diff --git a/pepper_wizard/cli.py b/pepper_wizard/cli.py
index 4af1520..202f4a4 100644
--- a/pepper_wizard/cli.py
+++ b/pepper_wizard/cli.py
@@ -777,15 +777,22 @@ def _on_escape(event):
 
 def llm_talk_session(robot_client, config, verbose=False):
     """LLM dialogue via always-on VAD on Pepper's front microphone."""
+    from pathlib import Path
     from .logger import get_logger
     from .stt_client import STTClient
     from .llm.client import LLMClient, LLMUnavailable
+    from .llm.config_watcher import LLMConfigWatcher
 
     logger = get_logger("LLMTalk")
     stt_config = config.stt_config
+    llm_config_path = Path(__file__).parent / "config" / "llm.json"
 
     try:
-        llm = LLMClient(config.llm_config)
+        watcher = LLMConfigWatcher(
+            path=llm_config_path,
+            on_change=lambda old, new: _announce_llm_reload(old, new, logger),
+        )
+        llm = LLMClient(watcher)
     except LLMUnavailable as e:
         print_formatted_text(
             HTML("<ansired>LLM unavailable: {}</ansired>").format(str(e))
@@ -937,8 +944,32 @@ def _handle_vad_event(evt, *, review_mode, llm, stt, robot_client, logger, sessi
                      robot_client=robot_client, logger=logger)
 
 
+def _announce_llm_reload(old_config: dict, new_config: dict, logger):
+    """Print and log a one-line summary of which llm.json fields changed."""
+    from html import escape
+
+    keys = set(old_config) | set(new_config)
+    changed = []
+    for key in sorted(keys):
+        if old_config.get(key) != new_config.get(key):
+            if key == "system_prompt":
+                changed.append("system_prompt")
+            else:
+                changed.append(f"{key} {old_config.get(key)!r}→{new_config.get(key)!r}")
+    if not changed:
+        return
+    summary = "config reloaded: " + ", ".join(changed)
+    print_formatted_text(HTML(f"<ansigray>{escape(summary)}</ansigray>"))
+    logger.info("LLMConfigReload", {
+        "changed": changed,
+        "old": old_config,
+        "new": new_config,
+    })
+
+
 def _dispatch_to_llm(user_text, *, source, llm, stt, robot_client, logger):
     # Mute while Pepper is speaking so stt-service ignores self-hearing.
+    # TODO - for the person interrupting pepper this needs some neance. Outside the scope of current PR. 
     stt.mute()
     logger.info("MuteStart", {})
     try:
diff --git a/pepper_wizard/config.py b/pepper_wizard/config.py
index 6d8bdc2..78d24c9 100644
--- a/pepper_wizard/config.py
+++ b/pepper_wizard/config.py
@@ -152,7 +152,6 @@ def __init__(self):
         self.keyboard_config = load_keyboard_config(CONFIG_DIR / "keyboard.json")
         self.temperature_config = load_temperature_config(CONFIG_DIR / "temperature.json")
         self.stt_config = load_stt_config(CONFIG_DIR / "stt.json")
-        self.llm_config = load_llm_config(CONFIG_DIR / "llm.json")
         self.recording_config = load_recording_config(CONFIG_DIR / "recording.json")
 
 def load_config():
diff --git a/pepper_wizard/llm/client.py b/pepper_wizard/llm/client.py
index 947d49b..eceaa69 100644
--- a/pepper_wizard/llm/client.py
+++ b/pepper_wizard/llm/client.py
@@ -1,5 +1,9 @@
 import os
 from collections import deque
+from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
+
+if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    from .config_watcher import LLMConfigWatcher
 
 
 class LLMUnavailable(Exception):
@@ -7,24 +11,21 @@ class LLMUnavailable(Exception):
 
 
 class LLMClient:
-    """Anthropic-backed dialogue client with rolling history.
+    """Anthropic-backed dialogue client backed by a hot-swappable config watcher.
 
