WHEN this week's Bridport Literary Festival is all over there is still a celebration of words to enjoy.

Brand new festival the BridLit Fringe, which concentrates on words of all sorts, will be bursting onto the Bridport Scene from November 12 to 16.

Following straight on from the Bridport Literary Festival, and supported by the BridLit organisers, the Fringe aims to expand the concept of what literature can be.

Many people who don’t particularly see themselves as into books will find something to interest them. Among the topics to be covered are crime, sports, sci-fi, seldom heard voices and performance poetry.

Proving popular so far is the smuggling and poachers talk, for which half the tickets have already been sold.

The Fringe also wanted to keep the costs low, in line with the ethos of accessibility that the festival prides itself on. So many of the venues have given their space for free, and no ticket price is above £5.

The performers lined up for the festival are a very diverse and interesting selection. The fringe is excited to have attracted big names such as Dave Kendall; the well-known graphic artist who has worked on 2000AD, Necroscope, and World of Warcraft. He will be talking about the Art of the Visual Story. Also appearing at Colfox School will be the Young Adult novelist, Steve Tasane, talking about his new book, Child 1. It was listed by the Times educational supplement as one of the hottest children’s books of summer 2018, and is a tale about undocumented children in refugee camps - they have stories to tell but no papers to prove them.

There will also be a selection of talented local performers. Apothecary, voted one of the most popular spoken word events in the country, will this time be appearing in the colourful and exotic Lyric Theatre. Well-known local poets Kim Squirrel, Sarah Acton and Sarah Adjoa Parker will be performing poems in the newly-furbished LSI, about Land, Love and Belonging. And local entrepreneur Mick Ford, owner of the vintage shop Ruby in the Dust, talks about his book In off the Streets. Its photos illuminate Fulham’s snooker halls in the 1970s, and the characters that inhabited them.

Even the venues of the BridLit Fringe will be quirky and unusual – from The Rockburn Bouldering Centre to Clocktower Music, via the Museum.

You can find out more on the BridLit Fringe website, and buy tickets for the events online, or at Bridport Tourist Information Centre. See bridlitfringe.co.uk for more information.