A popular spring festival in Abergavenny has been forced to postpone this year’s event due to the absence of previous funding from the Arts Council Wales and National Lottery.

The Abergavenny Writing Festival was due to take place on Saturday April 17th and Sunday April 18th. The two-day event usually features venues across the town as creative talent from across the country showcase their work to literary lovers.

It has continued to grow since the first event a decade ago, but this year it has been postponed due to financial constraints.

“We’re very sorry that the 2026 Abergavenny Writing Festival is postponed,” a spokesperson said.

“In a very competitive round with many wonderful events and projects competing for Arts Council Wales/ Lottery funding we were not successful this time.”

“Without full funding we can not honour our commitment to pay creative practitioners for their expertise and keep prices low to ensure accessibility for all.”

The festival also placed its thanks to the Arts Council Wales and National Lottery for its support in previous years as well as local backing from Abergavenny Town Council, Christie Residential, Abergavenny Rotary Club, The Kings Arms and the Melville Centre for the Arts.

The news was met with supportive comments from community organisations and participants returned their gratitude for the platform the event has offered to their work.

Abergavenny is also vying to become the UK Town of Culture in 2028 and the festival was not only highlighted in the bid, but as one of the cornerstones of the calendar that makes the town one of the bookies’ early favourites.

However, organisers are keen to stress this is not the end for the acclaimed weekend and that potential fundraising options will be considered. A statement read that the planners “very much” hope to be back soon.