-    Lazy-imports `anthropic` so that the rest of PepperWizard keeps importing
-    even when the SDK isn't installed (matches the perception/tracking
-    convention).
+    The watcher is the ground truth for `model`, `system_prompt`, `max_tokens`,
+    `temperature`, and `history_turns`. Each `reply()` call reads the current
+    config from the watcher, so edits to `llm.json` take effect on the next turn.
     """
 
-    def __init__(self, config):
-        self.model = config.get("model", "claude-haiku-4-5")
-        self.system_prompt = config.get(
-            "system_prompt",
-            "You are Pepper, a humanoid robot. Keep replies brief and conversational.",
-        )
-        self.max_tokens = config.get("max_tokens", 256)
-        self.temperature = config.get("temperature", 0.7)
+    def __init__(self, watcher: "LLMConfigWatcher"):
+        self._watcher = watcher
 
-        history_turns = config.get("history_turns", 10)
-        self._history = deque(maxlen=history_turns * 2)
+        # Initialise with the default maxlen; reply() will resize on first call
+        # if the watcher's history_turns differs. We do not call watcher.current()
+        # here so that the watcher call-count seen by callers reflects only
+        # active turns, not construction overhead.
+        self._history = deque(maxlen=10 * 2)
 
         api_key = os.environ.get("ANTHROPIC_API_KEY")
         if not api_key:
@@ -43,15 +44,28 @@ def __init__(self, config):
 
         self._client = anthropic.Anthropic(api_key=api_key)
 
-    def reply(self, user_text):
+    @property
+    def model(self) -> str:
+        return self._watcher.current().get("model", "claude-haiku-4-5")
+
+    def reply(self, user_text: str) -> str:
         """Send `user_text` with the rolling history and return the reply."""
+        config = self._watcher.current()
+
+        desired_maxlen = config.get("history_turns", 10) * 2
+        if self._history.maxlen != desired_maxlen:
+            self._history = deque(self._history, maxlen=desired_maxlen)
+
         self._history.append({"role": "user", "content": user_text})
 
         response = self._client.messages.create(
-            model=self.model,
-            system=self.system_prompt,
-            max_tokens=self.max_tokens,
-            temperature=self.temperature,
+            model=config.get("model", "claude-haiku-4-5"),
+            system=config.get(
+                "system_prompt",
+                "You are Pepper, a humanoid robot. Keep replies brief and conversational.",
+            ),
+            max_tokens=config.get("max_tokens", 256),
+            temperature=config.get("temperature", 0.7),
             messages=list(self._history),
         )
 
