Local charity, Margate Bookie hosts fifth annual literary festival this autumn.

A local charity which works to encourage a love of reading is hosting its fifth annual literary festival this autumn.

The Margate Bookie organises a twice-yearly event which features a mix of established authors, rising literary stars and breakout local talent. The Autumn Bookie takes place from 28 to 30 September at Turner Contemporary and other venues in Margate’s Old Town.

Headlining are Amber Butchart of the BBC’s Civilisations Stories and A Stitch in Time. Her two-part documentary for BBC Radio 4 tracked the rise of vintage clothing and the global ramifications of second-hand style. Amber will preview her new book, The Fashion Chronicles, at the Bookie.

Another huge name from the world of TV is Sathnam Sanghera whose first novel, The Boy With The Topknot aired on BBC2 last year to large ratings and critical acclaim.

The Bookie’s Poetry Slam is being held at the Quarterdeck Brewhouse and will be headlined by Radio 4 regular, Dean Atta. During the evening ten local poets will battle it out for the Margate Bookie belt.

Vanessa King (Action for Happiness) and Elise Valmorbida (Faber & Faber) will run the third session in their Happiness, Community and Creativity course at the Sands Hotel, while the ever-popular Vanguard Readings will introduce you to six hot debut novelists.

Other names to look out for include Broadstairs’ Roopa Farooki, Jess Kidd, PJ Whiteley and Alice Fitzgerald.

There are children’s events every day, a curated popup bookshop at Turner Contemporary and podcasts every day with authors and audience members. Plus, the Bookie will launch two very different book groups for those of you who want to get back into reading once the festival is over.

The Margate Bookie was established in 2015 by Andreas Loizou, said: “My aim was to create a friendly festival which has something for everyone. As well as seeing the authors that are familiar, I would love people to try something different, perhaps discovering their new favourite writer in the process.

“There’s so much local talent and I’m proud the Bookie can help to showcase it. My long-term goal is to make Margate as famous for writing as it is for art.”

The full programme and tickets are available from www.margatebookie.com