All set for the Yeovil Literary Festival

FINAL preparations are being made ahead of this weekend’s first-ever Yeovil Literary Festival.

The festival will run from tomorrow (Friday, September 20) through to Sunday (September 22) with a host of well-known names from the world of art and literature.

The project is being co-ordinated by the Octagon alongside the Waterstones bookshop in Yeovil and the Yeovil Community Arts Association. The events will be taking place at the Octagon, the Manor Hotel and Waterstones.

PHOTO - RIGHT: Sir Tony Robinson kicks-off the festival on Friday (September 20) at 11am.

The festival kicks-off this (Thursday) evening at the Manor Hotel in Yeovil with a literary dinner with the Sunday Times best selling author Santa Montefiore.

But the festival begins for real tomorrow (Friday, September 20) when the ever-popular Sir Tony Robinson will be holding an event for schools in the Octagon’s auditorium from 11am in which he will bring history to life.

Former leader of the Liberal Democrats and Yeovil MP, Paddy Ashdown, will be at the Manor Hotel in Yeovil from 6pm on Friday to talk about his latest book looking at the Cockleshell Heroes of the Second World War.

There will be an “in conversation with” event at the Octagon on Friday evening from 7.30pm with actress and author Rula Lenska, while on Saturday (Sept 21) morning singing couple David and Carrie Grant will be leading music-filled fun for children aged from four to seven from 10am.

Further highlights of the festival come on Saturday afternoon at 2pm when Dom Joly, star of the Trigger Happy TV, will be discussing his new book, Scary Monsters and Super Creeps, at the Octagon from 2pm.

PHOTO - TOP: Rula Lenska will be at the Octagon "in conversation" on Friday, September 20, from 7.30pm.

PHOTO - LEFT: Storyteller Michale Morpurgo will be at the Octagon on Saturday, September 21, from 6pm with Private Peaceful - The Concert.

Cricket legend David Gower will be at the Octagon on Saturday from 4pm to talk about his career, while from 6pm the master-storyteller and best-selling author Michael Morpurgo joins the English a cappella trio Coope, Boyes and Simpson in a rare performance of Private Peaceful – The Concert.

Sunday (Sept 22) sees Dame Jenni Murray, the voice of BBC Radio 4s Woman’s Hour, will be hosting an “afternoon with” from 2pm.

The full programme for the Yeovil Literary Festival is live on the Octagon website at www.octagon-theatre.co.uk.

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