diff --git a/pepper_wizard/llm/config_watcher.py b/pepper_wizard/llm/config_watcher.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..452c852
--- /dev/null
+++ b/pepper_wizard/llm/config_watcher.py
@@ -0,0 +1,62 @@
+import json
+from pathlib import Path
+from typing import Callable, Optional
+
+from ..logger import get_logger
+from .client import LLMUnavailable
+
+_logger = get_logger("pepper_wizard.llm.config_watcher")
+
+OnChange = Callable[[dict, dict], None]
+
+
+class LLMConfigWatcher:
+    """File-backed config source that re-reads `llm.json` on mtime change.
+
+    Designed for hot-swapping the LLM dialogue config mid-session. The watcher
+    is the only thing that touches the filesystem; consumers call `current()`
+    each turn and treat the returned dict as authoritative for that turn.
+    """
+
+    def __init__(self, path: Path, on_change: Optional[OnChange] = None):
+        self._path = Path(path)
+        self._on_change = on_change
+        try:
+            stat = self._path.stat()
+            with self._path.open() as f:
+                self._cached = json.load(f)
+        except (OSError, json.JSONDecodeError) as exc:
+            raise LLMUnavailable(
+                f"Could not load LLM config from {self._path}: {exc}"
+            ) from exc
+        self._mtime_ns = stat.st_mtime_ns
+
+    def current(self) -> dict:
+        """Return the current config, re-reading from disk if the file changed."""
+        try:
+            stat = self._path.stat()
+        except OSError as exc:
+            _logger.warning("Could not stat %s: %s", self._path, exc)
+            return self._cached
+
+        if stat.st_mtime_ns == self._mtime_ns:
+            return self._cached
+
+        try:
+            with self._path.open() as f:
+                new_cfg = json.load(f)
+        except (OSError, json.JSONDecodeError) as exc:
+            _logger.warning("Could not reload %s: %s", self._path, exc)
+            return self._cached
+
+        old_cfg = self._cached
+        self._cached = new_cfg
+        self._mtime_ns = stat.st_mtime_ns
+
+        if self._on_change is not None:
+            try:
+                self._on_change(old_cfg, new_cfg)
+            except Exception as exc:
+                _logger.warning("on_change callback raised: %s", exc)
+
+        return new_cfg
diff --git a/tests/test_llm_client.py b/tests/test_llm_client.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..48df202
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_llm_client.py
@@ -0,0 +1,164 @@
+import os
+import unittest
+from types import SimpleNamespace
+from unittest.mock import MagicMock, patch
+
+
+class FakeWatcher:
+    """Stand-in for LLMConfigWatcher with mutable state for tests."""
+
+    def __init__(self, config):
+        self._config = dict(config)
+
+    def current(self):
+        return self._config
+
+    def update(self, **changes):
+        self._config = {**self._config, **changes}
+
+
+def _make_anthropic_response(text):
+    block = SimpleNamespace(type="text", text=text)
+    return SimpleNamespace(content=[block])
+
+
+class LLMClientTests(unittest.TestCase):
+    def setUp(self):
+        os.environ["ANTHROPIC_API_KEY"] = "test-key"
+        self._anthropic_patch = patch("anthropic.Anthropic")
+        self._mock_anthropic = self._anthropic_patch.start()
+        self._mock_messages = MagicMock()
+        self._mock_messages.create.return_value = _make_anthropic_response("hello back")
+        self._mock_anthropic.return_value.messages = self._mock_messages
+
+    def tearDown(self):
+        self._anthropic_patch.stop()
+
+    def test_reply_calls_watcher_each_turn(self):
+        from pepper_wizard.llm.client import LLMClient
+
+        watcher = FakeWatcher({
+            "model": "claude-haiku-4-5",
+            "system_prompt": "be brief",
+            "max_tokens": 100,
+            "temperature": 0.5,
+            "history_turns": 4,
+        })
+        watcher.current = MagicMock(wraps=watcher.current)
+        client = LLMClient(watcher)
+        client.reply("hi")
+        client.reply("again")
+        self.assertEqual(watcher.current.call_count, 2)
+
+    def test_api_call_uses_current_config_values(self):
+        from pepper_wizard.llm.client import LLMClient
+
+        watcher = FakeWatcher({
+            "model": "claude-haiku-4-5",
+            "system_prompt": "be brief",
+            "max_tokens": 50,
+            "temperature": 0.3,
+            "history_turns": 4,
+        })
