There’s always something happening at Britain’s Friendliest
Book Festival. Read on for all the latest news and images
starting with the most recent ...
LATEST NEWS, PHOTOS & FILMS
22nd August
FESTIVAL HITS
BIG TIME!
It's official -
the Appledore Book Festival is now amongst the
top 30 Book Festivals to visit this year! The
listing published in the Times and available for
viewing in the Times on-line website puts
Appledore up with the likes Edinburgh and
Hay-on-Wye. Nick Arnold, the Festival Director
commented, "For a festival to make it into the
top 30 in its second year is a unique
achievement and a rare honour."
LATEST NEWS, PHOTOS & FILMS
25th July
Like
Books? Here’s a FREE Ticket!
In yet another first for a UK Book Festival
Appledore Book Festival has teamed up with Devon
Libraries to offer free tickets to hundreds of
children who complete this year’s summer reading
challenge.
The summer reading challenge involves children
reading six library books over the summer
holiday. It’s a national scheme operated through
libraries all over the country.
This year in Devon hundreds of young readers
will get the chance to claim their free ticket
once they complete the challenge. Said Festival
Director Nick Arnold:
“The Festival was set up to raise funds for
Appledore Library and promote a love of reading
and learning so it’s really appropriate that
we’ve got this offer going thanks to Devon
Libraries. We hope it will give hundreds of
Devon children and their families the chance to
meet a real live author and enjoy that wonder of
books at first-hand.”
Free ticket offer conditions
The Free tickets offer applies to events aimed
at children and young people.
Each child or group must be accompanied by at
least one paying adult.
Free ticket allocation for each event is limited
and therefore the free tickets for each event
will depend on availability.
A leaflet describing the offer is available at
Libraries and a further leaflet with
instructions on how to claim the free ticket
will be given to each child when they complete
the challenge.
LATEST NEWS, PHOTOS & FILMS
9th July
Goodbye
Jackie – Hello Nick!
Appledore
Book Festival organisers are sorry to
announce that owing to a recent heart
operation bestselling author Jacqueline
Wilson will be unable to present her
event at this year’s Appledore Book
Festival at St. Mary’s Church,
Appledore, 2.30 pm on Sunday 5 October.
But DON’T PANIC – because just when all
seemed lost Jacqueline’s illustrator,
Nick
Sharratt has kindly stepped in to
present the sell-out event on the
author’s behalf. Nick will be talking
about his long and close working
relationship with Jacqueline Wilson and
how together they create the
best-selling, prize-winning books from
his perspective as the illustrator. This
is the same talk as Nick will be
presenting at other leading festivals
that Jacqueline Wilson has had to pull
out of such as Hay-on-Wye and Edinburgh.
Appledore
Book Festival Director Nick Arnold said:
“We were all devastated to hear of
Jackie’s illness and would like to
join with her many fans in Devon to wish
her a speedy recovery. The loss of
Jacqueline for the Book Festival looked
to be a serious blow but we are
delighted to hear that Nick Sharratt
will be standing in for her.”
Although the Appledore Book Festival
terms and conditions state that refunds
won’t be paid unless an event is
cancelled without a replacement speaker,
the organisers are keen to ensure that
those who bought tickets for Jacqueline
Wilson’s event are not disappointed.
They are therefore inviting anyone who
holds such a ticket and who does not
want to see Nick Sharratt’s talk to
apply for a full refund. In order to do
this they will need to post the ticket
with a note of their name and address to
the Appledore Book Festival Box Office
at Docton Court Gallery, 2 Myrtle
Street, Appledore EX39 1PH.
Alternatively they can call in at the
office with their ticket during normal
opening hours. In either case a refund
cheque will be sent out by post to their
home address together with the ticket if
it is still valid for another event.
Background Information
Nick Sharratt is one of Britain’s
best-loved and most successful
illustrators with over 100 books to his
credit. His many prizes and awards
include the Children’s Book Award and
the SHE/WH Smith Book Award and his work
appears on library posters, reading mats
and an ever-increasing array of
Jacqueline Wilson magazines and
merchandise from diaries to duvets.
Although perhaps best known for his work
with Jacqueline Wilson, Nick is also
famous as a best-selling author and
illustrator in his own right – renowned
for books aimed at younger children such
as More Pants and the Big Book of Crazy
Mix-ups. In this capacity on 5 October
he will also be presenting an Appledore
Book Festival event for younger children
and their families called ‘PANTASTIC!’
LATEST NEWS, PHOTOS & FILMS
16th June
BOOK FESTIVAL’S HELPING
HAND TO NEW AUTHORS
In another first for a
British Book Festival, the
Appledore Book Festival
is
organising a unique
Writers Forum to help new and aspiring
writers. According to Director of
Sponsorship, Jim Jackson: “The aim of
the event is to enable published and
unpublished authors to present their
work to the book trade and the public,
with a view to achieving publication,
expanding sales and courting publicity
in a friendly and mutually supportive
atmosphere.”
Festival Director Nick
Arnold added: “It’s a big leap from
bottom drawer to bookshop – the Festival
aims to create a bridge into print and
help spot the literary stars of
tomorrow.”
Tickets are £20 but only
available by direct enquiry from the
festival – for tickets and more details
without obligation please e-mail:
Take
one 10 foot dragon, one damsel in
distress and a knight in shining armour
mounted on a horse named Splodge and a
chest full of
Appledore Book Festival
brochures and what do you have?
A dragon
slaying on Appledore’s historic Quay? A
recipe for chaos?
Not
at all! You have the launch of the
Appledore Book
Festival brochure on St.
George’s Day! Hundreds of Appledore
residents applauded, and TV cameras
whirred and reporters scribbled in their
notebooks as St George gallantly rescued
the damsel and liberated the brochure
from the clutches of the dragon.
Festival Director Nick Arnold said:
“None of us will ever forget the launch
of our second festival brochure. Now all
we need to do is to spread the good news
far and wide!”
We would like to thank our sponsors for
this event – the Co-operative group and
Follyfoot Stables for providing Splodge
and St. George!
LATEST FILMS
April 23rd
Here is the launching of the
2008 Appledore Book Festival
brochure with St George rescuing
a damsel in distress from the
Dragon!
Nick
Sharratt has kindly stepped in to
present the sell-out event on the
author’s behalf. Nick will be talking
about his long and close working
relationship with Jacqueline Wilson and
how together they create the
best-selling, prize-winning books from
his perspective as the illustrator. This
is the same talk as Nick will be
presenting at other leading festivals
that Jacqueline Wilson has had to pull
out of such as Hay-on-Wye and Edinburgh.
Take
one 10 foot dragon, one damsel in
distress and a knight in shining armour
mounted on a horse named Splodge and a
chest full of
Appledore Book Festival
brochures and what do you have?
Not
at all! You have the launch of the
Appledore Book
Festival brochure on St.
George’s Day! Hundreds of Appledore
residents applauded, and TV cameras
whirred and reporters scribbled in their
notebooks as St George gallantly rescued
the damsel and liberated the brochure
from the clutches of the dragon.
