In a coup that will delight both cinephiles and globetrotters, the organisers of World Travel Market (WTM) London have confirmed that Richard E. Grant will appear as the closing keynote speaker. His session, titled “An Audience with Richard E. Grant: Storytelling Beyond the Screen”, is set for the final day, 6 November, capping the three-day summit with a flourish.
Grant, actor, writer, presenter and a voice with gravitas, will take to the Yellow Theatre stage from 15:15 to 16:15 to regale delegates with reflections drawn from more than 35 years across film, television and theatre. The man behind cult roles in Withnail and I, or supporting turns in Gosford Park and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, is no mere showbiz figure. His film is in Can You Ever Forgive Me? He landed nods from the Oscars, the BAFTAs, and the Golden Globes.
Richard E Grant
In a world increasingly hungry for authenticity, Grant brings serious cred: he has fronted travel and arts documentaries, including the BBC’s Write Around the World With Richard E. Grant, where he traced the footsteps of great authors, visited inspiring landscapes and probed the cultural heartbeats behind classic texts. He will speak of how working on location has deepened his respect for the cultural context each story must carry.
His memoir A Pocketful of Happiness (2022) remains a Sunday Times bestseller, praised widely for its candour and wit. It explains why he is so well-suited to speak on the intersection of story, travel, and personal perspective.
Chris Carter-Chapman, WTM London’s Event Director, put it this way:
“We’re absolutely delighted that Richard will be appearing as our closing keynote speaker. He is well known for his engaging articulate style and is frequently invited to speak at literary festivals, film events and cultural institutions – so we’re thrilled to welcome him to WTM London to hear his thoughts about how travel informs understanding and connections across borders.”
Carter-Chapman added that Grant will bring “insight, warmth and intellect” to his reflections on travel as a vital tool for navigating the world’s complexity. This sentiment dovetails neatly with WTM’s mission to foster meaningful change and link communities globally. Delegates, he said, should expect “entertaining observations” and leave with “inspiring perspectives on travel, culture and life.”
That’s a tall order, but then, so is the stage. WTM London, held at the Excel, continues to be the globe’s premier travel and tourism event, regularly attracting international ministers, marquee brands, and new voices in the business.
The 2025 conference is themed “Reimagining Travel in a Changing World”, a through-line to unite topics from sustainability and technology to diversity, economics and emerging travel trends. The closing keynote will ride that wave, framing travel’s past, present, and future through Grant’s lens as a storyteller and traveller.
It is no accident that WTM tapped someone whose career spanned decades, mediums, continents, and languages. As travel reconfigures in response to climate shifts, geopolitical friction, and new demands from post-pandemic audiences, the industry craves figures who can both entertain and provoke.
As the final act of WTM London 2025, “An Audience with Richard E. Grant” promises to knit together threads of art, narrative, heritage and wanderlust. For delegates, it will be more than a keynote: it will be an invitation to look at travel not as a commodity, but as a canvas for stories, and a bridge between cultures.
For those inclined to attend, registration is open via WTM London’s site: WTM London registration.
By Alison Jenkins
BIO
Alison Jenkins has spent much of her career at thirty thousand feet or at least close to it. Having worked in several sales roles with several airlines, she built a reputation for knowing her clients and flight schedules. Quick with a smile and sharper still with a deal, she became one of those rare people who could charm passengers and partners without losing her professional edge.
Trade shows and FAMILS were all part of the territory, and Alison became a regular on the circuit, with suitcases, smiles, and a notepad never far from reach. Somewhere between airport lounges and hotel lobbies, she discovered she loved telling the stories behind the journeys. Her post-FAMILS reports, meant for internal newsletters, began to take on a life of their own, lively, observant, and unmistakably hers.
That’s when Alison realised she wasn’t just selling travel, she was meant to write about it.
