Two Wigtown books are optioned by Hollywood

This year’s Wigtown Book Festival was the biggest and most successful yet – with audiences of around 29,000. The provisional figures for the 2018 event, the 20th to be held, show a 20% increase compared to 2017 and will play a major role in raising awareness of Scotland’s National Book Town. The south west Scottish…

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Bellany’s The Boat Builders to go on public display

A ‘key work’ by acclaimed Scots artist John Bellany is no longer in private ownership and will go on display to the public. After remaining privately owned for some 55 years, one of the earliest and most significant paintings by the internationally acclaimed Bellany will go on permanent public display as part of the Scottish…

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Kilted Yoga’s Finlay joins Wigtown Book Festival

Finlay Wilson, whose first Kilted Yoga video has had more than 70 million views on the internet, was among the guests at the 20th Wigtown Book Festival. Wilson, who 11 years ago had to use a wheelchair or walk on crutches because a bone condition in his legs left him in such pain, has transformed…

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Learn the truth about dinosaurs from an expert

A leading dinosaur expert is set to startle and surprise with some startling truths about the creatures that ruled the world for 150 million years during a talk at the Wigtown Book Festival. Dinosaur hunter Steve Brusatte, a University of Edinburgh palaeontologist, will discuss his bestseller The Rise and Fall of the Dinosaurson Sunday, 30…

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Captain Corelli writer brings his own mandolin

The writer of Captain Corelli’s Mandolin was in Scotland over the weekend as a guest of the Wigtown Book Festival. Louis de Bernieres, famed for writing the novel which was later adapted for the big screen and starring Nicolas Gage, not only spoke but played and sang at this year’s festival in Dumfries and Galloway.…

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Book festival hears that death should be celebrated

Scots should be celebrating death and those who give their bodies to medical science, according to a leading crime writer. Professor Dame Sue Black was speaking this weekend at a packed event at the Wigtown Book Festival the forensic anthropologist discussed a range of subjects – from her Scottish upbringing through to the gratitude we…

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No papering over the cracks at book festival

Interior decoration with wallpaper is nothing new – but to hang it on the outside of a building is definitely unique. Artist Astrid Jaekel has wallpapered the outside of around a dozen shops and other buildings in the centre of Wigtown ahead the town’s 20th annual book festival. Each design tells a story about a…

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Celebrating the volunteers at book festival’s heart

A special event has been held to thank the army of volunteers who make the Wigtown Book Festival possible. Ahead of the 20th annual event, around 150 adults and children, aged from under 10 to over 80, give time throughout the year carrying out an enormous range of tasks. Most are from Dumfries and Galloway,…

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Hannah’s book of fantastic creatures wins Kelpies Prize

Freelance illustrator Hannah Foley has been revealed as the winner of the Kelpies Prize 2018. Hannah’s success came at an award ceremony at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Her prize-winning entry, The Lost Wizard of Nine Witches Wood, is a warm and quirky whirlwind of an adventure, featuring shapeshifters, enchanted bicycles, and a whole host…

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Book festival authors put in the picture

Between the Lines – Portraits of Authors is a unique exhibition running during the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Since 2009 photographer Chris Close has completed a unique body of author portraits at the Edinburgh International Book Festival. Described as a ‘live’ exhibition he photographs on site in Charlotte Square Gardens and the work is hung…

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