Book fans are urged to get their tickets for a literary event in west Dorset – one of the few festivals of its kind in the country to be holding live events this year.

People interested in next month's BridLit are urged to move fast as several events have already sold out, organisers say.

A host of well-known faces and acclaimed writers will be appearing at the festival which takes place from Wednesday, November 4 to Saturday, November 7.

Events are being rotated between Bridport Arts Centre and the Electric Palace so that the venues can be thoroughly cleaned in between each one. Social distancing will be in place and staff, stewards and the audience will wear masks.

BridLit director Tanya Bruce-Lockhart said: ‘Contemporary literary fiction, thrillers, nature writing, history, art and politics are all in the mix to make this beautifully-formed festival worth going out for during these dark days of Covid-19."

Amanda Craig’s new novel The Golden Rule has been described as ‘Strangers on a Train meets #MeToo’. In a country divided by poverty, class and Brexit, two women make a pact to murder their husbands. She’ll be at the Electric Palace on Friday, November 6 at 11am.

Broadcaster and social commentator Peter York’s The War Against The BBC couldn’t be more timely, what with accusations of political bias, the row over presenters’ fees and the withdrawal of free TV licences for the over-75s.

He argues that we should all care about the ‘hostile forces’ that threaten its very existence. He’ll be in conversation with Susannah Simons on November 7 at the arts centre at 4.30pm.

For a town that nurtured Fra Newbery director of the influential Glasgow School of Art from 1885 to1917, Lachlan Goudie’s The Story of Scottish Art is very apt for Bridport. With an understanding of the joys and struggles of artists to fulfil their vision, he looks at how and why masterpieces were created, the changes they reflect and the impact they have had on the world. He’s at the Electric Palace on Thursday, November 5 at 11am.

Writer, journalist and broadcaster Robert McCrum’s new book, Shakespearean, is a rich and superbly-drawn portrait of one of the greatest writers who ever lived.

McCrum makes a passionate and deeply personal case that Shakespeare’s words and ideas are not just enduring in their relevance – they are nothing less than the eternal key to our shared humanity.

He is at the Electric Palace on 4 November at 4.30pm.

Lisa Jewell, who is at Bridport Arts Centre on November 5 at 2.30pm, has sold more than 4.5 million books worldwide.

Her first novel, Ralph’s Party, was published in 1999 and was the best-selling debut novel of the year. Since then she has published 16 novels, most lately a number of dark psychological thrillers, including The Girls and Then She Was Gone (both of which were Richard and Judy Book Club picks).

Her latest novel, Invisible Girl, is a story of secrets and injustices, and of how we look in the wrong places for the bad people while the real predators walk among us in plain sight.

Check out bridlit.com for the full line-up and more information. Tickets can also be booked through Bridport Tourist Information Centre on 01308 424901.