The Eras tour may have wrapped its 20-month run – becoming the first tour to gross more than $2bn in the process – but by almost every measure, Taylor Swift remains the biggest pop star in the world: breaking records, uplifting local economies, influencing the 2024 US election and even bringing a new audience to American football thanks to her relationship with Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce.
Her monumental fanbase has never been bigger – so you’ll doubtless have at least one Swift fan in your life. Swift’s quippy lyrics and love of cats have seen her face (and cats’ faces) plastered over all sorts of unofficial plasticky tat – but here’s a more thoughtful way to buy Swift-inspired gifts, for recipients young and old. There’s a blank space on the label: write their name!
The best gifts for Taylor Swift fans
Swiftie power
Fangirls: Scenes From Modern Music Culture by Hannah Ewens
£13.64 at Guardian Bookshop
£14.99 at Waterstones
The Swifties are not only a rabid fanbase, they’re considered a powerful force for advocacy. British critic Hannah Ewens’ excellently reported book gets inside different fan cultures to examine their relationships to their chosen idol, their individual dynamics and their wider societal impact.
Country trio
Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing DVD
Now known as the Chicks, the Texan country trio are one of Swift’s biggest inspirations, both from inspiring her to sow clues in the lyrics sheets to her album to inadvertently teaching her the perils of talking about politics as a country act. This incredible 2007 documentary depicts the aftermath of singer Natalie Maines disparaging George W Bush and the war in Iraq, including footage of former fans burning their CDs outside concerts. Track down a DVD or gift a stream.
Cat lady
Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats by TS Eliot
£9.99 at Guardian Bookshop
£9.99 at Post Script
Pulling double duty here, Old Possum is a gift for cat lovers, as Swift famously is – even playing into the “childless cat lady” memes to make fun of US vice president JD Vance’s misogynist comments in the run-up to the 2024 election – and inspired Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats. In general, the less said about the 2019 film adaptation of the latter, the better – but Swift’s turn as Bombalurina, singing Macavity, a poem featured in this collection, was undoubtedly one of its few high points.
Dance pioneer
Fifteen Years of a Dancer’s Life: With Some Account of her Distinguished Friends by Loïe Fuller
£8.95 at Amazon
£16.15 at Abe Books
While fans wait for Swift to release the re-recording of Reputation, there’s time to learn about the life of the dancer and stage arts innovator who Swift thanked in the closing credits to the tour for that album, calling her a “pioneer in the arts, dance and design – and who fought for artists to own their work”. If you can’t get enough of Fuller’s life, follow this up with a collection of her scientific work, Lecture on Radium.
The gift of film
Mubi subscription
From £49.99 for three months at Mubi
Swift has said that she became obsessed with cinematic history during the pandemic, fuelling her own directorial aspirations. Follow suit with a subscription to the UK’s artsiest film archive.
For more subscriptions to save you time and money, check out our guide
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Make-your-own friendship bracelet
Woodland bracelet-making kit
£12.71 at Etsy
£14.36 at Not on the High Street
The Swiftie friendship bracelet craze is cute, but the amount of plastic involved doesn’t bear thinking about. Try a more eco-friendly option.
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The latest Sally Rooney
Intermezzo
£18 at Guardian Bookshop
£19 at Bookshop
“I think it’s like being inside somebody’s mind,” Swift said of Rooney’s first novel, Conversations With Friends. You can bet she’s already read her new one, about two brothers coming to terms with grief.
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Every Taylor song explained
Taylor Swift – The Stories Behind the Songs by Annie Zaleski
£22.50 at Guardian Bookshop
£17.24 at Amazon
From one of the US’s sharpest and most compassionate music critics, this new book tells the story of the creation, lyrics and production behind every Swift song, and is a cut above the usual Swift cash-in publications.
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Mug up on Travis Kelce’s sport
Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, and a Dream by H G Bissinger
£12.99 at Guardian Bookshop
£12.34 at Bookshop
Newly converted to American football by Swift’s “gigantic” (Hugh Grant’s words) boyfriend? Read Buzz Bissinger’s classic account of a year in the life of a small-town Texas high school team (which inspired the 2000s TV show).
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Learn to play Swift’s latest album
Taylor Swift – The Tortured Poets Department: The Anthology – Guitar Chords With Lyrics Songbook
£18.56 at Blackwell’s
£38.50 (hardback) at Waterstones
Swift has inspired thousands of young people to pick up a guitar. This official book on how to play every song on Tortured Poets – the extended version – is a great incentive to practise.
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Learn to write songs like Taylor
How to Write One Song by Jeff Tweedy
£9.99 at Guardian Bookshop
£9.49 at Bookshop
For anyone making their first forays into songwriting, Jeff Tweedy of Wilco wrote this lovely, practical guide to completing a song.
An album Taylor’s ex loves
The Blue Nile by Hats
On The Tortured Poets Department’s Guilty as Sin?, Swift languishes in the memory of her tryst with the 1975’s Matty Healy, easily identifiable as the devout fan of Scottish indie band, The Blue Nile who, she sings, “sent me Downtown Lights”. The classic 1989 album that gave us the song would make a very chic gift.
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The eco-fashion brand Taylor loves
Free People gift cards
Swift’s style is much debated: does she often wear high street brands to remain accessible to fans, or is it just her taste? Either way, she wears a fair bit of Free People.
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Taylor’s favourite red lippy?
Retro Matte Liquid Lip Colour
Swift is a known Mac fan, and its retro matte range has the kind of staying power that three-hour live shows demand.
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Taylor’s favourite Nigella recipe
Feast: Food that Celebrates Life by Nigella Lawson
£30 at Guardian Bookshop
£20 at Amazon
When Swift wrote about 30 things she’d learned before turning 30, she recommended having three staple dinner party recipes in your repertoire: from Feast, Nigella’s Mughlai chicken is one of them.
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The support artist’s LP
Short n’ Sweet LP by Sabrina Carpenter
£29.99 at Amazon
£34.99 at Rough Trade
The year’s cheekiest breakout pop star supported on the US leg of the Eras tour. Her sixth album is a delight, spanning disco to country, adorned with lashings of innuendo.
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But Daddy, I Love Him inspo
The Little Mermaid limited edition steelbook
A highlight of Tortured Poets, But Daddy, I Love Him! takes its name from the scene in The Little Mermaid in which Ariel’s father forbids her from pursuing her relationship with Prince Eric. Delve into the Halle Bailey remake with this extended version.