+        client = LLMClient(watcher)
+        client.reply("hi")
+        kwargs = self._mock_messages.create.call_args.kwargs
+        self.assertEqual(kwargs["model"], "claude-haiku-4-5")
+        self.assertEqual(kwargs["system"], "be brief")
+        self.assertEqual(kwargs["max_tokens"], 50)
+        self.assertEqual(kwargs["temperature"], 0.3)
+
+    def test_history_preserved_across_system_prompt_swap(self):
+        from pepper_wizard.llm.client import LLMClient
+
+        watcher = FakeWatcher({
+            "system_prompt": "old prompt",
+            "history_turns": 4,
+        })
+        client = LLMClient(watcher)
+        client.reply("first")
+        watcher.update(system_prompt="new prompt")
+        client.reply("second")
+        kwargs = self._mock_messages.create.call_args.kwargs
+        self.assertEqual(kwargs["system"], "new prompt")
+        # Two prior turns + the new user message = 3 messages in the second call
+        self.assertEqual(len(kwargs["messages"]), 3)
+        self.assertEqual(kwargs["messages"][0]["content"], "first")
+        self.assertEqual(kwargs["messages"][-1]["content"], "second")
+
+    def test_history_turns_shrink_truncates_oldest(self):
+        from pepper_wizard.llm.client import LLMClient
+
+        watcher = FakeWatcher({"history_turns": 5})
+        client = LLMClient(watcher)
+        for i in range(5):
+            client.reply(f"turn-{i}")
+        # 5 user + 5 assistant = 10 messages in the deque, maxlen 10
+        self.assertEqual(client._history.maxlen, 10)
+        self.assertEqual(len(client._history), 10)
+
+        watcher.update(history_turns=2)
+        client.reply("after-shrink")
+        self.assertEqual(client._history.maxlen, 4)
+        # Rebuild discards anything beyond the new maxlen (4): only the most
+        # recent prior entry plus the new user/assistant pair survive.
+        contents = [m["content"] for m in client._history]
+        self.assertEqual(contents[-2], "after-shrink")
+        self.assertNotIn("turn-0", contents)
+        self.assertNotIn("turn-1", contents)
+        self.assertNotIn("turn-2", contents)
+        self.assertNotIn("turn-3", contents)
+
+    def test_history_turns_grow_preserves_existing(self):
+        from pepper_wizard.llm.client import LLMClient
+
+        watcher = FakeWatcher({"history_turns": 2})
+        client = LLMClient(watcher)
+        client.reply("a")
+        client.reply("b")
+        self.assertEqual(client._history.maxlen, 4)
+        watcher.update(history_turns=10)
+        client.reply("c")
+        self.assertEqual(client._history.maxlen, 20)
+        contents = [m["content"] for m in client._history]
+        self.assertEqual(contents[0], "a")
+        self.assertEqual(contents[-2], "c")
+
+    def test_reply_appends_user_and_assistant_turns(self):
+        from pepper_wizard.llm.client import LLMClient
+
+        watcher = FakeWatcher({"history_turns": 4})
+        client = LLMClient(watcher)
+        self._mock_messages.create.return_value = _make_anthropic_response("the reply")
+        result = client.reply("the question")
+        self.assertEqual(result, "the reply")
+        self.assertEqual(list(client._history), [
+            {"role": "user", "content": "the question"},
+            {"role": "assistant", "content": "the reply"},
+        ])
+
+    def test_reset_clears_history_without_touching_watcher(self):
+        from pepper_wizard.llm.client import LLMClient
+
+        watcher = FakeWatcher({"history_turns": 4})
+        watcher.current = MagicMock(wraps=watcher.current)
+        client = LLMClient(watcher)
+        client.reply("hi")
+        self.assertEqual(len(client._history), 2)
+        before = watcher.current.call_count
+        client.reset()
+        self.assertEqual(len(client._history), 0)
+        self.assertEqual(watcher.current.call_count, before)
+
+    def test_model_property_reflects_watcher(self):
+        from pepper_wizard.llm.client import LLMClient
+
+        watcher = FakeWatcher({"model": "claude-haiku-4-5"})
+        client = LLMClient(watcher)
+        self.assertEqual(client.model, "claude-haiku-4-5")
+        watcher.update(model="claude-sonnet-4-6")
+        self.assertEqual(client.model, "claude-sonnet-4-6")
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    unittest.main()
diff --git a/tests/test_llm_config_watcher.py b/tests/test_llm_config_watcher.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d3ace29
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_llm_config_watcher.py
