The People's Bookshop
Volunteer-run independent bookshop in Prince Bishops Place dealing in affordable second-hand and new titles, with a strong political, labour and local-history focus.
About The People's Bookshop
The People's Bookshop is an independent, volunteer-run bookshop that describes itself as the only radical bookshop in the North East. It opened in 2011 in an attic off Saddler Street and has since moved into larger premises within the Prince Bishops Place shopping centre in the city centre. It deals mainly in affordable second-hand books alongside new titles from smaller and local publishers, spanning fiction, children's books and academic and leisure subjects.
Run as a co-operative and community benefit society, the shop is known for its collections in political biography, socialism, labour history and the local history of the North East. Beyond selling books it operates as a community organising space and a hub for talks and gatherings, staffed by a collective of volunteers. The setting is welcoming and unhurried, with shelves that reward browsing.
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Blog posts and guides that feature The People's Bookshop.

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What's On
Durham Jazz Festival 2026
See booking, performance times vary · Venues across Durham city centre, including the Gala Theatre, Millennium Place, Durham, DH1 1WA
John Lydon: I Could Be Wrong, I Could Be Right
7:30 PM · Gala Theatre, Millennium Place, Durham, DH1 1WA
Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club presents The Ronnie Scott's Soho Songbook
8:00 PM - 10:30 PM · Redhills, Durham Miners' Hall, Flass Street, Durham, DH1 4BE