Spain is the honoured country at this year's Nicosia Book Fest, which runs from Friday 9 to Sunday 11 October at Acropolis Park in Strovolos, with free entry. Over three days, the festival programme combines stories, poetry, music, theatre, film and creative activities. Spanish writers share the bill with a long list of Cypriot authors, academics, actors and musicians.
Spain as honoured country
The organisers say the 2026 tribute highlights Spain's diverse culture and long literary tradition. A wide programme of events, presentations and creative activities covers Spanish literature, poetry and the arts. The festival also includes activities for children and adults.
The opening ceremony
The festival opens on Friday at 19:00 on the Central Stage, with a ceremony dedicated to Spain. The Ambassador of Spain, the Deputy Minister of Culture, the Chair of the Board of the Promitheas Research Institute and the Mayor of Strovolos will deliver addresses. Spain will then receive the Honoured Country Award.
The evening continues with an artistic programme on Spanish literature, performed by actors Stelios Kallistratis and Olga Assiotou. It closes with a flamenco performance by Filippa Stylianoudi and guitarist Stefanos Riris.
Spanish guests
Three guests from Spain are taking part: Elena Medel, Isaac Palmiola and Javier Moreno.
On Saturday at 18:25 on the Literature Stage, award-winning Spanish author Elena Medel will discuss her book Las maravillas with Eleni Evagorou, head of the organising committee of Femme Fest Cyprus. The organisers describe the book as one that gives a voice to women who remain unseen and brings class and feminist issues to the fore. The event is organised by the Instituto Cervantes in Cyprus, the Embassy of Spain and Nicosia Book Fest, and will be held in English.
Earlier on Saturday, at 16:55, a discussion examines how the Spanish Civil War influenced intellectual and literary work in both Spain and Cyprus. Javier Moreno, a professor at the University of Seville, will look at the activity of intellectuals in the PCE, the Communist Party of Spain, during the war. Philologist Giorgos Myaris will discuss the war's impact on Cypriot literature, with reference to the work of Theodosis Pieridis. The event is organised by Transform!Europe and the Promitheas Research Institute.
Children's author Isaac Palmiola will meet young readers on the Children's Stage at 17:10 on Saturday. Together with Vasiliki Andreou and the theatre group PICCOLLO, he will present a theatre game inspired by his detective stories.
Theatre, music and film
On Saturday evening, the Central Stage hosts Bohemian Chronicles at 19:30, a presentation in English by Marina Giannou of works by major Spanish creators. At 20:30, Between Light and Silence: Lorca and Elytis follows. This music and poetry performance pairs the lyricism of Federico García Lorca with the Aegean light of Odysseas Elytis. It is curated by Giorgos Kalogirou and held under the auspices of the Embassy of Greece in Cyprus.
On Sunday at 20:00, the Compass group stages Don Quixote: A Story in Songs, a musical theatre adaptation of Cervantes' masterpiece. Actor Varvara Christofi narrates and plays the characters, while musicians Dimitris Spyrou and Giannis Christidis perform original songs live.
The film programme includes Tad, the Lost Explorer on the Children's Stage at 19:00 on Saturday. On Sunday at 19:30, it screens the award-winning Spanish film La lengua de las mariposas (Butterfly's Tongue), based on the short story by Manuel Rivas.
Further Spanish-themed events
On Sunday at 11:30, historian Manos Avgeridis presents a volume revisiting the democratic transitions in Greece, Spain and Portugal, fifty years after the fall of their dictatorships. The event is organised by the Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung in Athens.
At 15:45 in the Spilies Hall, author Dr Andri Christofidou-Antoniadou presents her two books on Federico García Lorca. Actor Dimitris Konstantinidis will read excerpts, and material from the author's archive will be screened.
For younger visitors, the Children's Stage hosts La Aventura Española, an interactive treasure hunt with riddles and missions inspired by Spain, at 14:45 on Sunday.
Stages and programme
Events take place across several venues within the park: the Central Stage, the Literature Stage, the Children's Stage, the Spilies Hall and the Lectern in the Park. A separate programme of parallel activities runs alongside them. The full programme is available to download from the festival website.
About the festival
Nicosia Book Fest was first held in June 2016 as an initiative of the Promitheas Research Institute. It has the support of the Press and Information Office and Strovolos Municipality, with further backing from the Deputy Ministry of Culture and private initiatives. Its stated aims are to promote books to Cypriot audiences of all ages, bring readers and writers together, and promote the work of Cypriot authors.
The festival takes place at Acropolis Park, Strovolos, from 9 to 11 October, with free entry. More information is available on 22 432111, by email at nicosiabookfestival@gmail.com and at nicosiabookfest.com.
