Literary Festival delights visitors

This year's Literary Festival at The Hertford Club was a resounding success, with appearances from a variety of authors and speakers, including actor Neil Pearson, who talked about about the posthumous publication of the Alan Rickman Diaries.

This is the fifth year the Hertford Club has staged the event. Some of those speaking on the first day of the festival included Hertford's own Les Middlewood, author of 'One for the Road: A History of Hertford Pubs', poets Tom Hurst, Tará McKerr & Poppy Winter, and actress and voice-over artists Aoife McMahon.

Christian Govan talked about his extraordinary life-journey into mental illness and wrongful arrest, which later led to drink, drug and gambling addiction, courageously covered in his autobiography 'The Enemy With My Face'.

Rounding off the Friday was actor John Lyons who talked with Rick Mayston about his career and autobiography ‘Not Just George’.

Day two of the festival opened with Dr. Joe Saunders diuscussing Sir Alfred Russel Wallace and his scientific relationship with Charles Darwin.

Later in the afternoon Daren Peary read some of his poems whilst John Rogers talked about his stories of London. Jon Trigg discussed military history and his time in Northern Island, followed by Alrx Deane, author of 'More Lessons from History: Uncovering the colourful characters of the past'.

Saturday's final speakers were renowned lawyer Jason McCue talking about his law firm and pioneering cases against terrorists, dictators, rogue states and corporations; and by actor Neil Pearson duiscussing his passion for rare book and his role in publishing The Alan Rickman Diaries.

Thee festival also featured talks and live music from Pat Crilly, Peter Crossley, Laura Dannan, The Banter Boys and The Junkyard Dawg Jug Band.