Next year marks the centenary of the publication of Winnie-the-Pooh, one of the best-selling children’s books of all time. Best-selling biographer Gyles Brandreth knew the real Christopher Robin and his new book is both an intimate and revealing biography of A A Milne (to whom there was so much more than Pooh) and a fascinating exploration ... Gyles Brandreth – Somewhere a Boy and a Bear – A Biography of A A Milne and Winnie-the- Pooh

Across the globe, democracy is in crisis – in the UK it has been rocked by Brexit, the pandemic and successive attempts by governments to bypass legal norms. But how did this happen, and where might we go from here? In a provocative series of essays, former Supreme Court judge and Sunday Times-bestselling author, Jonathan ... Jonathan Sumption – The Challenges of Democracy

Darkness looms over sunny Sidmouth, when an unsolved murder comes to the attention of late-night radio talk show host Edward Temmis. Recently sacked from his beloved job after a devastating tragedy, Edward is cast adrift – until he meets Stevie, whose grandmother, a devoted listener, died in a suspicious fire last year. Well, nobody hurts ... Jeremy Vine – Murder on Line One

Please note that this event has been rescheduled for 12th November. Existing ticket holders can email [email protected] if they are unable to make this date and wish to request a refund. Inspired by Martin Clunes’ own adoption of a former guide dog, Meetings With Remarkable Animals celebrates the fascinating, moving and sometimes astonishing ways animals ... Martin Clunes – Meetings With Remarkable Animals

A quarter of a century in power has allowed Vladimir Putin to enrich himself. He has plundered Russia’s resources, confiscated private businesses and persecuted those who stood against him including Boris Berezovsky, Vladimir Gusinsky, Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Bill Browder putting their assets under the control of his friends and cronies, who creamed off billions from ... Martin Sixsmith – Suing the Kremlin: The battle for Putin’s Billions

Much-loved sports presenter, author and endurance-athlete Vassos Alexander got bitten by the swimming bug during lockdown – heading to his local patch of the Thames to find distraction and solace during that hot summer. Now he can’t pass a body of water without wanting to jump in. Swimmingly is Vassos’ rip-roaring account of how he ... Vassos Alexander – Swimmingly

With sensational new material, biographer Andrew Lownie brings the most extraordinary and dramatic royal story in a generation up to date. Tracing the lives of the former Prince and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson through their childhoods, courtship, marriage, divorce, careers, charitable activities, and ultimate downfall, this is eye-watering biography at its best. Investigating the reality ... Andrew Lownie – Entitled

Jung Chang’s Wild Swans was a book that defined a generation, an epic personal history of Jung, her mother and grandmother – ‘three daughters of China’. From her grandmother’s birth in 1909 under the last emperor, through Mao Zedong’s rule, the Cultural Revolution during which Jung’s parents were subject to unbelievable suffering, it finishes as ... Jung Chang – Fly Wild Swans: My Mother, Myself and China

Archie Gibson’s initiation into desert warfare almost proved to be his last. Barrelling through the sand dunes at the wheel of his truck, Gibson spied a searing flash of light up ahead, the signature of a feared German 88mm gun firing… right at him. He leapt from his speeding vehicle just before it was torn ... Damien Lewis – Behind Enemy Lines: The Special Forces Heroes Who Changed the Course of WW2

LITERARY WALK: WESSEX WRITERSThe Dorchester Literary Festival Walk will be on Sunday 18 October 11am followed by cream tea at the Old Tea House 1–2pm.Join Mark Chutter, Chairman and Academic Director of the Thomas Hardy Society, for a fascinating walk exploring the literary writers of Dorchester including Thomas Hardy, William Barnes , the Powys brothers ... Literary Walk with Mark Chutter

A poetic journey through deep time, in which geologist Anjana Khatwa weaves scientific knowledge with traditional stories to bring alive the stories that rock holds and tells us. From the sacred stones of Stonehenge to the rose red city of Petra, from towering mountains to the smallest grains of sand, rocks have had a profound ... Anjana Khatwa – The Whispers of Rock