Julian Baggini

Edinburgh International Book Festival
2026-08-30 10:30 - 11:30 (Europe/London) | Spiegeltent, Edinburgh Futures Institute, 1 Lauriston Pl, Edinburgh, EH3 9EF, United Kingdom
What does coffee mean to you? Perhaps it’s fuel, a morning ritual, a grounding moment of mindfulness. In The Book of Coffee, philosopher Julian Baggini (How the World Eats), dives into the steamy depths to uncover how coffee worked its way into the fabric of our culture and what it can teach us about living. Join him for a talk and tasting (hosted by Edinburgh roasters Santu Coffee) that’ll leave you feeling more alive – and alert – than ever.

Tao, Zen & a cup of humanity
2026-09-01 19:30 - 21:00 | Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution, 16-18 Queen Square, Bath, BA1 2HN, United Kingdom
In 1906, Kakuzō Okakura published an extraordinary short book, The Book of Tea, which beautifully expressed the core ideas of Japanese syncretic thought, which he called Teaism. A century later its core ideas are as pertinent as ever yet it is framed in a tea ceremony tradition that is both peculiarly Japanese and more or less extinct.
So Julian Baggini has updated the book for the 21st century, with coffee at its centre, showing “Coffee’s capacity to awaken within us a proper sense of the world and our place in it.”
In this talk, Baggini will explain what Coffeeism is and argue that it is a philosophy for everyday life, a religion of the here and now that requires no gods or anything supernatural. As he says in the book, “It invites us to reject the dichotomy between the sacred and the profane. It suggests a spirituality which is focused on the immanent rather than the transcendent, the impermanent rather than the eternal, the material rather than the immaterial.”

Philosophy Salon: The Power of Questions
2026-09-15 19:30 - 21:15 | St Georges Bristol, Great George Street, Bristol, BS1 5RR, United Kingdom
Our lives are shaped by questions and how they help us to connect, persuade and flourish. But we live in a world that wants answers. In this salon, host Julian Baggini will be joined by philosopher Lani Watson and CEO and author Margaret Hefferman to discuss why questions matter and the science, psychology and philosophy of asking better ones.

Abergavenny Food Festival
2026-09-19 10:00 - 11:00 | Abergavenny Food Festival, Wales, United Kingdom
Julian Baggini & Tim Ridley – The Philosophy of Coffee

Start your festival day with the perfect blend of coffee, conversation and big ideas as philosopher Julian Baggini and coffee expert Tim Ridley explore one of the world’s most beloved beverages.
Kick off the morning programme with a stimulating conversation that celebrates the drink many of us simply couldn’t live without. Philosopher Julian Baggini and coffee expert Tim Ridley explore the history, culture, ethics and rituals that surround coffee, asking why it has become such an essential part of our daily lives. From flavour and terroir to sustainability, global trade and café culture, this engaging discussion reveals coffee as far more than a morning pick-me-up. Thought-provoking, entertaining and guaranteed to leave you looking at your next cup differently, it’s the perfect way to begin a day at the festival.
Julian Baggini is a philosopher, journalist and bestselling author whose books make complex ideas accessible to a wide audience. He is joined by Tim Ridley, coffee expert, educator and founder of Extract Coffee Roasters, whose passion for exceptional coffee, sustainability and ethical sourcing has helped shape the UK’s speciality coffee movement.

Think Like You Eat: The Taste of Resistance
2026-09-26 18:00 - 19:30 | Auditorium Reale Mutua, Via Bertola, 48c, Torini, Italy
The homogenization of taste is merely the final link in a process that tends to flatten what has made life on this planet possible for millennia: biodiversity.
The reason lies in a dense web of economic and social choices that have led to the concentration of agrifood production in a handful of areas, turning our food—from seed production to animal breed genetics, from processing to distribution—into a commodity in the hands of a few multinationals and, increasingly, under the control of investment funds. Nothing could be further from the land and the needs of communities.
Thinking about what we eat means being aware of what lies behind our food, but also reclaiming the consciousness that it is our choices that shape the market, that we can still decide which economy to support with our purchases and that there is a real possibility of changing course.
Speakers: Julian Baggini, Elisabetta Recine and Eric Schlosser

Philosophical Times
2026-10-10 10:30 - 11:30, 2026-10-24 10:30 - 11:30, 2026-11-21 10:30 - 11:30 | St Georges Bristol, Great George Street, Bristol, BS1 5RR, United Kingdom
Join the writer, thinker and St George’s resident philosopher, Julian Baggini, as he explores some of the big ideas that connect with and emerge from this week’s news stories.

The Art of Flourishing
2026-10-27 19:30 - 21:00 | The Folk House, Bristol, 40a Park St, Bristol, BS1 5JG, United Kingdom
Julian will be reflecting on what a lifetime of philosophy can teach us about how to flourish in today’s world.

Philosophy Salon: Existentialism as Therapy?
2026-11-19 19:30 - 21:15 | St Georges Bristol, Great George Street, Bristol, BS1 5RR, United Kingdom
Emmy van Deurzen is one of the world’s most respected existential therapists and founder of the Existential Movement, which aims to “make existential ideas available to the wider public in order to help people achieve greater clarity in their reflection on human existence and in solving their personal and emotional problems.”
Her new book, Beginning to Live, advocates a way of being which enables us all to find a more engaged way of living that is purposeful, deliberate and buoyant. But to what extent can philosophical ideas and arguments promote well-being or happiness? Isn’t philosophy for steely-eyed honesty, not therapy? Joining Emmy and host Julian Baggini is Jonathan Webber, Professor of Philosophy at Cardiff University and editor of The Penguin Book of Existentialist Philosophy. After a break for you to get a drink and gather your thoughts, the second half will be led by your questions and contributions.

Philosophy Salon: Free Speech under Fire
2026-11-30 19:30 - 21:15 | St Georges Bristol, Great George Street, Bristol, BS1 5RR, United Kingdom
In his new book Setting Fire to Reason, philosopher Jeffrey Howard argues that free speech is among our most important moral rights, but—like all rights—it has limits, determined by moral duties we owe to each other. Howard will be unpicking the law, morality and limits of free speech with and host Julian Baggini and political theorist Judith Squires. In the second half, the conversation will be led by your questions. Come not only to hear about free speech, but to participate in it.
