury is the Petit Trianon of England” – Lady Antonia Fraser

“Waterstones Canterbury is the nicest bookshop in England” – A.N. Wilson

"Don't lose that thrown-together look" -Sir Roy Strong

Children's Writers

J.K. Rowling (for Book Two, it was her favourite event to date), Philip Pullman , Jacqueline Wilson, Louis Sachar, Michael Morpurgo.

“ Thanks for being so great!” – J.K. Rowling

"Super shop!" -Jacqueline Wilson

Actors

Stephen Fry, Anthony Sher, Steven Berkoff, Terence Stamp, Felicity Kendall, Sarah Miles.

“Fantastic shop, Amazing staff!” – Brian Blessed

“Now we have Hatchards Piccadilly in Kent” – Peter Cushing

Politicians

2 ex-Prime Ministers, 2 ex-Foreign Secretaries, Alan Clark from the Tory Party and Tony Benn from Labour. Party Leader Paddy Ashdown, and two of the men who co-founded that party, Roy Jenkins and David Owen.

“Waterstones Canterbury is the real University of Kent” – Tony Benn