The 2023 Penarth Literary Festival has now reached the half-way point, but there are lots of fantastic events still to come! The twelve-day literary bonanza features a packed programme of talks, workshops and signings featuring household names, fiction heavyweights, award-winning Welsh writers, leading academics and historians, debut children's authors, a book-themed quiz night and much more.

The festival, which runs until 25 June, is organised by Griffin Books who were recently named UK Independent Bookshop of the Year in the 2023 British Book Awards.

Festivalgoers of all ages have already been delighted by events and workshops featuring national treasure and bestselling author The Reverend Richard Coles, local author and broadcaster Paul Moorcraft, illustrator Jack Skivens, children's author Lizzie Huxley-Jones, and Penarth resident and scholar Vicki Joule.

However, there are lots of literary delights still in store. Fans of fiction can still book tickets for events with: acclaimed novelist Diana Evans (Tuesday, 20 June), who will be discussing her new book A House for Alice, which has been shortlisted for the 2023 Orwell Prize for Political Fiction; and rising star Laura Shepherd-Robinson (24 June), whose new novel The Square of Sevens is an epic and mysterious tale set in Georgian high society.

Penarth Literary Festival will also feature many notable Welsh authors: Mike Parker and Jon Gower will come together for their non-fiction event The Full Welsh (22 June) exploring the coast and border of Wales; and there will be special Welsh-language Zoom event celebrating the authors on this year's prestigious Wales Book of the Year Short List (21 June).

Saturday night (24 June) sees the return of the lively Festival Quiz Night. However, this year there's an added twist! Each team will be captained by a local author who'll guide their team through the rounds with their superior literary knowledge (we hope).

Finally, the festival will be rounded off by the Poetry Showcase (25 June), an annual event that has become incredibly popular with local residents. This year the showcase is hosted as ever by Penarth poet Stephen Payne, and will include poetry from Josephine Corcoran, Abigail Parry and Tôpher Mills, and music from Michael Munnik.

Hollie Aldridge, Events and Communications Manager at Griffin Books, said: "We've been working hard behind the scenes on the Penarth Literary Festival for months now, so we're all really excited that it's finally here! There's something for all ages and interests in this year's programme and we're looking forward to welcoming authors from across the UK to our town. A number of the events are close to selling out - which is wonderful - so we would advise people to book tickets now to avoid missing out!"

To view the full Penarth Literary Festival programme and to buy tickets visit: www.ticketsource.co.uk/griffinbooks

Tickets can also be booked in person from Griffin Books, 9A Windsor Road, Penarth.