A stellar line up of authors, including Man Booker Prize winner Hilary Mantel and TV historian Dan Snow, will appearing in Malmesbury for its popular History Weekend.
Organised by BBC History Magazine, tickets will go on sale on Tuesday for the festival taking place from October 16 to 19.
The festival, now in its second year, will feature more than 35 internationally famous historians and authors and a new venue to cope with the increased demand.
This year’s lineup also includes the former Liberal Democrat leader Lord Paddy Ashdown and broadcaster and journalist Charles Spencer.
The programme will feature lectures and talks covering topics including the First World War, Britain’s Pagan heritage, terror and faith in Elizabethan England and witchcraft and propaganda during the English Civil War.
Tickets will be available online from Tuesday at www.historyweekend.com
They can be purchased for individual lectures, with a discounted rate available for subscribers to BBC History Magazine.
Talks will once again take place in Malmesbury’s Abbey and town hall, and a marquee will this year be erected next to the abbey to provide a further talk venue.
Dave Musgrove, publisher of BBC History Magazine, said: “I am delighted that Malmesbury will once again play host to the BBC History Magazine History Weekend and our exceptional lineup of top-name historians and authors.
"Following overwhelming public demand for tickets for our inaugural festival, we are expanding the 2014 event with a new venue and talks starting on the Thursday evening. We look forward to welcoming our readers and history enthusiasts then.”
BBC History Magazine will once again be partnering with Malmesbury School to engage local young historians, with students invited to meet and greet the speakers and introduce talks over the weekend.
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