Adam Kay brings a doctor’s eye and a comic writer’s ear to stories about medicine. Readers come to him through candid memoir, a hospital murder mystery or the questions children ask about their bodies. His festival year had room for both grown-up crime readers and families following his fictional child doctor.
Quick facts
Best known for
This is Going to Hurt and medical writing for children
Genre or subject
Memoir, medical humour, children’s books and crime fiction
Latest book
Kay’s Gruesome Games, illustrated by Henry Paker (2026), Puffin
Kay is an author, television writer and performer who worked as a doctor before turning that experience into books. He adapted his first book, This is Going to Hurt, as a BBC comedy-drama; the adaptation received BAFTA recognition. Writing for the screen sits alongside his books for adults and children, so there is more than one route into his work.
His children’s publishing includes illustrated non-fiction, stories and activity books. Henry Paker illustrates this writing, bringing pictures into books that explain medical subjects or imagine a doctor who is still a child. The mix leaves plenty for a young reader to be curious about: how a body works, what happens in a hospital, or how a medical problem becomes a comic story.
Kay’s Gruesome Games was published by Puffin on 3 September 2026. Its history-of-medicine activities include puzzles, crafts and quizzes. For adult readers, A Particularly Nasty Case, published in 2025, combines a hospital setting with a murder mystery. The two books show how far his medical interests travel across audiences.
Where to start with their books
This is Going to Hurt
The medical memoir is the place to begin if you want Kay’s adult writing about his former profession. It also gives readers of his fiction a chance to see the experience behind the hospital settings, without needing to follow a continuing cast across several novels.
Kay’s Anatomy
For a child asking how the human body works, this illustrated non-fiction book offers a different entry point from a novel. Read it together and let the younger reader choose the body question they would most like to explore; that curiosity can carry into a family book event.
Dexter Procter the Ten-Year-Old Doctor
Kay’s fictional doctor is a child with an extraordinary job. Start here if it is the character, the medical setting or the idea of a child doing an adult’s work that appeals; this is a story to follow, with a different rhythm from dipping into a body fact book.
Festival appearances
For tickets, use the host festival’s official box office. Confirm the date, venue and access details before paying.
At Oxford on 22 March, Kay’s children’s fiction took the stage in Dexter Procter The 10-Year-Old Doctor at the Mathematical Institute’s Lecture Theatre 1. This was the family-book part of his festival year, centred on the fictional young doctor.
Where to see them next
No 2027 appearances announced yet. Check the festival guides for programme dates.
Plan your trip
With children, plan the day around the child’s interest and energy: leave time to eat before the session and keep the rest of the programme manageable. A question about a favourite character can give a young reader something to look forward to without making the outing feel like homework.
For an adult crime visit, bring the question that stayed with you after reading the mystery. If you hope to have a book signed, ask the box office about signing plans before carrying several copies. The guides below cover where to base yourself and how to fit the event into a comfortable day.
The 2026 programmes featured Adam Kay at Oxford Literary Festival, Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival; follow those guides for event information and practical visit details.
Can I take children to hear Adam Kay?
Use the festival links on Adam Kay’s profile for the event’s own ticket and audience guidance.
Do I need to read a book before his event?
A child can begin with a few pages of the character they will hear about. Adult readers can start with the memoir or mystery that interests them. There is no need to work through the whole bibliography.
How do I buy tickets for Adam Kay?
Use the festival links on Adam Kay’s profile for the event’s own ticket and audience guidance.
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