Beachside literary types are in for a treat next week, as Whitlit, Whitstable’s annual literary celebration, breezes back into the seaside town for its third year, with a James Bond theme running across the five-day festival.
From Wednesday 11 to Sunday 15 May, literature lovers can indulge in a riot of literary events, including an appearance by the author of Chocolat, Joanne Harris; Steve Cole talks about his first Young Bond book, Shoot to Kill; there’s a panel discussion of Fleming’s Goldfinger, set largely in Kent (and, if you ask me, perhaps the best of the Fleming canon); Whitstable’s own crime writer, Julie Wassmer, talks about writing crime for television and novel (see our review of the first novel in her series, The Whitstable Pearl, here). The festival opens with a musical celebration of James Bond at the Community College, Whitstable, from the 1st Whitstable Scout Group Band, whilst there are events and activities for younger children throughout the day on Saturday 14 May.
Plenty to which to look forward: find out more about the festival here.