More than 8,000 tickets have been sold for this year’s Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival, which begins next week.

The festival, which has become one of the most established and respected literary events in the region, takes place from September 18 to 22, and brings a wide range of authors, speakers and thought leaders to the town.

And there are still some tickets available for events over the five days. The Festival also stages a full programme for families, some of which are free, and take place over the weekend of September 21 and 22. Children’s authors appearing include bestselling and multi award-winning author Rob Biddulph; Yuval Zommer, artist and author of The Wild, and Clare Helen Welsh, creator of Lenny the Lemur.

There are also workshops with Aardman Studios, manga drawing and a host of free events over the weekend, all themed around wildlife and nature. The Beach Hut Book Swap returns, opening its doors from September 14 and new for this year is entertainment in the festival marquee every evening.

Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival, which is celebrating its 16th anniversary is a charitable organisation. It is committed to supporting and encouraging literacy and to inspiring young people to read and enjoy books. It takes authors into local schools and provides book-sets for local schools.

The main festival will be welcoming some big names to Budleigh Salterton this year, including Jonathan Dimbleby, Russell Watson, Carol Klein and Craig Brown. There are more than 70 authors appearing over the five days.

Sue Briggs, chair of the Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival committee, said: “This promises to be another fantastic festival and we’re looking forward to welcoming some amazing authors to Budleigh. Many thanks to our very committed volunteers and trustees who enable us to stage a brilliant festival every year.”

Tickets are still available for some events. To book, visit their website.