@@ -0,0 +1,119 @@
+import json
+import os
+import tempfile
+import unittest
+from pathlib import Path
+
+from pepper_wizard.llm.client import LLMUnavailable
+from pepper_wizard.llm.config_watcher import LLMConfigWatcher
+
+
+def _bump_mtime(path: Path):
+    """Force a visible mtime change even on filesystems with coarse timestamps."""
+    stat = path.stat()
+    new_time = stat.st_mtime + 1
+    os.utime(path, (new_time, new_time))
+
+
+class LLMConfigWatcherTests(unittest.TestCase):
+    def setUp(self):
+        fd, name = tempfile.mkstemp(suffix=".json")
+        os.close(fd)
+        self.path = Path(name)
+        self.path.write_text(json.dumps({"model": "claude-haiku-4-5", "temperature": 0.7}))
+
+    def tearDown(self):
+        if self.path.exists():
+            self.path.unlink()
+
+    def test_initial_load_returns_parsed_dict(self):
+        watcher = LLMConfigWatcher(self.path)
+        cfg = watcher.current()
+        self.assertEqual(cfg["model"], "claude-haiku-4-5")
+        self.assertEqual(cfg["temperature"], 0.7)
+
+    def test_repeated_current_returns_same_object_when_unchanged(self):
+        watcher = LLMConfigWatcher(self.path)
+        first = watcher.current()
+        second = watcher.current()
+        self.assertIs(first, second)
+
+    def test_mtime_bump_triggers_reload(self):
+        watcher = LLMConfigWatcher(self.path)
+        _ = watcher.current()
+        self.path.write_text(json.dumps({"model": "claude-sonnet-4-6", "temperature": 0.2}))
+        _bump_mtime(self.path)
+        cfg = watcher.current()
+        self.assertEqual(cfg["model"], "claude-sonnet-4-6")
+        self.assertEqual(cfg["temperature"], 0.2)
+
+    def test_on_change_callback_fires_with_old_and_new(self):
+        events = []
+        watcher = LLMConfigWatcher(
+            self.path,
+            on_change=lambda old, new: events.append((old, new)),
+        )
+        _ = watcher.current()
+        self.path.write_text(json.dumps({"model": "claude-sonnet-4-6"}))
+        _bump_mtime(self.path)
+        _ = watcher.current()
+        self.assertEqual(len(events), 1)
+        old, new = events[0]
+        self.assertEqual(old["model"], "claude-haiku-4-5")
+        self.assertEqual(new["model"], "claude-sonnet-4-6")
+
+    def test_malformed_json_keeps_cached_value_and_logs(self):
+        watcher = LLMConfigWatcher(self.path)
+        good = watcher.current()
+        self.path.write_text("{ this is not json")
+        _bump_mtime(self.path)
+        with self.assertLogs("pepper_wizard.llm.config_watcher", level="WARNING"):
+            cfg = watcher.current()
+        self.assertIs(cfg, good)
+
+    def test_recovers_after_malformed_then_valid(self):
+        events = []
+        watcher = LLMConfigWatcher(
+            self.path,
+            on_change=lambda old, new: events.append((old, new)),
+        )
+        _ = watcher.current()
+        self.path.write_text("{ broken")
+        _bump_mtime(self.path)
+        with self.assertLogs("pepper_wizard.llm.config_watcher", level="WARNING"):
+            _ = watcher.current()
+        self.assertEqual(events, [])
+        self.path.write_text(json.dumps({"model": "claude-opus-4-7"}))
+        _bump_mtime(self.path)
+        cfg = watcher.current()
+        self.assertEqual(cfg["model"], "claude-opus-4-7")
+        self.assertEqual(len(events), 1)
+
+    def test_missing_file_keeps_cached_value(self):
+        watcher = LLMConfigWatcher(self.path)
+        good = watcher.current()
+        self.path.unlink()
+        with self.assertLogs("pepper_wizard.llm.config_watcher", level="WARNING"):
+            cfg = watcher.current()
+        self.assertIs(cfg, good)
+
+    def test_initial_load_failure_raises_llm_unavailable(self):
+        bogus = self.path.with_suffix(".does-not-exist")
+        with self.assertRaises(LLMUnavailable):
+            LLMConfigWatcher(bogus)
+
+    def test_callback_exception_does_not_propagate(self):
+        def boom(*_):
+            raise RuntimeError("callback should not crash watcher")
+
+        watcher = LLMConfigWatcher(self.path, on_change=boom)
+        _ = watcher.current()
+        self.path.write_text(json.dumps({"model": "claude-sonnet-4-6"}))
+        _bump_mtime(self.path)
+        with self.assertLogs("pepper_wizard.llm.config_watcher", level="WARNING"):
+            cfg = watcher.current()
+        self.assertEqual(cfg["model"], "claude-sonnet-4-6")
+
+
+if __name__ == "__main__":
+    unittest.main()