A children’s book festival drew criticism after asking for controversial comments to be removed | Books

Bath children’s book festival is facing criticism after its founder sent an email to editors asking them to remove social media posts about the absence of the festival in its 2026 program.

Authors said their comments criticizing the festival for the lack of a footer on its Instagram page were removed, while the original post was later removed and comments limited to other posts.

Several authors said they received emails from one of the founders, John McLay, on Monday evening asking them to remove their comments because they “didn’t check the whole list before hitting the keyboard”.

John McLay, a children’s literature researcher, founded the festival 19 years ago with his wife Gill, an assistant at the Bath Literary Agency.

Gill McLay defended the decision to deal directly with the writers, saying the festival wanted the post with the wrong information, which said there were no writers of color in the program, to be removed.

The email cited seven nationalities in the program, one of whom is a UK-Cypriot, as evidence that the complaints were false. The program features around 100 events, and funds are raised as the largest children’s book festival in the UK.

A celebration he also contacted another author’s assistant to ask them to take back their comments.

“Maybe it wasn’t the right way to respond, and we’ve since apologized,” said Gill McLay. “It wasn’t our intention to ban anyone. We just wanted to make sure the stories were accurate.”

Children’s author Sophie Anderson, who received the email, told the Guardian: “To have someone so powerful in the business of sending out threatening and bullying emails is terrible.”

Alexandra Sheppard, a writer whose video about the situation has garnered more than 20,000 views, said the “fear of being blacklisted for criticizing powerful institutions is very real”. They are now preparing an open letter to be sent to the festival.

In a Instagram in a statement, the festival said it was “very proud of this year’s line-up”, but that it had “listened to the comments that have been made”. Although it “chosen the authors and artists from the selection presented by the publishers”, it said that “it will work hard to ensure that we have more representatives”, adding that “it has already brought new people into the management of the festival to help us with this”.

The authors argue that the case reflects a broader trend, with similar concerns surrounding other events including the London Children’s Literature Festival.

“In 2026, we have to do better,” said author Iqbal Hussain. “We’re not living in Regency Bath, or 1950s London.”

The line comes amid many concerns about representation in children’s books. Recently Statistics of the Department of Education shows that 38.7% of school-age children in England are from ethnic minorities, but the eighth study of Reflecting Realitiesmanaged by the Center for Literacy in Primary Education, found that only 24% of books had minority characters, up from 30% in 2022.

“I’ve seen a lot of talks, panels, articles and TV shows about how print can best serve the young readers it serves,” Sheppard said. “If an organization like BCLF still needs integration, the reason is simple: they don’t want it.”

Campaigners warn that limited representation could also alienate young readers who struggle to portray their lives in books.

Gill McLay told the Guardian that the festival is working well, citing measures such as the establishment of a steering committee. “What we are asking people today is to give us a chance to do better,” he added.